CBS stunned fans of “The Late Show” on Thursday after it announced that it would cancel the Stephen Colbert-led program, a move that renewed attention to a recent jab that the host made toward the network’s parent company over its heavily panned $16 million settlement with President Donald Trump.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) shared a clip from Colbert’s Monday monologue on social media where he slammed Paramount Global for settling a lawsuit with Trump, who claimed that a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris was deceptively edited to aid her chances of winning the election.
That settlement notably arrived as Paramount looks to merge with Skydance Media in a multibillion-dollar deal, one that requires approval from the Trump administration to proceed.
“As someone who has always been a proud employee of this network, I am offended. I don’t know if anything — anything — will repair my trust in this company,” Colbert quipped. “But, just taking a stab at it, I’d say $16 million would help.”
The host proceeded to point out that Paramount once described the lawsuit as “completely without merit” before joking that the company put a price tag on its “dignity” and referred to the settlement as a “big fat bribe.”
Colbert, a frequent Trump critic, previously made fun of Paramount back in May amid reports that the company was ready to settle the lawsuit.
Warren echoed Colbert’s sentiment as she wrote on X that the deal “looks like bribery” and America “deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.”
In May, Warren, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and more lawmakers sent a letter to Paramount Global chair Shari Redstone warning her not to make a “grave mistake” by settling the lawsuit.
At the time, Sanders — when asked by Colbert about the letter to his “ultimate boss” — quipped that it could be the host’s “last show” before stressing that such a deal could set a dangerous precedent for other media companies.
Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who is set to appear on Thursday’s episode of “The Late Show,” also criticized CBS’ move.
“If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better,” Schiff wrote on X.
Other critics alleged that the move by CBS was political motivated although the network claims it was “purely a financial decision.”