Jon Stewart says CBS and Paramount get their value from programming like ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’

Jon Stewart, who hosted The Daily Show on Comedy Central from 1999 to 2015 and has returned for once-a-week hosting stints since 2024, lashed out at his show’s parent company for choosing to “unceremoniously” end The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and discontinue the franchise.

In a segment on Monday, Stewart noted his well-documented allegiance to Colbert, even showing a photo of the duo when they were both on The Daily Show from 1999 to 2005.

While statements about the events surrounding the cancellation of The Late Show have been made by many celebrities on social media—and even by hosts of other late-night programs—Stewart added to the conversation by boldly calling out CBS for appearing to overlook the value that compelling late-night programs bring to the media giants that own them.

“I understand the fear that you and your advertisers have with $8 billion at stake, but understand this: Truly, the shows that you now seek to cancel, censor, and control—a not insignificant portion of that $8 billion value came from those fucking shows—that’s what made you that money,” Stewart said directly into the camera.  

The $8 billion that Stewart is referring to is the proposed merger between Paramount Global, which owns CBS, and Skydance, a production company founded and helmed by David Ellison, son of tech billionaire and Trump supporter Larry Ellison.

The deal has faced regulatory hurdles, first under the Biden administration and then under the Trump administration. All of this also comes as CBS News announced in July that it will settle a lawsuit filed against 60 Minutes by Trump, who claims that the show unfairly edited an interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris to make her look more favorable. 

“The fact that CBS didn’t try to save their No. 1-rated network late-night franchise that’s been on the air for over three decades is part of what’s making everyone wonder, was this purely financial or maybe the path of least-resistance for your $8 billion merger?” Stewart asked on his show. 

Fast Company reached out to CBS, Paramount Global, and Skydance Media. None immediately responded to a request for comment. CBS has referred to the decision to cancel The Late Show as a financial one and unrelated to the show’s content, citing a “challenging backdrop” for late-night television.

Although The Late Show has reportedly been losing roughly $40 million a year, according to a source cited by the Wall Street Journal, Stewart’s larger point is buoyed by the fact that Paramount earns more than half of its revenue from its television businesses.

Indeed, Paramount has played up its TV assets, including The Late Show and much of its news content, in its pitch to investors about the proposed merger. Colbert’s image appears multiple times on the New Paramount PowerPoint presentation, with the company touting CBS as a leader in late-night TV.

Ratings from Nielsen likewise show The Late Show as the top-rated show in its block, with about 2.417 million viewers across 41 new episodes.

“If you believe, as corporations or as networks, you can make yourself so innocuous, that you can serve a gruel so flavorless that you will never again be on the boy king’s radar? A) why would anyone watch you? And B) you are fucking wrong,” Stewart said.