A small protest in support of late-night host Stephen Colbert fizzled out in front of the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan over the weekend, drawing fewer than two dozen participants despite being billed as a national call for action.
Dubbed the “We’re With Colbert” rally, the demonstration was organized in response to CBS’s decision to cancel The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which the network attributed to financial losses rather than political pressure. However, organizers and a handful of attendees claimed the cancelation amounted to a First Amendment attack.
“Our country is not perfect, never has been,” said one protest organizer. “But we’ve always had the First Amendment, and now Mango Mussolini is trying to take that from us,” he added, referring to President Donald Trump.
Despite the rhetoric, the protest was short-lived and sparsely attended. According to the New York Post, the group disbanded within minutes after failing to gain momentum.
CBS Cites Financial Pressures
CBS executives announced last week that The Late Show would be canceled in May 2026, with the franchise retiring alongside Colbert. The network insisted the decision was purely financial, citing ongoing losses of roughly $40 million annually and the costs of maintaining a full staff of 200 employees. The company praised Colbert’s legacy, calling him “irreplaceable” and positioning the cancelation as a response to a shifting late-night media landscape.
“This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night,” the network said in a statement. “It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content, or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Political Accusations and Trump’s Celebration
Some, however, remain skeptical. The timing of the announcement — coming just days after Colbert criticized Paramount’s $16 million settlement with President Trump over the Skydance Media merger — has fueled accusations of political retaliation. Colbert had called the settlement “a big, fat bribe,” during one of his final broadcasts.
President Trump responded with characteristic bluntness, celebrating the show’s demise. “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings,” Trump said. “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show.”
Colbert responded on air, telling the president to “go f—” himself.
A Fading Late-Night Era
The cancelation of The Late Show signals a broader decline for traditional late-night programming, which has struggled in recent years amid competition from streaming platforms, political fatigue, and changing viewer habits. Once a flagship of network television, Colbert’s show had become increasingly political in tone, drawing praise from progressive audiences but turning away broader swaths of viewers.
While some protestors labeled the show’s end a “First Amendment attack,” CBS’s financial disclosures and viewership trends suggest the decision was part of a larger cost-cutting strategy.
With the protest drawing more media attention than attendees, the episode may serve as a reflection of the waning cultural clout of legacy late-night television — and a signal that even its biggest names are no longer untouchable.
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Nobody cares. He won’t be missed. (I never watched the pompous ass)