Now it’s Jon Stewart‘s turn — and he really didn’t hold back.
In fact, he might have set an f-bomb record for The Daily Show.
The Daily Show host broke his silence about CBS abruptly announcing an end date to his friend and former colleague Stephen Colbert‘s top-rated The Late Show.
Some brief background before we get into Stewart’s comments: The Daily Show and The Late Show share the same parent company, Paramount Global, which is facing financial challenges amid its effort to close a merger with Skydance Media in an $8 billion deal. The shocking cancellation decision was announced just a few days after Colbert criticized Paramount for agreeing to settle President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against 60 Minutes for its Vice President Kamala Harris’ interview. Colbert called the $16 million payment a “big fat bribe” as many considered the lawsuit without merit and Paramount Global’s merger has been pending FCC approval.
After showing a litany of examples of companies agreeing to demands made by Trump, he came to last week’s news, where Colbert was axed for claimed “financial reasons.”
“Stephen exceed all expectations in the role [as Late Show host] and became the number-one late-night show on network television has been an undeniable great pleasure for me as a viewer and as his friend,” said Stewart (video below), who worked with Colbert on The Daily Show from 1999 to 2005. “Now I acknowledge late-night TV is a struggling financial model. We are all basically operating a Blockbuster kiosk inside of a Tower Records. But when your industry is faced with changes, you don’t just call it a day … The fact that CBS didn’t try to save their number-one rated late-night franchise that’s been on the air for over three decades is part of what’s making everybody wonder: Was this ‘purely financial’? Or maybe it’s the path of least resistance for your $8 billion merger to kill a show that you know rankled a fragile and vengeful president who’s so insecure that he’s suffering terribly from a case of chronic penis insufficiency.”
Stewart was just getting warmed up at this point. He continued: “I believe CBS lost the benefit of the doubt two weeks prior when they sold out their flagship news program to pay an extortion fee to settle with the President. Look, I understand the corporate fear. 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.
“What made you that money are shows that say something, shows that take a stand, shows that are unafraid…” he said. “If you believe — as corporations or as networks — that you can make yourselves so innocuous that you can serve a gruel so flavorless that you will never again be on the boy king’s radar … Why would anyone watch you? And you are fucking wrong.”
Stewart then pointed out that Trump just sued media mogul and Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch over The Wall Street Journal‘s scoop about an innuendo-stuffed birthday card that Trump reportedly wrote to Jeffrey Epstein.
“[Murdoch] is the man who — other than Biden — may be the most responsible for getting Trump elected,” Stewart snarked. “Fox spends 24 hours a day blowing Trump, and it’s not enough. Imagine suing somebody mid-blow — ‘finish up down there, and I’ll see you in court.’”
Wrapped up Stewart: “If you’re trying to figure out why Stephen’s show is ending, I don’t think the answer can be found in some smoking gun email or phone call from Trump to CBS executives or in CBS QuickBooks spreadsheets on the financial health of late night. I think the answer is in the fear and pre-compliance that is gripping all of America’s institutions at this very moment, institutions that have chosen not to fight the vengeful and vindictive actions of our pubic hair-doodling commander in chief. To those corporations and advertisers and universities and law firms, all of them, if you still think that bending the knee to trunk will save you, I have one thing to say [breaking into song]: I know you’re scared, I know you’re weary, I know your plans don’t include me, but these are troubled times, so sack the fuck up!”
Stewart then led a chorus on a chant of telling corporations, “go fuck yourselves” if they bend the knee to Trump.
Last week, before the Colbert announcement, Stewart speculated on his The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart podcast about whether The Daily Show will survive.
“Unfortunately, we haven’t heard anything from them,” Stewart said. “They haven’t called me and said, ‘Don’t get too comfortable in that office, Stewart.’ But let me tell you something, I’ve been kicked out of shittier establishments than that. We’ll land on our feet. I honestly don’t know. I think we’re the only sort of life that exists on a current basis other than South Park. But I’d like to think we bring enough value to the property, like if they’re looking at it as purely a real estate transaction, I think we bring a lot of value. But that may not be their consideration. I don’t know, they may sell the whole fucking place for parts. I just don’t know.”