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David Letterman, the celebrated creator of The Late Show, has publicly condemned CBS for its recent decision to cancel the long-running late-night program hosted by Stephen Colbert. He described the network’s actions as ‘pure cowardice’ and firmly criticized the treatment of his successor in this unexpected move.
During an appearance on The Barbara Gaines Show, a podcast hosted by his former executive producer, Letterman passionately voiced his disagreement with CBS’s justification for the cancellation. He expressed skepticism toward claims that financial difficulties were responsible, attributing the decision to poor management by both CBS and its parent company, Paramount.
Letterman did not hold back in his assessment. ‘This is pure cowardice,’ he stated emphatically. ‘They did not do the correct thing. They did not handle Stephen Colbert — the face of that network — in the way he deserves to have been handled.’
The former host’s remarks come in the wake of CBS’s contentious decision, which follows a series of controversies involving Colbert’s outspoken criticism of the current political landscape. Following an incident involving a significant financial settlement with former President Donald Trump regarding editorial decisions related to a 60 Minutes interview, Letterman suggested that CBS’s leadership lacked commitment to journalistic integrity.
Letterman pointed specifically to the $16 million settlement made between Paramount and Trump as indicative of a declining respect for press freedom. He stated that the company ‘decided they didn’t care about freedom of the press,’ further questioning their motives.
In a critical analysis of the relationship between CBS and its new potential owners, Skydance Media, Letterman suggested that the motivation behind eliminating Colbert could stem from a desire to avoid political conflict. He characterized David Ellison, the founder of Skydance, and his brother as the ‘Oracle twins,’ suggesting they were cautious about facing backlash related to freedom of expression.
‘The Ellison twins, the Oracle boys, they don’t want any trouble along the lines of freedom of the press or free speech or freedom of expression,’ Letterman alleged. He illustrated this point by stating that both parties seemingly wish to avoid entanglement with the government amidst the conversation of press freedoms, which he viewed as antiquated thinking.
Letterman even ventured into a hypothetical dialogue between Skydance executives and CBS representatives, proposing what their discussion concerning Colbert’s fate might have sounded like. ‘So they say to the CBS people,
