Stephen Colbert could have revealed what his subsequent transfer is now the Late Present is over on CBS. On the identical time, CBS has completely revealed that they have been behind Colbert’s Might 22 Michigan public entry particular, the one which aired the day after the lengthy operating community late night time franchise got here to an finish.
Within the standard on-line rush to judgement we’ve all change into far too used to, a digital firestorm has unfold this weekend that the David Ellison owned CBS Studios is sending out takedown notices to attempt to crush folks watching the very low-tech Solely in Monroe episode that Colbert hosted within the Nice Lakes State the day after his final (and really very well-watched) Final Present aired.
They don’t seem to be.
Sure, CBS have been sending out takedown notices till earlier right this moment. No, CBS will not be attempting to suppress Solely in Monroe. They really paid for it.
Like every enterprise, CBS are, or have been, attempting to guard their property from being ripped and ripped off — till they acquired fed up with the entire thing.
“Stephen Colbert’s return to Monroe within the Solely in Monroe episode was financed and produced by CBS Studios and was posted on Stephen Colbert’s YouTube channel in collaboration with Monroe Group Media and The Late Present’s”YouTube channels,” a CBS spokesperson stated in an announcement late Sunday after accusations of censorship and mean-spiritedness broke out throughout the Web. “As is our common apply, we ship copyright notices to unauthorized web sites that publish copyrighted content material from CBS and our community/studio expertise akin to Stephen Colbert. Nonetheless, for this episode, have determined to waive additional enforcement of this commonplace trade apply till further overview.”
Which is basically, a nonetheless test writing CBS saying F.U. to the haters after months of taking swipes and whacks (many from Colbert himself) for the pink slipping of Colbert and the Late Present franchise final yr. Now, was Colbert actually canned in July 2025 as a result of The Late Present value an excessive amount of to maintain going within the decline late night time style? Was he given practically a yr to go away after mocking CBS and Donald Trump for the previous’s $16 million payout to the latter to settle a doubtful 60 Minutes lawsuit?
I imply …you determine.
Nonetheless, with all of the hypothesis of what Colbert will do subsequent in addition to penning a brand new Lord of the Rings film script and no matter that “for this episode” from CBS implies, it appears fairly evident it’s going to occur on-line a technique or one other.
Put it this fashion, the one video on Colbert’s April 21 launched private YouTube channel is the Solely in Monroe video. Fairly secure to wager it received’t stay the one one as Colbert appears to be like set to observe within the steps of different comics and content material creators and use the massive viewership of YouTube as not less than a partial house.
Reality is YouTube is larger than community TV and the streamers.
One other reality is, with strikes like its deal to be the house of the Oscars beginning in 2029, the Google-owned platform is intent on bulking up ever additional and including a number of the small display’s greatest and brightest to its roster.
On Colbert’s personal channel and with Ellison’s CBS footing not less than a good portion of the invoice, Solely in Monroe is a close to good flex of timing and execution for each a reset and continuity.
The one-hour Jack White, Eminem, Steve Buscemi and Jeff Daniels starring particular, which harks again to Colbert’s Michigan public entry look within the first week of his Late Present stint in September 2015, has amassed 409,000 views over the previous two days. Whereas Colbert’s YT Channel has 80,500 subscribers as of right this moment, it pales subsequent to a number of the views and subscribers a number of the websites that have been posting their very own Solely in Monroe video the previous a number of days A.Ok.A. the websites CBS wished YT to take away their materials from.
Colbert late final week on the very native Solely in Monroe defined what he was doing there and took a chew outta Paramount (which look quickly to accumulate Warner Bros Discovery for $111 billion in a Trump administration quick tracked course of). “Since I used to be final right here in Monroe, Michigan, I spent 11 years as the first host of The Late Present with Stephen Colbert on CBS, which got here to an finish final night time,” the host declared on the naked bones set. “It’s been an excruciating 23 hours with out being on TV, so I’m grateful to have the ability to be right here on Monroe Group Media earlier than additionally they get acquired by Paramount.”
He neglected that he was grateful to Paramount and CBS for paying for the entire epilogue and prologue of kinds, however that’s why they name it present enterprise isn’t it?
