Late night TV: Not like it used to be

Stephen Colbert's "Late Show" has been canceled by CBS, effective next May. Critics of the decision are claiming politics is the reason. They are right, except the show has been too political. During its 10-year run it has been a conduit for Democrats to attack President Trump and Republicans. There are rumors within the entertainment industry that Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show on ABC may also be headed for the door. Nothing heard yet about the future of Jimmy Fallon and the "Tonight Show." While Colbert's show was the top-rated broadcast late show (2.8 million viewers, but Greg Gutfeld averages 3.289 million on Fox), it had few advertisers, a staff of 100 and Colbert was reportedly paid $20 million annually. People of a certain age will recall the name Steve Allen, who invented the "Tonight Show" format on NBC. Steve was pure entertainment. He was followed by Jack Paar, who brought an intellectual depth to the show, along with his unique brand of humor. Johnny Carson and Jay Leno followed, avoiding partisan politics. In a 1979 interview with Mike Wallace of "60 Minutes," Carson was asked why he didn't do politics on the show. He replied: "Tell me the last time Jack Benny, Red Skelton, any comedian used his show to do serious issues." He said serious issues are "a danger" for a comedian. "Once you start that, you start to get that self-important feeling that what you say has great import ... you could use that show as a forum to sway people and I don't think you should as an entertainer." That attitude is what kept Carson on NBC for nearly 30 years. He was beloved by Democrats and Republicans. While he occasionally had politicians as guests (Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon were among the highest profile Republicans, while Bill Clinton and then-California Jerry Brown were among the best-known Democrats), Carson let the politicians make their political points while he kept to the middle of the road. I used to stay up late watching the monologues and some of the interviews, beginning with Allen and ending with Leno. It's not worth it anymore, unless you are a liberal and want reinforcement of views you already hold. It's the same with many of the award shows and why ratings for the Oscars and Emmys have fallen. After a long day that usually includes exposure to politics in conversations, or on cable TV, I suspect many people are hungry for entertainment. There is another reason why people are watching less late-night TV. We can access excerpts of the shows on YouTube and other platforms, while getting a good night's sleep. For an example of fun conversation and humor check out this video of Jack Paar on Carson's show. Apologies for the ads: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4LHwGPH57U. Despite overwhelming evidence that people are tired of politics replacing comedy, the left is determined to keep force-feeding us the same political gruel. This includes speeches from award winners, lecturing viewers about how they hate President Trump, and Republicans, as they did Republican presidents before him. They are now suffering the consequences of their misguided decision. On the day CBS announced cancellation of his show and the vacating of his time slot, Colbert denounced the network. He had been critical of CBS before when network owner Paramount agreed to a $16 million settlement with President Trump over a Bill Whitaker "60 Minutes" interview with Vice President Kamala Harris before the election. Trump had claimed the interview was heavily and deceptively edited to make her sound better. Colbert's denunciations of his employer violated another truth: Don't bite the hand that feeds you. Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com.