Source: The American Conservative
by W James Antle III
“The liberal equivalent of talk radio took over not just a pair of cable news networks, but also invaded late-night television: the one-sided ridicule of politicians based on party, the revolving door of guests from the same political persuasion, the relentless mockery of the political outgroup. While conservative talk radio took over the risk-averse programming on a lot of stations and filled a gaping hole in the media ecosystem at the time, its liberal equivalent took over a preexisting format that was already in decline because of changing television consumption habits and made it narrower. The only thing shows like Colbert’s retained from those of previous generations was the ability to attract top-tier guests from the entertainment industry. … Colbert blew even that advantage by having so many Democratic elected officials come on as guests.” (07/23/25)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/the-lingering-death-of-late-night-tv/