Trump denies he got Colbert fired from 'The Late Show'
What's the story
US President Donald Trump has denied speculations that he was responsible for the cancellation of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said, "Everybody is saying that I was solely responsible for the firing of Stephen Colbert from CBS, Late Night." "That is not true! The reason he was fired was a pure lack of TALENT... costing CBS $50 Million Dollars a year in losses."
Predictions
Trump predicts the fate of other late-night hosts
Trump further said, "Next up will be an even less talented Jimmy Kimmel, and then, a weak and very insecure Jimmy Fallon. The only real question is who will go first?" He added, "Show Biz and Television is a very simple business. If you get ratings, you can say or do anything. If you don't, you always become a victim."
Controversy
CBS executives deny political controversy
The cancellation of The Late Show has sparked political controversy. CBS has claimed that the decision was purely financial and denied that it had any connection to parent company Paramount's pending $8 billion merger with Skydance. The announcement came shortly after Paramount settled a lawsuit filed by Trump's foundation over a 60 Minutes segment featuring former Vice President Kamala Harris.
Feud
Trump's previous comments on Colbert's firing
Trump has a long-standing feud with Colbert. Earlier, he had said, "I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings." "I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once-great Tonight Show."
Reactions
How other late-night hosts reacted
Kimmel responded to Trump's comments on Instagram, saying, "I know you're busy Sharpie-ing the Epstein files but this seems like a weird way to tell people to watch Matt Damon and Ken Jennings on an all-new Who Wants to Be a Millionaire tomorrow night at 8|7c on @ABC." Fallon said he was "shocked" by the news. Seth Meyers, another late-night host, recently addressed uncertainty around his own future.