Less Than a Week off the Air and Colbert’s Already Trolling Trump’s $16M Bribe With a Public Access TV Stunt
Here to stay.
Stephen Colbert’s already back on screen, and this time, he’s trolling the $16 million bribe that got his show canceled. Less than a week after his final episode of The Late Show aired, Colbert quietly launched a new YouTube channel over the weekend. The debut video, Only In Monroe on May 22, 2026, dropped with zero fanfare but quickly racked up over 120,000 subscribers, according to The Guardian.
In it, Colbert resurfaces on Monroe Community Media, a public access station in Michigan, where he joked about his sudden unemployment and the corporate deal that ended his nine-year run. Colbert, who’s clearly not ready to fade into obscurity, opened with a jab at his former employer. “It’s been an excruciating 23 hours without being on TV, so I am grateful to be able to be here on Monroe Community Media before they also get acquired by Paramount,” he said.
The line was a direct shot at CBS’s parent company, which was recently swallowed up by Larry and David Ellison, billionaires with close ties to Donald Trump, as part of an $8 billion deal. The timing isn’t coincidental. Colbert’s show was canceled last year as Paramount sought regulatory approval for its merger with Skydance Media, a process that hit major snags after the president sued CBS over a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris.
The lawsuit went on for months
The lawsuit, which accused the network of “election interference” for allegedly editing Harris’s remarks, dragged on for months. It only ended when Paramount agreed to a $16 million settlement, earmarked for Trump’s future presidential library. Colbert didn’t hold back when the deal was announced.
“As someone who has always been a proud employee of this network, I am offended,” he said on-air. “I don’t know if anything will repair my trust in this company. But, just taking a stab at it, I’d say $16 million would help.” The comment went viral, and the president responded by demanding Colbert be fired. Critics saw the cancellation as a calculated move to appease the administration while the merger hung in the balance.
Colbert’s return to Only in Monroe isn’t his first time on the show. He guest-hosted an episode back in 2015, just before The Late Show premiered, where he interviewed Eminem. This time around, the guest list was stacked with Michigan natives and Hollywood heavyweights. Jack White and Jeff Daniels joined him on set, while Steve Buscemi, Eminem, and Byron Allen made surprise appearances.
CBS didn’t take the bait lightly
The public access stunt was a clever way to stay relevant while thumbing his nose at the corporate forces that sidelined him. After clips of Colbert’s appearance spread across social media, CBS hit users with a wave of copyright notices, claiming unauthorized distribution of the footage. The move backfired, sparking accusations that Paramount was trying to “suppress” the content with “frivolous” claims.
CBS eventually walked it back, clarifying that the episode was “financed and produced by CBS Studios” and posted in collaboration with Monroe Community Media and The Late Show’s YouTube channels. They promised to “waive further enforcement” while insisting the takedowns were just “standard industry practice.”
Trump, never one to miss an opportunity for petty retaliation, jumped into the fray. The night after Colbert’s Late Show finale, he posted an AI-generated video showing himself grabbing Colbert, hoisting him into the air, and tossing him into a dumpster. The clip, complete with a dancing Trump and a cheering studio audience, was the kind of juvenile taunt that’s become his trademark.
On Truth Social, he gloated about Colbert’s firing, calling it the “Beginning of the End” for late-night hosts. “Stephen Colbert’s firing from CBS was the ‘Beginning of the End’ for untalented, nasty, highly overpaid, not funny, and very poorly rated Late Night Television Hosts,” he wrote. “Others, of even less talent, to soon follow. May they all Rest in Peace!”
The feud underscores how deeply the late-night landscape has shifted
Shows have seen declining viewership and ad revenue, making them vulnerable to corporate cost-cutting. But Colbert’s cancellation felt different. It wasn’t just about ratings but about politics. Trump has spent the past year targeting late-night hosts, pressuring networks to fire critics like Jimmy Kimmel and Seth Meyers.
He’s even tried to weaponize the Federal Communications Commission, threatening to revoke broadcast licenses over content he dislikes. Colbert, one of the most vocal critics of the administration, was an obvious target. His pivot to YouTube and public access TV is a smart workaround. By sidestepping traditional networks, he’s reclaiming control over his content and his message.
The Only In Monroe episode isn’t just a nostalgia trip; it’s a statement. Colbert’s not done holding power to account, even if he has to do it from a small-town studio in Michigan. The $16 million bribe might have bought silence from Paramount, but it didn’t buy Colbert’s. If anything, it’s given him a new platform to keep pushing back.
(Featured image: Montclair Film)
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