The Writers Guild of America called for Paramount to be investigated for bribery by the New York state attorney general following Thursday’s announcement that “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” has been canceled.
In the statement, the labor union says it has “significant concerns” that the move may have been intended to bribe president Donald Trump into sanctioning Paramount’s pending acquisition by Skydance. Colbert is a frequent critic of Trump, having referred to Paramount’s recent $16 million settlement with the president as “a big fat bribe” only three days before the cancellation, and the WGA noted that the company could be “sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump Administration. (CBS, for its part, has said “The Late Show” was canceled as a “purely financial decision” that was “not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”)
The WGA called Trump’s “60 Minutes” lawsuit, which prompted the settlement, “baseless,” and lamented that “Paramount’s decision comes against a backdrop of relentless attacks on a free press by President Trump, through lawsuits against CBS and ABC, threatened litigation of media organizations with critical coverage, and the unconscionable defunding of PBS and NPR.”
Read the statement in full below.
On July 2nd, Paramount agreed to settle a baseless lawsuit brought against 60 Minutes and CBS News by President Trump for $16 million. On July 15, during a regular show of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Colbert went on-air and called the settlement a “big fat bribe” in exchange for a favorable decision on the proposed merger between Paramount and Skydance, a charge currently under investigation in California.
Less than 48 hours later, on July 17, Paramount canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, a show currently performing first in its timeslot, giving vague references to the program’s “financial performance” as the only explanation. For ten years, the show has been one of the most successful, beloved and profitable programs on CBS, entertaining an audience of millions on late night television, on streaming services and across social media.
Given Paramount’s recent capitulation to President Trump in the CBS News lawsuit, the Writers Guild of America has significant concerns that The Late Show’s cancelation is a bribe, sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump Administration as the company looks for merger approval.
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Cancelations are part of the business, but a corporation terminating a show in bad faith due to explicit or implicit political pressure is dangerous and unacceptable in a democratic society. Paramount’s decision comes against a backdrop of relentless attacks on a free press by President Trump, through lawsuits against CBS and ABC, threatened litigation of media organizations with critical coverage, and the unconscionable defunding of PBS and NPR.
The Writers Guild of America calls on New York State Attorney General Letitia James, no stranger to prosecuting Trump for illegal business practices, to join California and launch an investigation into potential wrongdoing at Paramount. We call on our elected leaders to hold those responsible to account, to demand answers about why this beloved program was canceled and to assure the public that Colbert and his writers were not censored due to their views or the whims of the President.
In the meantime, the Writers Guild of America will support our members at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and across the late-night industry as they speak truth to power and we will explore all potential legal and political avenues to fight for our members in the aftermath of this decision.
From Variety US