In his GQ "Men of the Year" interview that came out Monday, late-night host Stephen Colbert said CBS' payment to Donald Trump "looked like a big fat bribe."
The network canceled Colbert's late show in July.
He told GQ he had known "about two months" before the announcement that the show would end. The report noted that CBS' parent company, Paramount Global, had just completed a $16 million payout to Trump over a "60 Minutes"-related lawsuit.
CBS executives called the cancellation a financial decision. They said it was unrelated to Trump, Colbert's content, or other corporate matters.
Colbert mocked the settlement on the air.
"This kind of settlement has a technical name in legal circles," he said. "It's: big fat bribe."
In the GQ interview, he stood by the remark. He said his satire was aimed at power, not politics, and that networks "should expect a little discomfort."
The article portrayed Colbert as weary but unbowed. He said the cancellation gave him "oxygen back into [his] brain" after years of nightly political combat.
He described his long run as both a gift and a burden.
"The sewer gets in you after a while," he said.
Colbert credited CBS executives with possibly saving his life. He said the constant exposure to political tension had taken a personal toll.
Still, he defended comedy as vital.
"A laughing audience is the best medicine," he told GQ.
The piece linked the show's end to timing and perception. It said CBS executives were completing a merger with Skydance Media while dealing with Trump's settlement.
Colbert's on-air joke and the corporate payout happened within days. The article suggested his firing will remain tied to whether satire once again cut too close to power.
Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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