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He called Obama and Colbert “best buds” who were “fawning all over each other.”
Then Kennedy added the line that instantly exploded across social media.
“They ought to get a motel room.”
That was only the beginning.
Kennedy went after Colbert personally, arguing that the comedian’s biggest weakness was not his political ideology, but his inflated ego and inability to recognize why viewers had abandoned him.
“I always thought he was shallow as a puddle,” Kennedy said.
“He thinks he’s one of the smartest people on the planet. Don’t take my word for it, ask him. His personal vanity has always been unshakeable.”
Then Kennedy delivered the line conservatives across the country immediately turned into a rallying cry.
“His problem is not his vanity or his intelligence. It’s his numbers.”
“He was losing CBS $40 million a year because nobody was watching, so CBS told him to sit his ass down, and they said, you’re fired.”
That brutal assessment highlighted what many media insiders have quietly admitted for years. Late-night television no longer connects with middle America the way it once did. Instead of broad comedy aimed at a national audience, many shows transformed into nightly political sermons designed almost entirely for liberal viewers.
Colbert became one of the clearest examples of that shift.
After Donald Trump entered politics, Colbert increasingly reshaped his monologues around anti-Trump commentary, progressive applause lines, and celebrity activism. The formula thrilled activists online and generated viral clips on social media, but television ratings continued sliding.
The disconnect became impossible for CBS executives to ignore.
Despite years of promotion and heavy investment from the network, reports indicated Colbert’s program was bleeding tens of millions of dollars annually while audience numbers continued shrinking. Executives reportedly hoped the show would recover momentum, but viewers never fully returned.
Ironically, Colbert’s final stretch on television has only reinforced Kennedy’s criticism.
This week’s headline guest was Obama, who used the appearance to warn Americans about presidents allegedly abusing the Justice Department against political opponents. Conservatives immediately blasted the remarks as hypocritical, pointing to controversies surrounding surveillance investigations and FBI actions during Obama’s presidency.
Still, the studio audience applauded enthusiastically.
Kennedy argued that reaction perfectly captured everything wrong with modern late-night television. Instead of challenging viewers or entertaining broad audiences, these programs became echo chambers designed to reassure one political side that it was morally and intellectually superior.
That strategy may work inside a Manhattan studio filled with loyal fans.
It does not necessarily work across the rest of the country.
CBS eventually learned the hard way that social media praise and glowing press coverage do not always translate into profitable television. Millions of Americans simply tuned out.
Now Colbert’s final episode is approaching, closing the curtain on one of the most politically charged eras in late-night history.
Kennedy’s comments resonated because they cut directly to the larger issue facing corporate media. Networks spent years convincing themselves that activist entertainment represented the future. But audiences increasingly rejected programming that sounded more like partisan campaigning than comedy.
The senator’s remarks also reflected a growing divide between elite media circles and ordinary viewers. Inside the entertainment industry, Colbert was frequently portrayed as courageous, insightful, and culturally powerful.
Outside those circles, many Americans simply stopped caring.
The market eventually rendered its verdict.
And unlike a studio audience, the market cannot be instructed when to clap.
