Colbert and Kimmel Pull Biggest Late-Night Audience

The future of the second-biggest late-night show in the U.S. is in jeopardy after ABC pulled the programming "indefinitely" following threats of an investigation by Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr and complaints by an owner company of local affiliate stations, Nexstar Media. These were in connection to comments made in the aftermath of the assassination of right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk last week. Host Jimmy Kimmel of Jimmy Kimmel Live! had - like other hosts - mourned the death of Kirk, but also said that President Donald Trump was using the death to score political points. One comment specifically, about the political positions of Kirk's assassin, has been widely circulated.

The influence the FCC and Trump-appointed Carr is taking on TV programming has raised question around the right to free speech and has been condemned by public figures and organizations like former President Barack Obama, media union SAG-AFTRA, the Writers Guild of America, the Producers Guild of American and other prominent current and former late-night hosts.

Stephen Colbert of the Late Show said on his show Thursday that the decision amounted to censorship and called Trump an autocrat. In Q2 of 2025, an average of 2.42 million Americans tuned into Colbert's show, number by Nielsen show, followed by Kimmel's program pulling in 1.77 million. This makes them the late night hosts with the biggest audiences in the 11.35 p.m.-segment as well as any other time slot.

CBS announced in July that Colbert's show will be taken off the air in May. While it said its decision was financial, the cut came among criticism by Colbert of a settlement paid by CBS to Trump who sued the broadcaster over interview editing of his then-opponent in the presidential election, Kamala Harris. In the case of the CBS settlement as well as the current complaints by ABC affliate station owner Nexstar Media, both companies were or are looking for FCC approval on mergers.