The comments in this piece are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of NightMoves and AAN

This is a situation that has been in the making for a long time. It did not begin with the recent axing of Steven Colbert and his late night show by CBS. It did not happen because of Jimmy Kimmel being “indefinitely” taken off the air by ABC. and now brought back. It began long before these instances, with late night personalities like Colbert, Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, etc. taking the First Amendment above and over the line. It was inevitable this was going to happen at some point. Now it seems as though that time has come and these people have no one to blame but themselves for the end result. First, let’s begin with a little history lesson about late night TV.

It all began back in 1950 when NBC decided to extend their late night airtime beyond midnight. They came up with a show called “Broadway Open House” hosted by comedian Jerry Lester. It had a live audience, a small band, a couple of singers, a tall busty blonde named Dagmar, guests, sketches and talk. After 2 years and even with a good audience and sponsors, they took the show off the air mainly because of Lester and his fragile ego creating a lot of problems. None of the other networks dove into late night, CBS preferring to show movies on the “Late Show”. NBC would try different things for late night but nothing worked until 1956 when NBC created a new late night show and brought in comedian/musician Steve Allen to host the “Tonight Show” and the rest as they say, was history for NBC. Then when Johnny Carson took over in 1963 a whole new era of late night TV would begin. The other networks would get in on the late night bandwagon with their own versions of late night talk shows, but Carson was far and away the ratings leader and it would stay that way for the next 30 years until Carson’s retirement in 1993.

Through the 60’s into the 2010’s one thing was very prominent on all the talk shows, politics were a no no. Oh, they might do some silly jokes or take offs, but all with respect as well as humor. Ronald Reagan loved the take off Carson would do of him and even appeared on the Tonight Show several times and enjoyed it. Back then nothing was nasty, dirty or one sided when it came to politics, what little was done or said by the hosts or guests was done with respect and reverence and neither party or the politicians themselves were insulted by the jokes or comments. But one man would change all that because he was a total outsider to the political world and one party refused to accept him and still does. His name was Donald Trump. It didn’t take long for some, not all, of the late night hosts, Kimmel included, to take aim at Trump in any way they could get away with. Then it became even more when it was also fair game to go after anyone associated with Trump. It has continued right to this day, but finally the roof has begun to cave in and start putting the final few nails to the late night coffin.

With the advent of cable TV then all the different streaming platforms like Netflix, Prime, You Tube, Hulu, etc. people have had a lot more options for their late night entertainment and not be bombarded with left leaning political jokes, lies and mistruths. With all these choices, the ratings at late night shows on the networks began to crumble and continue to do so to this day. The current viewership of Kimmel, Colbert and Fallon combined, do not come close to what Carson did on his own. These three have been the reasons for the demise of their audiences in addition to so many other options. It was inevitable and it will continue. Late night TV is dead.

First was CBS putting an end to Steven Colbert and his show when his contract ends in May of 2026. CBS has already said there will be no replacement for the show. The simple fact is that Colbert, like Kimmel, gave the network a reason to can him with his comments and disdain for Trump and anyone who was not a Dem liberal. Plus, the biggest factor with the low ratings are the millions lost in advertising dollars. Now we have the Kimmel situation and his terrible remarks and lies that caused him to be suspended. Again, he gave ABC a reason to do it plus his ratings have been constantly the worst in late night creating a lot of advertiser turmoil. How much longer will ABC keep him on the air? I think when it is contract renewal time in January that will end it and ABC will go a different route with late night. Also, do not be surprised if Fallon and the Tonight Show at NBC see the ax coming and ending a format that began 75 years ago and defined what was once good about late night TV.

With cable programming, streaming networks and hundreds of offerings available the need for late night network TV is no longer needed. The advertisers know it, the network pooh bahs know it and the dismal ratings numbers show the audience knows it. The death of network late night TV has arrived. Thank you for giving us Johnny Carson and those before him for so very long and the joy and entertainment they brought into our homes and lives. May you rest in peace.

Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves Magazine and AAN