Dozens of protesters gathered outside the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York on Wednesday to demand that CBS and its parent company Paramount reverse their decision to cancel The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The rally, organised by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, saw demonstrators march to Paramount's Times Square headquarters carrying ten boxes of petitions signed by more than 250,000 people.
Among those supporting the campaign were Democratic lawmakers Ro Khanna and Ted Lieu, as well as comedian Aasif Mandvi, actress Kristen Schaal, and actor Frances Fisher. The petition condemned the cancellation as 'blatantly political', arguing that America needs Colbert's voice now more than ever.
The show's axing followed Paramount's $16m settlement of a lawsuit brought by Donald Trump against 60 Minutes and CBS News over an edited interview with Kamala Harris. Colbert, a long-time critic of Trump, called the settlement a 'big, fat bribe' on air, saying it had damaged his trust in the network. CBS executives claimed the decision was purely financial and unrelated to the show's content.
Protesters voiced anger over what they saw as censorship and corporate capitulation. Susan Staal, a long-time viewer, said the country needs dissenting voices and that free speech was being infringed. Former Paramount subscriber Heather Cousins described the cancellation as a 'blatant act of bribery' against constitutional rights. Saima Akhter, a former Meta employee, warned of growing attempts to silence critics of the government and oligarchy.
New York state assembly member Tony Simone and city council member Erick Bottcher joined the crowd, with Simone urging institutions to resist pressure from the White House. The rally ended with chants of 'Save Colbert' outside Paramount's headquarters.
