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Stephen Colbert has blasted CBS, claiming that the network has barred him from airing his interview with Texas State Rep. James Talarico. He was also allegedly told that he couldn't even mention not having Talarico on. Of course, that didn't stop him.
"Because my network clearly doesn't want us to talk about this, let's talk about this," Colbert quipped.
The Late Show host spent around eight minutes giving audiences a peek behind the curtain, explaining that CBS' lawyers told them "in no uncertain terms" that Talarico could not be on the broadcast. CBS' mandate was apparently due to FCC chair Brendan Carr stating that he's considering eliminating the talk show exemption to the equal time rule. Under this rule, if a program on radio or broadcast television interviews a candidate during an election, they have to do the same with all their opponents as well.
Carr has claimed that removing the talk show exemption would be an attempt to reduce partisanship in broadcast. However, Colbert noted that the FCC chair has said he's not interested in applying the same pressure to radio shows which are traditionally right-leaning.
"I think you are motivated by partisan purposes yourself. Sir, ya smelt it 'cause ya dealt it. You are Dutch ovening America's airwaves," said Colbert. "Let's just call this what it is. Donald Trump's administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV, because all Trump does is watch TV. He's like a toddler with too much screen time."
Colbert also pointed out that, significantly, Carr hasn't actually eliminated the exemption yet, merely stated that he's thinking of doing it.
"He hasn't done away with it yet, but my network is unilaterally enforcing it as if he had," said Colbert. "I want to assure you, this decision is for purely financial reasons."
Fortunately, you can still watch Colbert's interview with Talarico, just not on broadcast television. The segment has been uploaded to the Late Show's YouTube page, though Colbert was banned from linking directly to it. As of writing, the video's top comment states, "The FCC not wanting me to watch this made me want to watch this."
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