CBS blocks James Talarico interview by Stephen Colbert

Stephen Colbert blamed CBS for preventing him from airing his interview with Texas state Rep. James Talarico, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate, on its late-night TV show.

“You know who isn’t one of my guests tonight? That’s Texas Rep. James Talarico,” Colbert told his show’s studio audience during Monday night’s broadcast of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”

“He was supposed to be here, but our network’s lawyers, who called us directly, told us in no uncertain terms that we couldn’t put him on the air,” said Colbert, who was booed by the crowd.

“Then I was told in some vague terms that not only could I not wear it, but I also couldn’t talk about not wearing it,” Colbert said.

“Since my network clearly doesn’t want us to talk about it, let’s talk about it,” Colbert said to laughing and applause.

Colbert suggested that CBS’s move was the result of concerns that the network would attract the ire of the Federal Communications Commission.

Colbert’s comments are the latest escalation of tensions between talk show hosts and the FCC after late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s show was briefly suspended by ABC last summer.

The FCC issued guidance to the three broadcast networks last month, recalling a 1934 law that requires networks to provide equal broadcast opportunity to political candidates if their opponents appear on the air.

There is no evidence that late-night and daytime talk show interviews qualify for the exemption allowed under the law for “bona fide” news broadcasts, the guidance said.

During Monday’s show, Colbert said earlier this month that the FCC ABC’s daytime talk show “The View” is being investigated Because Talarico appeared on that show.

“The Late Show was not prohibited by CBS from airing the interview with Representative James Talarico,” CBS said in a statement to CNBC.

“The program was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal time rule for two other candidates, including Representative Jasmine Crockett. [D-Texas]“Options were presented for other candidates on how equal time could be fulfilled,” CBS said.

“Instead of potentially offering equal-time options, The Late Show has decided to present the interview with a live on-air introduction via its YouTube channel.”

Talarico posted a link on Tuesday Interview with Colbertwas available online.

Talarico told CNBC during the Senate campaign: “I think [President] Donald Trump is worried we’re about to flip Texas. This is the party that opposes cancel culture.

“Now they’re trying to control what we watch, what we say and what we read,” Talarico said.

“This is the most dangerous form of cancel culture coming from the top. A threat to one of our First Amendment rights is a threat to all of our First Amendment rights.”

Talarico is in a close Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate seat against Crockett, where early voting begins Tuesday. The winner will face the winner of the Republican primary between Senator John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Democrats last won a statewide race in Texas in 1994.

The FCC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether CBS would run afoul of the agency’s guidance by airing Talarico’s interview.

In a statement, FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez called CBS’s decision “yet another disturbing example of corporate capitulation in the face of the Administration’s broader campaign to censor and control speech.”

“The FCC has no legal authority to pressure broadcasters for political purposes or to create an environment that restricts free speech,” Gomez said.

“CBS is fully protected under the First Amendment from determining which interviews to air, which makes the decision to bow to political pressure even more disappointing,” Gomez said.

“It’s no secret that CBS parent Paramount has regulatory issues with the government, but corporate interests cannot justify retreating from airing newsworthy content. The FCC is powerless to impose restrictions on protected speech, and any attempt to intimidate broadcasters into self-censorship would undermine both freedom of the press and public confidence.”

“I once again call on publishers and their parent companies to stand firm against these unlawful pressures and continue to exercise their constitutional rights freely and without government interference,” Gomez said. he said.

Paramount Skydance launched a hostile tender for Warner Bros. discoveryA deal that would require regulatory approval from the federal government if WBD shareholders accept the offer.

In July, CBS said Colbert’s show would be canceled in May.

This announcement came shortly after Colbert criticized the network for giving Trump what he called a “massive bribe.” Paramount Skydance previously agreed to pay Trump’s future presidential library $16 million to settle a lawsuit over the editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

A week after CBS announced it would cancel Colbert’s show, the FCC approved the $8 billion merger between Paramount and Skydance Media.

In September, Colbert spoke out on Kimmel’s behalf when ABC removed Kimmel from the air following FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s statement that the network’s broadcast license was at risk due to comments Kimmel made about the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Kimmel’s show was back on the air about a week later.