The far-left Late Show with Stephen Colbert is suffering some of the worst ratings in the history of the now-canceled show.
This is a pretty good data point as to why Colbert was canceled [emphasis original]:
According to Nielsen data reported this week, Colbert’s show is averaging roughly 285,000 viewers in the crucial 25–54 demographic, putting it on track for its worst January performance ever in the category that advertisers actually care about. With just months left before the curtain closes for good, the ratings trajectory suggests viewers have been checking out long before CBS formally pulled the plug.
The age demo is what sets advertising rates, and that kind of collapse not only explains why the show is costing CBS a reported $40 million a year in losses, but as his May end-date approaches, it proves that any hope he had to use the martyrdom of the cancellation to boost his ratings is not happening.
Here’s some more context…
Throughout 2025, Colbert averaged 2.545 million viewers. Last week, Colbert averaged only 2.249 million viewers. While he beat Jimmy Kimmel (2.1 million) and Jimmy Fallon (1.25 million) last week, over at Fox News, Greg Gutfeld tops them all with 3.2 million.
Keep in mind Gutfeld! is pulling in those numbers when he is only available through cable. Colbert is on a broadcast network, which is available for free to almost everyone.
You would think millions of Trump haters would be tuning into Colbert just to spite Trump or to make CBS look bad for canceling him. Instead, he’s losing viewers, which proves the cancellation decision was the correct one. The audience just isn’t there, not even in a country where just five percent of Kamala Harris voters would save his show.
The problem with Colbert is what it has always been: the guy sucks. He’s not funny. He’s not honest. He’s didactic, charmless, and has no real charisma. Everything always has to be about Colbert and his hatred for Trump and his precious feelings about things. He’s not there to entertain. He’s there to lecture, scold, and preen.
Even leftists get tired of being lectured.
Don’t accuse me of being partisan when I find Bill Maher funny. Maher’s wrong about almost everything, but he knows how to craft and deliver a joke. Colbert and Maher are both smug, but Colbert’s smugness is not part of his comedy persona. It’s oily and self-satisfied and just there, whereas Maher’s smugness is part of the act. Maher’s the loudmouth in the back of the classroom. Colbert is the kiss-ass in the front row.
Gutfeld is hilarious for the same reason as Maher: great writing, but Gutfeld’s got something neither Maher nor Colbert has, and that’s charm. Gutfeld is likable and self-deprecating.
Colbert has nothing to offer, and as we can see, even leftists aren’t going to miss him.
John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.