Sheena McGinley: What’s happening to US chat show hosts like Stephen Colbert suits Donald Trump down to the ground

Stephen Colbert hosting 'The Late Show' on CBS

Sheena McGinley

Today at 15:36

“Welcome in here, out there, and all around the world to The Late Show. I am your host, Stephen Colbert.” That daily introduction has consistently brought immense personal joy – through Donald Trump’s first impeachment, the fraught 2020 election, the subsequent insurrection, and now, the surreal sequel: Trump Part II.

US late-night talk show hosts were a particular lifeline during Covid, when the world felt so disconnected. Knowing that Stephen Colbert, the Jimmys (Kimmel and Fallon), and the Johns (Oliver and, the godfather of them all, Jon Stewart) were still broadcasting from home offices, cavernous kitchens or stark white voids was a profound comfort. They kept things lit, figuratively and literally, when everything else felt rather dark.

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Sheena McGinley: What’s happening to US chat show hosts like Stephen Colbert suits Donald Trump down to the ground

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Sheena McGinley: What’s happening to US chat show hosts like Stephen Colbert suits Donald Trump down to the ground

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