Re: Free Speech? Former White House Official Says Colbert Would Only Book Him If He Trashed Trump

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] wrote:
> On 9/25/2025 6:29 PM, Rhino wrote:
>> On 2025-09-25 12:34 p.m., Ubiquitous wrote:

>>> The National Security Advisor during President Donald Trump's first 
>>> term said he was asked to go on CBS's "The Late Show" with Stephen 
>>> Colbert in 2024, but only if he would denounce Trump and tell the 
>>> audience not to vote for him.
>>>
>>> Retired United States Army Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster made the
>>> revelation during a recent episode of the GoodFellows podcast, a weekly
>>> Hoover Institution broadcast. Moderator Bill Whalen mentioned that 
>>> late shows have "drifted to the Left," which prompted McMaster's response.
>>>
>>> "When my book 'At War With Ourselves' came out, my publicist said, 
>>> 'Hey, you know, the Stephen Colbert show said you could come on, but 
>>> if you come on you have to condemn President Trump and recommend that 
>>> nobody vote for him,'" McMaster said.
>>>
>>> The retired lieutenant general said it was an "easy choice" to decide 
>>> against the appearance, but noted how it points to the political sway 
>>> of late-night programs in general.
>>>
>>> "I don't know if it was just a producer or if it was Stephen Colbert
>>> directly, but you know, there has been this orthodoxy that has gripped 
>>> late-night television. So many of these monologues, honestly...they're just 
>>> like diatribes. They're not funny. Which might be why the ratings are going 
>>> down."
>>>
>>> The controversy over late-night shows and free speech has reached a fever
>>> pitch, with leftists crying "censorship" and conservatives pointing 
>>> out that this has been happening to right-wing entertainers for years. ABC's 
>>> late-night host, Jimmy Kimmel, was briefly taken off the air for spreading 
>>> false information about Charlie Kirk's suspected assassin.
>>>
>>> All the other major late-night hosts, including Stephen Colbert, Jimmy
>>> Fallon, and Jon Stewart, spoke out in support of Kimmel, but are being
>>> labeled as hypocrites by anyone who noticed that they had previously 
>>> been in favor of conservatives being silenced for perceived slights.
>>>
>>> Clips of Kimmel joking about Roseanne Barr's show getting canceled for
>>> controversial comments went viral just after he was suspended, with 
>>> followers pointing out the blatant hypocrisy. Kimmel can also be seen 
>>> celebrating President Trump being banned from X and Tucker Carlson getting 
>>> fired from Fox News.
>>>
>>> McMaster said the answer isn't government "crackdowns," but letting low
>>> ratings bury the shows.
>>>
>> BINGO!!!
>> 
>> And how about a little competition? Instead of only platforming left- 
>> friendly right-hating hosts of these shows, pick someone who is 
>> genuinely moderate or even openly right wing and then see who develops a 
>> following.
>> 
>> If the networks are still in business to make a profit, rather than 
>> pissing money away on shows that lose millions but deliver The 
>> Narrative, then they could program someone that might actually have a 
>> substantial audience and make money via advertising they way they used to.
>> 
>> Isn't Gutfeld's show doing pretty well? He certainly leans right so that 
>> should be proof that a right-leaning show can be a money maker.
>> 
>> Or program a genuine moderate - if you can find one - and see how that 
>> goes against the likes of Kimmel, Colbert and Gutfeld.
>>> Representatives from 'The Late Show' did not respond to a request for
>>> comment.
>
>Late-night wants laughs, not provocation.

They certainly failed doing that.