Article in Status by Oliver Darcy, 7/8/25
Headline: “Ellison’s Late Night Limbo
“Subhead: “As the Ellisons Prepare to Take Over Paramount, the Future of Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, and CBS’ Appetite for Political Comedy Hangs in the Balance”
“Jon Stewart opened Monday’s episode of ”The Daily Show’ not mincing words, calling Paramount’s settlement with Donald Trump ‘shameful.’ Just as he was digging in, a fake Arby’s ad suddenly appeared on screen, as if to cut him off mid-rant for criticizing Comedy Central’s parent company. ‘Did they? Son of a bitch!’ Stewart exclaimed, playing along with the bit—yet nodding to a deeper fear that his commentary might soon be silenced amid all the corporate upheaval.
“Later in the episode, Stewart continued to needle Paramount, sitting down with former ’60 Minutes’ correspondent Steve Kroft for a candid and unsparing conversation. Kroft described the settlement in clear terms: ‘It was a shakedown.’ . . .”