Why Trump is so scared of Late Night

As the vicious news cycle continues to churn around the White House’s major Jeffrey Epstein problem, and Trump attempts to distract audiences with fake scandals and other manufactured events, this past week also saw more troubling instances of Trump’s authoritarian attacks on the media come to the forefront.

The one-two punch of CBS’ decision to cancel the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, followed by Republicans in Congress voting to defund NPR and PBS, marks a chilling escalation in MAGA’s six month war on the media, and Trump’s slow and steady ability to snuff out cultural voices that may differ from his own.

I found the cancellation of Colbert’s Late Night to be particularly troubling for a few reasons. For those who haven’t been following the news, CBS’ decision to cancel Late Night has been widely speculated to be a politically-motivated one, as the network’s parent company Paramount had been going through a high-profile merger that required government approval.

That speculation was pretty much confirmed by the President’s own statements after the Colbert news came out, with Trump vowing that other liberal late night hosts Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel are “NEXT to go.”

This matters because Trump understands show business better than most politicians from his past career—and he knows the unique power entertainers have over the American people. Comedians and entertainers break through the noise in ways traditional news often can’t, especially among audiences who might otherwise tune out politics.

That’s why authoritarian regimes have historically made comedians a frequent target of censorship and repression—from the Soviet Union’s crackdown on satirists to modern-day regimes in countries like China, Egypt and Russia, where comedians face imprisonment or exile for daring to mock those in power.

The Stephen Colbert news has also put on full display the current posture of too many media corporations like CBS who - instead of leveraging their platforms to take a stand - are cowing in ‘pre-compliance,’ or anticipatory obedience: agreeing to settlements that reek of corruption, and paving the way for far greater harm.

That’s not journalism without fear or favor; it’s bad business operating in fear and favor. If these corporate execs and their shareholders think bending the knee to Trump now will somehow protect themselves or their businesses from this administration indefinitely, they are sorely mistaken.

The capitulation we’re seeing from major media corporations is no longer a slippery slope — this is a race to the bottom where no one but Trump can “win,” and he will make certain of that — but only if we let them. One idea - publicly and relentlessly shame these media outlets and their executives for cutting deals with a President who is at the center of a very active and potentially unprecedented political cover-up over his relationship to a convicted sex trafficker of minors. Seems …not great for business, if you ask me.

- Tara

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Highlights from COURIER’s local network

• In North Carolina, kids living with serious disabilities depend on Medicaid waiver programs to live safely at home. Trump budget cuts could force them into institutional care, according to a new story published this week by our newsroom in the state, Cardinal and Pine.

• In Iowa, the team at Iowa Starting Line began publishing a regular investigative series on the state’s cancer crisis, called The Hot SPot.

• Our team in Virginia at The Dogwood launched Virginia Capital, a new newsletter focused on economic news shaping the lives of workers in the Commonwealth.

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You’re invited: A briefing on Virginia politics

Reproductive freedom, voting rights, public education, and democracy itself are on the line in Virginia this November. Control of the Governor’s office, every House of Delegates seat, and thousands of local races will shape the state’s future. Join COURIER on Tuesday, July 29 at 7:00 PM ET for a virtual conversation with Delegates Candi King and Michael Feggens and local Virginia creators as we discuss what’s resonating with voters, what’s at stake, and how to fight back against right-wing misinformation. Please use this link to register.

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What I’m reading & watching

Inside Trump’s campaign to crush the media (The Atlantic, 7/22)

“Ever since he launched his presidential campaign in 2015, Trump has fulminated against “the fake news.” But only in his second term has Trump gone beyond such rhetoric to wage a multifront war on media freedom with all of the tools at his disposal: executive actions, lawsuits, a loyal regulatory bureaucracy, a compliant Republican majority in Congress and a sympathetic Supreme Court. Each of his actions has been extraordinary in its own right; collectively, they represent a slow-motion demolition of the Fourth Estate.”

Can The Washington Post’s TikTok Guy Make It Without The Post? (NYT, 7/22)

“Mr. Jorgenson, 34, is leaving The Post next month to start an online video company based on his personal YouTube channel, Local News International, which blends the topical wit of “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” with the surreal antics of Ron Burgundy, the fictional star of “Anchorman.” Joining him are two former colleagues.”

Trump White House Says ‘The View’ Is ‘Next to Be Pulled Off the Air’ After Hosts Say Trump Is Jealous of Obama (The Wrap, 7/23)

“President Donald Trump alluded that the next show to be canceled would be ABC’s hit daytime talk show “The View.” The commander-in-chief’s supposed threat comes after co-host Joy Behar said Trump is “jealous” of former President Barack Obama.”