Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Andrew Sanford | News | May 26, 2026
By the time the dust settled on Stephen Colbert’s last Late Show, we were all heading into a holiday weekend, driving three and a half hours to Western Massachusetts and attempting to remember all of our cousins’ children’s names because our mom is one of eight (right? We all experienced that?). So, it would make sense if we missed the fact that Stephen Colbert was back on television the very next night, once again guest-hosting the public access show Only In Monroe from Monroe, Michigan.
I also wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t know that CBS had been sending out removal notices to folks who had taken the show and posted it on other sites, you know, because it was on a public access station. Then, when people were giving them grief for that, they backed off, releasing a statement saying that they were just doing what they always did, but would stop doing that for this show, while also making it clear that they financed it, as if that would improve people’s public perception of them.
To be clear, CBS has made some terrible decisions since being pursued and then purchased by the Ellison family. Whether or not they were within their legal rights to have folks pull down Colbert’s public access special that included Jeff Daniels and Jack White, it is still absolute hall-monitor behavior. It is L 7 weeny stuff. Releasing a statement essentially saying, “We could pull this down, but we’re not going to anymore because you guys are being mean”? Pretty lame!
What’s even wilder is that I’ve seen some outlets come to CBS’s defense, as if they deserve credit for financing this brief excursion for Colbert, even though I’d bet dollars to donuts that it was part of his contract. He had already guest-hosted the show before joining the Late Show, and ending his time the same way feels like something he would have planned well in advance, to the point that it very well could have been part of his last contract negotiation.
Also, it’s not like CBS likely had to spend a lot of money here. Sure, there’s a pre-taped Steve Buscemi bit, but he’s mostly just joined by two Michigan natives in Daniels and White, who were likely easy to get to the show. It just all feels like CBS trying to have the last word, even though no one, save for the sycophants, cares what they have to say. We’re too busy watching Jeff Daniels and Stephen Colbert eat a sandwich made from cheddar Ruffles, peanut butter, pita bread, and BBQ sauce.
