In the wake of the stunning cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” a chorus of outrage has erupted from fans, fellow comedians, and political commentators. The narrative has largely been one of disbelief and anger, with many framing it as a purely political assassination. But into this echo chamber of indignation has stepped Samantha Bee, a fellow veteran of the late-night wars and a personal friend of Colbert, to deliver a dose of brutal, unvarnished reality. While she calls the situation “awful,” she also bluntly labels the network’s move a “no-brainer,” providing the most candid and insightful analysis yet on why the king of late-night was dethroned.

Speaking on a recent podcast, Bee, whose own acclaimed show “Full Frontal” was canceled by TBS in 2022, navigated the complex issue with the precision of a surgeon. She expressed genuine shock and sadness for Colbert and the hundreds of people who work on the show, but she refused to ignore the writing that was on the wall. According to Bee, the demise of “The Late Show” was not the result of a single factor, but a perfect storm of two inescapable, overwhelming forces: catastrophic financial losses and immense political pressure.

“I think both things are true,” Bee stated, cutting through the simplistic narrative that the cancellation was solely a political hit job. “It definitely was hemorrhaging money. These legacy shows are hemorrhaging money with no real end to that in sight.”

With this single statement, Bee acknowledged the grim reality of the modern media landscape. The world of broadcast television has changed. Viewership habits have been irrevocably altered by streaming services and social media. As Bee pointed out, “People are literally on their phones all the time… they don’t necessarily need a recap of the day’s events.” The days of millions tuning in for a nightly monologue are over. For a massive production like “The Late Show,” with a reported price tag of over $100 million annually and losses climbing to a staggering $40 million a year, the economic model had become unsustainable. The audience just wasn’t there to justify the cost.

But Bee didn’t stop at the financials. Drawing from her own experience of navigating network mergers while hosting “Full Frontal,” she laid bare the second, more sinister reason for the cancellation. She confirmed the widespread speculation that the pending merger between parent company Paramount and Skydance, a deal that required regulatory approval from the Trump administration, played a decisive role.

“It is also true that when the president of the United States has to give his sign-off on a corporate merger, the thing you can’t do is make jokes about him,” she said with chilling frankness. “He’s a thin-skinned idiot and we know he’s like a pernicious cancer and he cares about that stuff.”

Bee described how, during her own show’s run, avoiding controversy during these delicate corporate transactions was a “constant source of conversation.” For the billionaires and millionaires making these multi-billion dollar deals, a late-night show, even a popular one, is a small, expendable piece on a much larger chessboard. When you weigh the fate of a TV show against the success of an $8 billion merger, the choice becomes, as Bee put it, “such a no-brainer.”

“It doesn’t matter what your values are,” she explained. “It doesn’t matter how important you think legacy media is. None of that f—ing matters when you’re talking about people… making their business transactions.”

Her analysis is a masterclass in the ruthless pragmatism of corporate media. It paints a picture of a network caught in an impossible position. On one hand, they had a beloved, critically acclaimed show that was a cultural institution. On the other, they had a financial black hole and a political time bomb. Faced with these realities, CBS made the only decision it could.

While expressing her love and admiration for Colbert, Samantha Bee ultimately did him, and the public, a great service. She stripped away the emotion and conspiracy theories and exposed the cold, hard mechanics of power and money that truly dictate what we see on our screens. The cancellation of “The Late Show” wasn’t just about politics or just about money. It was about both, a fatal combination that made the end not just possible, but inevitable.