The Interview CBS Didn't Want on TV — And Why 85 Million People Watched It Anyway
The Interview CBS Didn't Want on TV — And Why 85 Million People Watched It Anyway What was supposed to be a routine late-night interview turned into one of the biggest media controversies of 2026. In February, Stephen Colbert taped a 15-minute interview with James Talarico, a Texas state representative running for the U.S. Senate, for The Late Show . It never made it to air. That same night, Colbert told his live audience that CBS lawyers called the show and said the interview could not be broadcast. He was also reportedly told not to mention that it had been pulled — which he immediately did anyway. CBS pushed back, saying the show was only given "legal guidance" tied to FCC equal-time rules — not an outright ban. Under those rules, once a candidate appears on a broadcast station, competing candidates must be offered comparable airtime. Rather than fulfill those obligations, the show posted the interview on YouTube instead. Colbert publicly called the network's expla...