Colbert Canceled: Is Late Night TV Over? | Pivot

Kara and Scott discuss the Coldplay Kiss Cam moment that captivated the nation, and launched a thousand memes. What does the incident reveal about work relationships, and letting your guard down in public? Then, Trump sues Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for defamation. Who will emerge victorious in this legal battle? Plus, CBS cancels "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," and insists the decision was purely financial, and not related to Paramount's Trump settlement.#karaswisher #scottgalloway #pivotpodcast #colbert #latenight #coldplay #kisscam #ceos #affairs #trump #rupertmurdoch #murdoch #wallstreetjournal #CBS #lateshow #stephencolbert #paramount #business #tech #media #politics Timecodes: 00:00 Intro 0:23 The Coldplay Moment 16:47 Colbert Cancellation 29:05 Trump Sues Murdoch and Wall Street Journal 38:33 Trump Can’t Quit SpaceX 46:58 Wins and Fails Producers: Lara Naaman Zoë Marcus Taylor Griffin Kevin Oliver Audio Engineer: Ernie Indradat Vox Media's Executive Producer of Podcasts: Nishat Kurwa Subscribe to Pivot on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pivot/id1073226719 Subscribe to Pivot on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4MU3RFGELZxPT9XHVwTNPR Follow us on Instagram and Threads at: https://www.instagram.com/pivotpodcastofficial Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@PIVOTPODCAST Send us your questions by calling us at 855-51-PIVOT, or at https://podcasts.voxmedia.com/show/pivot

Scott GallowayhostKara Swisherhost

Jul 22, 202557mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: July 22, 2025
Duration: 57m
Channel: Pivot
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Kara and Scott discuss the Coldplay Kiss Cam moment that captivated the nation, and launched a thousand memes. What does the incident reveal about work relationships, and letting your guard down in public? Then, Trump sues Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal for defamation. Who will emerge victorious in this legal battle? Plus, CBS cancels "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," and insists the decision was purely financial, and not related to Paramount's Trump settlement.#karaswisher #scottgalloway #pivotpodcast #colbert #latenight #coldplay #kisscam #ceos #affairs #trump #rupertmurdoch #murdoch #wallstreetjournal #CBS #lateshow #stephencolbert #paramount #business #tech #media #politics Timecodes: 00:00 Intro 0:23 The Coldplay Moment 16:47 Colbert Cancellation 29:05 Trump Sues Murdoch and Wall Street Journal 38:33 Trump Can’t Quit SpaceX 46:58 Wins and Fails Producers: Lara Naaman Zoë Marcus Taylor Griffin Kevin Oliver Audio Engineer: Ernie Indradat Vox Media's Executive Producer of Podcasts: Nishat Kurwa Subscribe to Pivot on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pivot/id1073226719 Subscribe to Pivot on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4MU3RFGELZxPT9XHVwTNPR Follow us on Instagram and Threads at: https://www.instagram.com/pivotpodcastofficial Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@PIVOTPODCAST Send us your questions by calling us at 855-51-PIVOT, or at https://podcasts.voxmedia.com/show/pivot

SPEAKERS

Scott Galloway
host
Kara Swisher
host
Narrator
other

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Pivot, featuring Scott Galloway and Kara Swisher, Colbert Canceled: Is Late Night TV Over? | Pivot explores colbert canceled, late night collapses, shame culture and Musk's monopoly collide Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway unpack a viral CEO–HR affair caught on a Coldplay kiss cam to explore industrialized public shaming, workplace power dynamics, and the erosion of privacy in a camera-saturated world. They then analyze CBS canceling Stephen Colbert’s Late Show, arguing it’s primarily a hard-nosed financial decision and emblematic of the broader collapse of the late-night TV business model amid digital fragmentation and creator-driven podcasting. The conversation shifts to Trump’s distraction tactics around the Epstein scandal, including a massive defamation suit against Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal, which they see as both legally weak and politically motivated, and to the national-security risks of U.S. dependence on Elon Musk’s SpaceX/Starlink. They close with personal “wins and fails,” touching on masked law-enforcement, political leadership, California’s business climate, and the enduring appeal of legacy brands and prestige TV.

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