Sen. Chris Murphy Whines About the Cancellation of Colbert’s ‘Late Show’: ‘We Are on the Precipice of Entering a Censorship State’

MURPHY: “So, I want to tell you why the cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s show matters so much. We are on the precipice of entering a censorship state in which Donald Trump is using the powers of the federal government in order to erase criticism from the airwaves. What’s happening at CBS right now is bone-chilling. CBS’ parent company Paramount is trying to get a merger approved, and they need that merger to be approved by the Trump Administration. And so, in a variety of different ways, Paramount is providing monetary and political favors to Donald Trump. First, they settled a totally bogus lawsuit that they would have one in a walk in court that was filed against them by Trump, essentially just paid him $60 million personally. Then Paramount went to ‘60 Minutes,’ their flagship news program, and told them to stop criticizing down Trump so much. Why? Because they need this merger approved. And then finally, they have now cancelled Stephen Colbert’s show knowing that Stephen Colbert was a nightly thorn in the side of Donald Trump. This is all clearly designed to get their merger approved so that their millionaire and billionaire owners and investors, who are already filthy rich, can become even more filthy rich. This is what happens when these massive corporations control the flow of information at the same time that you have an administration that is shameless about using the official powers given to them by the Constitution, by statute, in order to compel political loyalty from the owners of those media companies. This is a really, really dangerous moment. Stephen Colbert didn’t get thrown off the air because he wasn’t doing well. He was the highest-rated show on TV in late night. He was cancelled, very likely, because Paramount and its owners are trying to get rich off of this merger, and Donald Trump has made it clear to them and everybody else in the media space that, ‘If you want any favors from me, then you have to silence my critics on your platforms.’”