Stephen Colbert’s exit from The Late Show is more than a changing of the guard. It’s a flashing red signal that the entire late-night ecosystem is being upended. The space late-night TV once owned has changed rapidly, with podcasts playing a central role in that transformation.
Late night used to be the place for comedy, conversation, and cultural influence, all delivered with a suit, a desk, and a live audience. But podcasts, especially longform “chatcasts” and their video-powered cousins, have stolen the spotlight. And they’ve done it faster than anyone expected.
As my friend Chris Peterson said in his DWNLOAD Media newsletter, as a podcaster Conan O’Brien is getting the job done and attracts top talent for a fraction of the cost of a late night show. Yes, his reach is less than Colbert. According to Chris, Conan has about 1.3 million downloads per episode. That sure beats his TV show’s final season in 2021, where he had just 282,000 viewers per episode and yet, today, he has built a powerful podcast platform.
Late-night has been an important touchstone for me for all of my adult life, from appointment viewing to watching on a DVR to clips the next morning on YouTube. Whatever the form, it represented currency.
But everything in media evolves.
Podcasts didn’t replace late night — they absorbed its role and modernized it.
The format shifted. The audience shifted. The power shifted. What late night once represented — relevance, reach, star power — is now being delivered more efficiently and more authentically by podcasts.
Late Night TV is Expensive
Colbert’s show reportedly costs nearly $100 million a year to produce, with a staff of 200 creating around 200 episodes annually. That’s roughly $500,000 per episode.
And while The Late Show has remained the #1 late-night program for nine straight seasons, its viewership has dropped more than 30% over the past five years. Even more alarming is the steep decline in the 18–49 demographic, once the bedrock of late-night TV. Today, Colbert draws just 2.4 million viewers per night. That’s less than 1% of the U.S. population.
For contrast, a regular broadcast of Saturday Night Live draws under 5 million viewers. Linear TV is clearly hurting.
Meanwhile, many top podcasts, even those with full video operate at a fraction of that cost. They’re leaner, more flexible, and offer guests far more than a quick segment squeezed between ad breaks.
What’s Fueling the Shift?
Podcasters have become multimedia content machines slicing their shows into viral clips, optimizing for algorithms, and posting everywhere: TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. They’ve taken late-night’s distribution playbook and rewritten it for the age of the infinite scroll.
Here’s what’s driving the shift:
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Audience migration: Young viewers largely have abandoned linear TV. Most under 35 don’t ‘tune in’ at a set time; they scroll, stream, or search. Podcasting is capturing these younger audiences. Edison Research shows podcast listening surging in the 18–34 demo, while Nielsen reports late-night ratings are in freefall.
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The clip economy: Late-night shows leaned hard into posting monologues and interviews on YouTube and social, and for years, this strategy worked. But podcasts are more prolific, more nimble, and often land the same A-list guests. Each episode delivers dozens of viral-ready, short-form segments.
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Lower barriers, higher volume: With smaller teams and lower production costs, podcasts can publish faster and experiment more. Comedians who waited for a late-night spot can now run the format. Think SmartLess, Kill Tony, Marc Maron, and more.
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More intimacy and authenticity: Audiences crave longform, unfiltered conversation, and that’s something podcasting does best. Late night, with its rehearsed segments, scripted questions, and time constraints, just can’t match that level of intimacy.
And Then Came Video
This week, The New York Times ran a feature by Joseph Bernstein on the meteoric rise of video podcasting. The piece, titled “Who Is Watching All These Podcasts?” made clear how the visual side of podcasting is no longer optional, it’s the expectation.
With video in play, the line between podcasts and talk shows is officially blurred. Many of today’s biggest podcasts feature couches, mics, sidekicks, multi-cam edits, and even live audiences. They may look like late-night TV, but they’re made for a different era.
Celebrities Have Noticed
Today, when a movie or series drops, the press tour often includes stops on Call Her Daddy, Armchair Expert, or Pod Save America. These shows offer a certain cool-factor that late night just doesn’t have.
A guest on Colbert might get eight minutes. A guest on a podcast gets the mic for an hour with time to, get personal, go deep, and maybe go viral.
Podcasts vs. Late Night TV: A Changing of the Guard
So, Did Podcasts Replace Late Night?
To a large extent, yes. But not entirely.
It wasn’t a hostile takeover. It’s a shift of gravity and the result of many forces converging in media:
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Young audiences fleeing appointment television and linear media
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YouTube, TikTok and more choice than ever fragmenting attention
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The algorithmic rise of podcasts and social video
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A political tone in late night that’s alienated parts of the audience (and likely a pawn in a pending corporate sale). Though podcasting is certainly home to plenty of opinions coming from all sides.
Late night has had an incredible and storied long run. It was a cultural touchstone. But the spotlight has shifted.
Like so much of linear TV, late night couldn’t outrun the changing habits of younger audiences, the rise of on-demand viewing, and the pull of platforms built for scroll and share.
Podcasts aren’t just taking the mic. They’re taking the moment.
And with the push to video, they’re setting the pace for what comes next.
What do you think?
