Staying up to watch late night shows is a thing of the past. A new era of late night TV, like it or not, is on its way.
The future of late night seems to be up in the air after Jon Stewart announced his upcoming departure from the acclaimed “Daily Show” this past February. Stewart has drastically altered the late night talk show sphere, and with him leaving, along with others, viewers have new questions about late night’s future.
Stewart’s departure comes on the heels of another Comedy Central staple leaving his position. Stephen Colbert, the eccentric former host of “the Colbert Report”, retired from that position and is now slated to take over the for David Letterman on the Late Show. Colbert was replaced by “The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore”, but while it has garnered generally positive reviews, Wilmore is no Colbert. So while Comedy Central took a hit when Colbert left, its future could be in jeopardy while they try and rebuild their comedy late night anchor in Stewart.
“Nobody can really take Jon Stewart’s place,” said senior Hanna Haile. “He is the heart and soul of Comedy Central.”
While Comedy Central seems to be the main network that late night fans have questions about, the long standing shows on broadcasts have hosts mixed up as well. The biggest news was Jimmy Fallon stepping into “The Tonight Show” spotlight, and WS senior Jordan Farquhar is a big fan (and even got a hug from him at one of his shows).
“[Fallon] has done really well. I love him.” said Farquhar enthusiastically.
With all this shuffling in the late night world, the new age is being ushered in. Hosts like Jay Leno, Letterman, and Craig Ferguson are on their way out. This generation of late night viewers are going to be more familiar with the likes of Wilmore, HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver, Late Night host Seth Meyers, and Fallon than the hosts that have graced the channels for decades before.
“[The old hosts] were the OGs,” said Haile. “They were classic. They set the standard”.
And this new generation watches their shows in different ways than late night lovers before. Gone are the days when viewers stayed up late to catch the shows live. Instead, nights can be spent diving into a great book or studying for a big quiz (or perusing Twitter let’s be honest), and the best moments from the night before can be watched at will on YouTube the next day or recorded On Demand.
“Not everyone can watch 10 different hour-long shows at the same time,” said Farquhar.
While Farquhar’s statement is true, if one goes on the YouTube pages of March 10th, he or she would not be able to tell any lack of viewership. As of March 1st, “Jimmy Kimmel Live” has over 5 million subscribers; “Conan” has over 2 million; “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” has over 1 million; and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” has 6.5 million.
“They are making what the younger generation wants,” said sophomore Gavin Zaleski.
Even with all of these changes to the late night lineup, it seems that popularity has only grown. Late night is never going to be the only thing people watch anymore. Unlike our grandparents, we have more than 4 channels. So as Stewart, Colbert, and the “OG’s” say their goodbyes, the new wave of hosts looks to not miss a step.
“If they find good enough replacements, the success should continue,” said Haile.