David Folkenflik

They did so themselves.

Why would they do that?

Some of the critics are saying that they're essentially self-censoring, that they're getting in the way.

And why would they, you know, why would they anger one of their biggest stars?

Well, let's look at the much bigger context here.

which is that you've got vast business interests at play.

The parent company of CBS is Paramount.

Its chairman, David Ellison, with the money of his father, the co-founder of Oracle, is making a bid to buy all of Warner Brothers Discovery, the parent company of HBO and Warner Brothers Studios and

DC Comics and CNN, among other things.

You know, it's right as we are taping this in the mix of it.

It's trying to make an increased offer, trying to pull that Warner Brothers sale away from Netflix.

Well, that would require the approval of antitrust regulators within probably the Justice Department.

But other folks get to advise it, including Chairman Carr at the FCC.

At a time when President Trump's administration has made clear

That these usually autonomous decisions or supposedly nonpolitical decisions would very much be heavily influenced by the president's ideological beliefs, whims and political needs.

You know, the Ellison family has really thrown themselves in Trump's court in his circle.

And they've taken a lot of stances to try to please the president, to please Chairman Carr, to get their acquisition of Paramount through just less than a year ago.

Let's not forget Stephen Colbert's show is set to wrap up in May.

Why is that the case?

Because the previous owners of Paramount made the decision.