THE NIGHT THE PROMPTER DIED

CBS’S JUSTIFICATION — AND THE REAL REASON

THE DEFENSE TURNED ATTACK

THE MSNBC SHADOW

THE ROOM THAT TURNED

• Colbert: jaw set, voice calm, but eyes blazing with betrayal and revenge.
• CBS executives: sweating in their box seats, muttering into phones, realizing they’d unleashed a monster they couldn’t control.
• The audience: wide-eyed, leaning forward, knowing they were witnessing not comedy, but history.

CBS IN FREEFALL

THE AUDIENCE STRIKES BACK

CROCKETT’S SILENT FIREPOWER

THE AFTERSHOCK

THE FINAL CUT

THE CONSEQUENCES

• For CBS: A crater in its late-night empire, with millions in ad dollars evaporating overnight.
• For MSNBC: A once-in-a-generation chance to fuse comedy with commentary, capturing a demographic no one else can touch.
• For America: A late-night war not fought with jokes, but with scars.

THE EULOGY CBS NEVER WANTED