Conan O'Brien Discusses Changes in Late-Night Television Landscape

<p><strong>LOS ANGELES —</strong> Conan O'Brien addressed the current state of late-night television on Wednesday, drawing a comparison to the decline of Detroit. His comments were made during an appearance at Bloomberg Screentime 2026, where he responded to a question from Bloomberg's Ashley Carman regarding the economic viability of late-night TV.</p><p>O'Brien reflected on the evolution of late-night programming, noting that in the late 1940s, networks would cease broadcasting at 10:30 PM, leaving only the American flag and music on air until NBC began to fill that time with programming.</p><p>He used an analogy to describe the growth of late-night TV, stating, "You own a nice house, kind of like 'It's a Wonderful Life' house, you fix it up... and then you realize, hey, there's an attic." He explained that networks discovered unused airtime and began to capitalize on it, with NBC leading the way in creating a successful late-night format.</p><p>O'Brien noted that late-night TV became a profitable venture, particularly during his time hosting "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" starting in 1993. However, he observed significant changes over his 17 years with NBC, as the industry began to prioritize cost-efficiency due to the emergence of competitors like HBO and Cinemax.</p><p>He remarked, "It's a little like Detroit and automobiles. Like, the things just started to change, and you can get really upset about it. But then streamers come along... Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of millions of people are making funny videos." O'Brien emphasized the competition posed by the vast number of online content creators.</p><p>O'Brien's late-night career spanned decades across NBC and TBS, transitioning to podcasts with his current show, "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend." TBS discontinued its late-night programming in 2022 after canceling "Full Frontal with Samantha Bee." Earlier this year, CBS also ended "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," replacing it with Byron Allen's "Comics Unleashed." Reports indicated that Colbert's show was losing CBS $40 million annually and operating on a $100 million budget per season.</p><p>Despite the lower viewership of "Comics Unleashed," CBS anticipates a $15 million profit in the same time slot due to cost reductions.</p>