Former late-night talk show host Jay Leno expertly laid out the problems with comedy in today’s political environment.
After CBS announced that it would not renew late-night comedian Stephen Colbert’s contract, it became clear that Americans aren’t as keen on this new brand of partisan comedic hackery that has dominated the airwaves over the past decade.
During a recent interview, Leno lamented the fact that late-night television hosts have stopped satirizing all political sides and chosen to shill for the Democratic Party instead.
From The New York Post:
Jay Leno reflected on why he always kept his jokes politically balanced while hosting “The Tonight Show” for over two decades.
The 75-year-old comedian recently sat down for an interview with David Trulio, the president and CEO of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, during which he was questioned about his approach to political humor.
“I read that there was an analysis done of your work on ‘The Tonight Show’ for the 22 years and that your jokes were roughly equally balanced between going after Republicans and taking aim at Democrats. Did you have a strategy?” Trulio asked.
“It was fun to me when I got hate letters [like] ‘Dear Mr. Leno, you and your Republican friends’ and ‘Well, Mr. Leno, I hope you and your Democratic buddies are happy‘ — over the same joke,” Leno recalled.
‘And I go, ’Well, that’s good,'” he said. “That’s how you get a whole audience.”
Leno went on to note how late-night comedy has changed amid the current divisive political landscape.
“Now you have to be content with half the audience because you have [to] give your opinion,” Leno said.
When Trulio asked if Leno had any advice for comedians today, the “Jay Leno’s Garage” host referred to his longtime friendship with late comedy legend Rodney Dangerfield.
“I knew Rodney 40 years,” he said. “I have no idea if he was Democrat or Republican. We never discussed [it], we just discussed jokes.”
“And to me, I like to think that people come to a comedy show to kind of get away from the things, you know, the pressures of life, whatever it might be,” Leno continued. “And I love political humor, don’t get me wrong, but it’s just what happens when people wind up cozying too much to one side or the other.”
Leno further explained that he likes “to bring people into the big picture” instead of focusing only on mocking half the country. “I don’t understand why you would alienate one particular group, you know, or just don’t do it at all. I’m not saying you have to throw your support or whatever, but just do what’s funny,” he said.
Late-night TV used to be about laughs — not lectures.@jayleno tells us why he never shared his political opinions on The Tonight Show, and why he thinks today’s hosts are losing half of America by doing so. pic.twitter.com/dEvhjICdyC
— Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute (@RonaldReagan) July 22, 2025
What Leno describes is what comedy used to be — and what it should return to. If I’m watching political comedy, I enjoy seeing all political affiliations being satirized — including mine. It’s why I like shows like “Family Guy” and others that take aim at everyone. There is nothing like good-natured ribbing to bring people together and remind us not to take ourselves to seriously.
I remember watching Johnny Carson when I was a kid and giggling. Same with Jay Leno. Now all these late night guys are political activists. And mean ones. No more laughs, just down right nasty comments about 1/2 the country. Who wants to watch that when you’re going to bed?…
— Kathy Tavoularis (@KathyTavoularis) July 22, 2025
But now, we have folks like Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, and others who seem to be just fine with alienating half the country. Their monologues are little more than vitriolic diatribes aimed at supporting the Democratic Party. Even worse — they aren’t even funny anymore. This is probably the greatest comedic sin of all — sacrificing laughs for political commentary.
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