Podcast Summary: Everybody's Business – "Dude! They Killed Colbert!" (July 25, 2025)
Hosts: Max Chafkin & Stacey Vanek Smith | Guest: Felix Gillette | Guest: Nick Hand

Overview

This episode explodes with discussion on “battles” in the business and media worlds, centering on:

• The surprise cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s CBS Late Show (and its underlying business and political causes)
• Trump administration’s confrontational posture toward the media and federal agencies
• The shifting landscape of meme stocks and consumer investing fascinations
• Life inside a federal agency under the so-called “Doge” order (with former CFPB technologist Nick Hand)
• A check-in with Starbucks as it attempts to “battle back” with a new leadership pivot

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Meme Stocks Are Back – and So Is Krispy Kreme

[02:40–06:12]

• Max and Stacey chuckle through the revived meme stock craze, spotlighting new favorites like Beyond Meat, Kohl's, and Krispy Kreme.

• Stacey visits the Times Square Krispy Kreme, interviewing customers—revealing that young folks are more interested in crypto and Solana than investing in donuts.

• Quote:

  “Would you buy Krispy Kreme stock?”
  “No. Because I’m all in on Solana.”
  (Stacey & donut shop patron, 04:44)

• Max reflects that speculative trading is the new pastime for Gen Z and millennials, often overshadowing traditional investing.

2. "They Killed Colbert!" – Late Show Cancelled

[06:12–20:10]

• Felix Gillette (Bloomberg contributor, HBO book author) joins for a deep dive on CBS’s decision to axe Colbert’s Late Show—the flagship program since David Letterman.

• The show, once profitable, now reportedly loses $40M/year. Advertising for late-night TV collapsed in the streaming era.

• There’s both a business and political angle to the timing, coinciding with regulatory limbo for the Paramount–Skydance mega-merger, and ongoing Trump–media hostilities.

• Quote:

  “The timing of it is a little sus, as the kids would say… In theory, this would just be another way to placate Trump... But there's been no smoking gun yet.”
  (Felix Gillette, 07:58)

• Colbert’s satirical on-air dig at CBS’s settlement with Trump—calling it a “big fat bribe”—may have made him a target, but Felix emphasizes the poor economics.

• Quote:

  “If the viewers aren’t adding up to profits… and it’s causing you potential headaches, and it’s slightly off brand… it’s losing a bunch of money and it’s causing you political headaches, then, you know…” (Felix Gillette, 10:18)

• Streaming alters the late-night equation: shows like Colbert’s haven’t made the transition, while evergreen IP like South Park scores $1.5B content deals and infinite reruns.

• Quote:

  “What does Colbert do for you in the streaming era? Well, he does nothing.” (Felix Gillette, 12:20)

• Paramount’s latest purchase of South Park is discussed, including its satirical response—lampooning corporate censorship by visualizing Trump in the nude (18:17–18:49).

3. Trump v. Media & Federal Pressure

[13:18–17:27]

• Max and Felix outline the chilling effect as media companies settle Trump-led lawsuits (e.g., 60 Minutes, ABC/Stephanopoulos), and as new White House-backed regulatory and funding threats hit NPR and public broadcasting.
• NPR and small regional radio stations are particularly vulnerable to federal funding cuts.

4. When Government Becomes “Doge” – Inside the CFPB

[23:08–35:50]

• Max & Stacey bring on Nick Hand, a former CFPB technologist, for a firsthand account of mass federal layoffs and the hollowing out of agencies under the “Doge” order (Department of Government Officials Grabbing Headlines), with Musk-inspired zeal.

• Nick describes being abruptly fired via email (while making dinner for his kids), only to be reinstated six weeks later amid legal uncertainty.
  Quote:

  “We got locked out of our accounts in mid-February... and then about an hour later got an email of standard form letter to my personal email account that said that I had been terminated due to the executive order from President Trump.”
  (Nick Hand, 24:35)

• Nick’s work: investigating bank and fintech AI algorithms for consumer fraud (e.g., the mishandling of Zelle fraud complaints by big banks).

• He chose public service over lucrative tech jobs, inspired by a mission to help everyday people.
  Quote:

  “Working every day to make Mark Zuckerberg more money didn’t seem like something I wanted to dedicate my life to. I came back to my home city, started working for the local government, fell in love with public service… The agency has returned over $20 billion directly to consumers since it was created.”
  (Nick Hand, 29:55 – 30:03)

• Most chilling moment: new management mused about reducing the entire CFPB “to five guys and a phone” (33:07).

• The bottom line: attacks on regulatory agencies are not just about efficiency, but power; sometimes aiming for outright elimination.

5. Underrated Story – Starbucks’ Struggle to Regain Identity

[37:02–41:07]

• With meme stocks and donut chains in the news, Max & Stacey pivot to Starbucks. The once-mighty coffee chain is facing an identity crisis—losing its core coffee focus amid a surge in complicated, TikTok-inspired drinks.
• New CEO Brian Niccol (former Taco Bell & Chipotle exec) is re-focusing on basic coffee and customer experience, but faces a market hooked on novelty.
  Quote:

  “He’s like, guys, guys, Starbucks, we’re a coffee company, we make coffee!”
  (Max Chafkin, 38:01)

• Yet, hosts joke the “YOLO drink” culture may be unstoppable, and Starbucks might have leaned too far for customers to turn back.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Meme Stocks and Crypto:

  “More into crypto. So invest in dogecoin… Solana… Doge”
  (Various Times Square customers, 04:45–05:00)

• On Colbert’s Axing:

  “The timing of it is a little sus…” (Gillette, 07:58)
  “Colbert has since come out and said... ‘I'm the leader in late night…’ But if it's losing tens of millions...”

• On Streaming’s Rise:

  “Paramount just paid $1.5 billion for the streaming rights of South Park… Those [episodes]… will be watched for potentially decades.”
  (Gillette, 17:36–20:10)

• On Podcast Disruption:

  “One reason these late night talk shows have failed to take off in streaming is because there’s a competitor to them and it’s podcasts… Joe Budden’s podcast… he’s making Colbert money.”
  (Max, 16:02)

• On Federal Workforce Layoffs:

  “I was cooking dinner for my kids and got an alert on my phone… that I had been terminated due to the executive order from President Trump.”
  (Nick Hand, 24:35)

• On Starbucks:

  “It just takes so long to get coffee now… There are all these crazy, fancy drinks that are going out, the orders take a long time and are sort of mesmerizing.”
  (Stacey, 40:32)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Meme stocks redux, Krispy Kreme fan interviews: [02:40–06:12]
• CBS cancels Colbert, Colbert’s Trump feud, late-night economics: [06:12–13:18]
• Political pressures on media (Trump v. NPR, ABC, 60 Minutes): [13:18–17:27]
• South Park segment on merger, media/streaming satire: [17:27–20:10]
• Trump v. federal workforce, inside CFPB layoffs (Nick Hand): [23:08–35:50]
• Starbucks’ identity crisis and return to coffee: [37:02–41:07]

Tone & Style

The show mixes playfulness and sharp industry insight, with the hosts’ journalistic rigor enlivened by humor and street-level reporting. Both Max and Stacey bring in their own media backgrounds, deploying industry lingo and plenty of on-the-ground color.

Final Notes

• The episode connects the dots between corporate decisions (like canceling Colbert), political pressure, the evolving ways people speculate with money (meme stocks, crypto), and the challenge of maintaining traditional business identities (Starbucks).
• Both the media and the government—once seen as career bedrocks—are depicted as in flux, their fates changing rapidly amid technology, market, and political volatility.
• The chilling effect on media and regulation in the Trump era is clear, but so is the adaptability and creativity of American business—however chaotically rendered.