A recent study by NewsBusters has found that late-night comedy shows featured nearly exclusively left-leaning political guests in the first half of 2025. According to the report, 99 percent of the political guests interviewed on these shows from January 6 to June 30 were identified as left-leaning.
The study examined five major late-night comedy programs: “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on ABC, “Late Night with Seth Meyers” on NBC, “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” on NBC, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS, and “The Daily Show” on Comedy Central. The analysis categorized guests into two groups: partisan officials and journalists/celebrities.
For partisan officials, the study found 30 Democrats appeared, compared to zero Republicans. Stephen Colbert’s show hosted the most with 14, followed by “The Daily Show” with 10, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” with four, and “Late Night with Seth Meyers” with two. Meanwhile, Fallon’s show featured no political guests during the study period.
The report also noted that several Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett, made multiple appearances. For journalists and celebrities, the ratio was 76 liberals to one conservative, with Oren Cass of American Compass being the sole conservative guest.
NewsBusters, a conservative media watchdog group, said they have been tracking these late-night guest counts since September 2022, and the cumulative total now stands at 511 liberals and Democrats versus 14 conservatives and Republicans, or 97 percent. The study highlights a significant ideological imbalance in the programming, as only one conservative was featured among 76 conservatives and Democrats across the categories.
The study also mentions that several Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett, made multiple appearances on these shows. This suggests a pattern of favoring specific Democratic figures over Republican counterparts, raising concerns about the influence of political bias in media and entertainment. The study’s findings have sparked discussions about the role of late-night television in shaping public discourse and political narratives, with critics arguing that such a skewed representation could influence viewers’ perceptions of current events and politics.