{"id":1173,"date":"2026-02-18T15:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T15:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/massive-publicity-boosts-talarico-after-botched-suppression-of-colbert-interview\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T15:45:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T15:45:00","slug":"massive-publicity-boosts-talarico-after-botched-suppression-of-colbert-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/massive-publicity-boosts-talarico-after-botched-suppression-of-colbert-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Massive Publicity Boosts Talarico After Botched Suppression Of Colbert Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"<br><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.rebelmouse.io\/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy82NDk1NzkyNy9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTgyNTMxNjIwN30.bNoJ6WsDsAnRmVLyijzuvVJH-MEVBeYPUEL7G1f98FA\/img.png?width=1882&amp;height=1104&amp;coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0\" \/><br><p>If you wanted a textbook example of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britannica.com\/topic\/Streisand-effect\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">Streisand Effect<\/a>, look no further than the Trump administration\u2019s meddling in the Texas Senate race.<\/p><p>CBS News <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/stories\/2026\/2\/17\/2369118\/-CBS-forces-Colbert-to-pull-segment-and-he-isn-t-doing-it-quietly?pm_campaign=front_page&amp;pm_source=top_news_slot_2&amp;pm_medium=web\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">refused to air<\/a> late night host Stephen Colbert\u2019s interview with Democratic Texas state Rep. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/stories\/2025\/10\/12\/2347790\/-Does-James-Talarico-know-how-to-flip-Texas\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">James Talarico<\/a>, who is currently locked in a competitive Senate primary with Rep. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/stories\/2026\/1\/10\/2362111\/-Jasmine-Crockett-on-blazing-her-own-trail-in-Texas-politics\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">Jasmine Crockett<\/a> (D-TX).<\/p><p>Colbert said that CBS&#8217; lawyers feared retribution from the Federal Communications Commission, claiming that the interview <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2026\/02\/17\/james-talarico-colbert-cbs-equal-time\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">could be seen<\/a> as a violation of the equal-time rule.<\/p><div class=\"rm-embed embed-media\"><iframe title=\"Why CBS Didn&#039;t Broadcast Stephen Colbert&#039;s Interview With James Talarico\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/oh7DPSP65JA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><p>Never mind the fact that it&#8217;s a bullshit excuse, as Crockett has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=oy4Y74bYLAs\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">already appeared<\/a> on Colbert&#8217;s show\u2014not to mention, late-night comedy programs like Colbert\u2019s aren\u2019t even bound by the equal-time rule. But axing the interview drew even more attention to it than if CBS had just aired it in the first place.<\/p><p>The interview, which Colbert <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=oiTJ7Pz_59A\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">shared<\/a> on his YouTube channel, amassed more than 2.6 million views at the time this article was written\u2014about twice as many views as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m_6k8zndCCs\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">an interview<\/a> with actor Jennifer Garner that was posted at the same time.<\/p><div class=\"rm-embed embed-media\"><iframe title=\"Rep. James Talarico On Confronting Christian Nationalism, And Strange Days In The Texas Legislature\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/oiTJ7Pz_59A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><p><br \/><\/p><p>And data shows that Google search traffic for Talarico <a href=\"https:\/\/www.datawrapper.de\/_\/x6eAt\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">skyrocketed<\/a> after Colbert revealed that he was blocked from airing the interview on CBS. <\/p><p class=\"shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image\"> <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"rm-shortcode\" data-rm-shortcode-id=\"391c6ff7c16cd5179a3a310a7cdb860e\" data-rm-shortcode-name=\"rebelmouse-image\" id=\"a5f98\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.rebelmouse.io\/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy82NDk1NzkwMC9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTgwODc2NDMzMX0.B3YRY1SGFqI3q4tZKAGhwxICFOXWis6FzEq_djjbnoU\/img.png?width=980\" \/> <\/p><p>The search traffic <a href=\"https:\/\/www.datawrapper.de\/_\/El2fE\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">even spiked in Texas<\/a>, showing that potential voters now have their eyes on Talarico.<\/p><p class=\"shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image\"> <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"rm-shortcode\" data-rm-shortcode-id=\"f426b3de796acc53ce011f7ee36f754f\" data-rm-shortcode-name=\"rebelmouse-image\" id=\"babef\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.rebelmouse.io\/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy82NDk1NzkwOS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTc4OTUwNzY0Mn0.eEA8FyM8Sjsfyv8sTJ0KTp-eyAVJQa-nb6myQpPN33E\/img.png?width=980\" \/> <\/p> <p>This is the exact opposite of the outcome desired by Republicans\u2014who want to face off with Crockett, believing that she\u2019s less electable than Talarico.<\/p><p>GOP Sen. John Cornyn, who is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/stories\/2026\/1\/14\/2363382\/-Trump-does-his-best-to-make-this-Texas-primary-even-crazier\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">facing an uphill battle<\/a> in a primary of his own with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.notus.org\/senate\/jasmine-crockett-nrsc-texas-senate\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">ran an operation<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/5641075-cornyn-on-crocketts-senate-run-am-i-hiding-my-glee\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">lure Crockett into the race<\/a> for this very reason.<\/p><p>Whether or not Crockett is less electable than Talarico is debatable. But if Republicans really do want to face off with Crockett, then raising Talarico&#8217;s profile on the <em>very day <\/em>that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/feb\/17\/texas-early-voting-primaries\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"\">early voting begins<\/a> is one of the most boneheaded moves they could have made.<\/p><p>Polling shows that the race is close, with Crockett leading Talarico by three points in <a href=\"https:\/\/fiftyplusone.news\/polls\/senate\/democratic-primary\/texas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">FiftyPlusOne&#8217;s average<\/a>. But making Talarico into a resistance hero right as voters start heading to the polls could certainly give him a boost.<\/p><p>The Texas primary ends on March 3, so we\u2019ll soon know whether this helped propel Talarico to victory.<\/p><p>And if it did, it will be a major self-own by the Trump team.<\/p><p><em>Reprinted with permission from <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailykos.com\/stories\/2026\/2\/17\/2369185\/-How-the-GOP-s-latest-media-meddling-is-a-major-self-own?pm_campaign=front_page&amp;pm_source=top_news_slot_4&amp;pm_medium=web\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Daily Kos<\/em><\/a><\/p><p><br \/><\/p>\r\n<br> stephen colbert, the late show, fcc, brendan carr, cbs, james talarico\r\n<br><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalmemo.com\/talarico-colbert\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link  www.nationalmemo.com<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you wanted a textbook example of the Streisand Effect, look no further than the Trump administration\u2019s meddling in the Texas Senate race.CBS News refused to air late night host Stephen Colbert\u2019s interview with Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico, who is currently locked in a competitive Senate primary with Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX).Colbert said that CBS&#8217; lawyers feared retribution&hellip;","protected":false},"author":192,"featured_media":68,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_analytify_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[697,463,696,464,466,695],"class_list":["post-1173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-brendan-carr","tag-cbs","tag-fcc","tag-james-talarico","tag-stephen-colbert","tag-the-late-show"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/192"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wokeantifa.org\/topics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}