James Talarico says campaign raised $2.5 million after Colbert interview

After Stephen Colbert alleged CBS did not want to spotlight James Talarico's campaign on "The Late Show," the U.S. Senate candidate is suggesting the axed interview had the opposite effect.

On Feb. 18, Talarico said his campaign raised $2.5 million in the 24-hour period after Colbert called out the network.

Two days earlier, Colbert, whose late-night show ends in May, alleged that CBS told him he could not air an interview with Talarico, a Texas state representative who is running for U.S. Senate in a competitive primary against fellow Rep. Jasmine Crockett.

CBS in turn denied Colbert's characterization of the situation, saying that "The Late Show" was not prohibited from airing the interview. Rather, the network said Colbert's show was provided legal guidance that the interview could trigger the Federal Communications Commission's equal-time rule for other candidates.

The equal-time rule requires television stations that give air time to one political candidate to provide the same amount of time to other candidates for that office.

Colbert's interview with Talarico, which was uploaded to YouTube instead of airing on TV, has been viewed more than seven million times as of Feb. 19. By comparison, the video is more popular than Colbert's July 2025 announcement of the cancellation of "The Late Show," which has garnered 5.8 million views to date.

Talarico says campaign raised $2.5 million after Colbert interview fallout

In a social media post on Feb. 18, Talarico wrote, "our campaign raised $2.5 million in 24 hours after the FCC banned our Colbert interview."

In a news release, Talarico said it marked the largest fundraising day of his entire campaign.

“This is a campaign of, by, and for the people — so I’m proud that neighbors from all across our state and country stood together to defend free speech,” Talarico said in the release. “This is the most dangerous kind of cancel culture, the kind that comes from the top. A threat to one of our First Amendment rights is a threat to all of our First Amendment rights.”

Senate candidates are required to report their campaign fundraising amounts to the Federal Election Commission quarterly.

The current campaign fundraising period will be covered in filings due to the FEC on April 15, so the total amount that Talarico's campaign has raised so far won't be publicly available until after that.

For the fundraising period between September 2025, when Talarico launched his Senate bid, and Dec. 31, 2025, his campaign raised more than $13 million, according to FEC records.

What to know about Stephen Colbert, James Talarico and the FCC

The fallout over Colbert's interview with Talarico began on Feb. 16, when the talk show host said CBS barred him from airing his interview with the Texas state representative.

"We were told in no uncertain terms by our network's lawyers who called us directly that we could not have him on the broadcast. Then, then I was told in some uncertain terms that not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on," Colbert said. "And because my network clearly doesn't want us to talk about this, let's talk about this."

In a statement shared with USA TODAY on Feb. 17, CBS denied Colbert's allegation that he could not air the Talarico interview.

"'The Late Show' was not prohibited by CBS from broadcasting the interview with Rep. James Talarico. The show was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett, and presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled," the statement said.

"'The Late Show’ decided to present the interview through its YouTube channel with on-air promotion on the broadcast rather than potentially providing the equal-time options."

Afterward, Colbert criticized CBS' statement and doubled down on his original claims.

"For the lawyers to release this (statement) without even talking to me is really surprising. I don't even know what to do with this crap," he said.

For his part, Talarico, a critic of President Donald Trump, addressed the apparent FCC concerns during his interview with Colbert.

"I think Donald Trump is worried that we're about to flip Texas," Talarico said. "This is the party that ran against cancel culture. And this is the most dangerous kind of cancel culture, the kind that comes from the top."

Contributing: Taijuan Moorman and Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY

Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at [email protected].