When Colbert left the Report, Comedy Central was left with a series of big decisions to make. The Report had taken a certain kind of political satire pioneered by The Daily Show and given it a clever twist, in doing so gaining a good following and appealing to a fairly broad demographic for CC. It would have been a mistake for the network and show creators to try for something too similar to either the Daily Show or Colbert. Neither does The Nightly Show veer too far from the style of humor on those shows, but its new format with multiple guest panel members and greater focus on social issues outside of electoral politics is refreshing and entertaining. I'm not a liberal and have found certain positions taken on all three aforementioned shows obnoxious at times, but I don't need to watch my views being echoed on a political satire show to enjoy it. Unsurprisingly, the fact that the Nightly Show has frequently featured multiracial panels and delves into racism on an arguably deeper level than Colbert or Stewart generally did upsets, bores, or just doesn't sit comfortably with Comedy Central's core audience of young white bros. Hopefully given some time for the show to develop a more comfortable dynamic between audience, writes, guests, contributors, and Wilmore and find its audience, ratings and viewership will improve and the Nightly Show will have a long streak on CC.
The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore
(2015–2016)
Nightly Show does decent job of filling big shoes
6 June 2016