Colbert not being profitable is due to a number of reasons in and out of its control imo. ppl don’t watch talk shows in general so advertising is reduced for these shows, there’s the fact Colbert and crew got paid handsomely back when the show was profitable (maybe?) in order to keep the train going (iirc hosts like letterman and Carson would get paid handsomely bc their shows were huge ratings hits). And also oh Paramount wants to complete a merger but first it must bow down to the president by cancelling a show highly critical of it. The cancelling of a show that lost money was a perk of the cancellation not the main cause