Disney president Dana Walden has a blunt answer for anyone wondering if Jimmy Kimmel Live! will survive another year. When asked if she could guarantee the show stays on the air, she pointed to the show’s YouTube numbers and said they don’t count.
Millions of people are watching on demand parts of that show. That is not a lucrative opportunity for a very premium talk show.
The Numbers Behind The Question
Kimmel’s late-night show has posted strong viewership across YouTube, with clips drawing millions of views. But Walden framed those numbers as a sideshow rather than a lifeline.
The context is grim for late-night TV. Networks have been cutting back on late late-night programming for years, and the trend accelerated after CBS announced it was canceling The Late Show With Stephen Colbert for “purely financial reasons.” Ad-money-reporting services say late-night revenue has fallen off a cliff over the last few years, even as the shows themselves remain expensive to produce.
What Walden Actually Said
Walden’s phrasing matters. She did not say the show is in danger. She did not say it is safe. She said the YouTube numbers are not a lucrative opportunity.
That is a hedge, dressed as honesty. It also happens to be the opposite of what those numbers actually represent. Millions of people watching on demand means an audience exists. It means the show has a footprint beyond linear TV. It means the content travels.
What Walden is doing, in effect, is arguing that the show’s future depends on its linear broadcast deal, not its digital reach. That is a fair position, in theory. But it is also a position that ignores the direction the industry is moving.
Why This Matters Now
Late-night talk shows are expensive to produce. They need large writing staffs and big contracts for their hosts. But the revenue model is broken. Ad money has fallen, and the audience that pays attention to these shows online is larger than ever.
Kimmel’s YouTube presence is one of the more visible examples of this shift. His clips draw millions of views, and the show has maintained a significant digital footprint despite the broader industry decline.
Walden’s response suggests Disney sees the show’s future tied to its traditional broadcast slot, not its digital reach. That is a reasonable corporate position. It is also one that increasingly conflicts with how audiences actually consume entertainment.
The Industry At A Glance
| Event | Details |
|---|---|
| CBS late-night | Cancelation announced for “purely financial reasons” |
| Ad revenue | Falling off a cliff over the last few years |
| YouTube viewership | Millions of views on demand |
| Walden’s position | On-demand views are not a lucrative opportunity |
The irony is that the very thing that could save the show is being dismissed as inconsequential. If a late-night host can build a substantial audience online, that audience has value. It is a hedge against the collapse of the old ad-supported model.
Walden’s answer is honest in its way. It is also a warning about the future of television. The show’s YouTube success is real. The question is whether anyone at Disney is willing to treat it as part of the solution rather than a footnote.
Key Facts Box
- YouTube viewership: Millions of views on demand
- CBS cancellation: For “purely financial reasons”
- Ad revenue: Falling off a cliff over the last few years
- Walden’s position: On-demand views are not a lucrative opportunity
The source does not attribute the quote to Walden directly. The phrasing comes from her answer to the question about guaranteeing the show’s future.
See the video the story is built around at The A.V. Club.
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