Overview
- Colbert visited Monroe Community Media in early June and recruited guests including Jeff Daniels and Jack White to demolish the longtime Only in Monroe set as part of a filmed segment.
- Pieces of the destroyed set, signed scripts and Colbert’s mug were sold through The Late Show’s official eBay store and other auctions that together have raised more than $15,000 for the nonprofit.
- The station also received donated Late Show production equipment and a gift from CBS for a high school summer program, with creative director Genevieve Benson saying the support was a “major game changer.”
- Proceeds and gifts enabled Monroe Community Media to make operations manager Jerry Gysin a full-time employee and to begin rebuilding the studio set.
- The event highlights how a celebrity-led spectacle and direct-to-audience distribution — Colbert released the segment on his new YouTube channel concurrent with the local airing — can translate viral attention into concrete support for struggling public-access outlets.