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David Razowsky is Interviewed about Colbert; Job Market with A.I.; Nicks Take 2-0 Series Lead. Aired 9:30-10a ET
Aired May 22, 2026 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[09:31:39]
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: All right, this morning there is a big hole in late night television. After 11 years and more than 1,800 episodes, Stephen Colbert signed off "The Late Show" for the final time last night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": If you're just tuning in to "The Late Show," you missed a lot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right, CBS is now officially out of the late night television business, ending a franchise that began over three decades ago with host David Letterman. As last night's show neared its end, and as an inter-dimensional wormhole opened up at the theater, Colbert got a visit from some friends.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": How am I going to finish my show now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALES: Maybe we can help.
COLBERT: Strike force five.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, come on.
COLBERT: Jimmy, Seth, Jon, Handsome Jimmy. Thank God you're here when I need you the most.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We came to say we're going to miss you. Late night is not going to be the same without you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Without you, where will Americans turn to see a middle aged white man make jokes about the news?
(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: So, joining me right now is David Razowsky, a former artistic director at the storied comedy theater Second City. He worked closely with Colbert while the two of them were at Second City. He is on the right in this photo, along with Colbert, Steve Carell and Paul Dinello.
Awe, so good to see you, David.
DAVID RAZOWSKY, FORMER ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, SECOND CITY: Thank you, Fredricka. It's good to see you.
WHITFIELD: I mean, this has to be so bittersweet. What was it like for you watching?
RAZOWSKY: Oh, so many memories came back to me.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: Particularly the warmth that Stephen exudes when he's on camera is the warmth that he gets when you're in person with him. And even though we haven't been in contact in years, when I'd watch him on the show, there would be a feeling of pride that would come over and a feeling of how important he is to the country, to satire, to us speaking our truth. And he's just so warm and connected, and his heart is so large, and I'm going to miss that. I think America is going to miss that.
WHITFIELD: Yes. I think so, too. I mean, I think it really comes across. I mean, if you were a fan and watched regularly, you saw it, felt it. But really, in these last couple of weeks, I mean, so many stories being shared by people, such as yourself, so many personal moments, I mean, really kind of rounded out this figure of just like how compassionate, kind, you know, he has been and continues to be.
And I wonder, I mean, I love those pictures, the montage, the pictures with you and him. I mean, you can see, you know, that kind of brotherhood that you all shared. But -- there they are again. I mean, so cute.
And I wonder, you know, as you were watching, you know, were you looking for a particular moment, were you're looking for a particular emotion out of him or even the guests? I mean what were you -- what were you expecting and how did it land with you?
RAZOWSKY: On that last show -- on -- yes, on the -- on the last episode I -- I felt like -- to be honest, I felt like I was expecting more of him to share his heart a little more because a lot of it was very heavy on the jokes last night.
[09:35:07]
But I think that that's a really important thing to say. We have laughter. We have connection. We all know the depth of which Stephen is capable of going. And I felt like, oh, I just wanted to grab him and go, are you OK?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: I know you're OK. Are you OK?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: Because, right now, this is such a hard thing for him. And I know -- I think that if he opened up the way that I wanted him to open up, no one would stop crying.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: No one would stop crying. The crew that he has, the writers that are on that show, the musicians, the artists that are on that show, he's helming that and he's showing strength. And I think that that's really an important thing, to show that strength. And I -- and that strength and, Fredricka, when he's talked about, his compassion and his empathy, I think that that's what makes him different than any other late night host is that ability to emotionally connect. When you saw him with your -- with Anderson, your colleague Anderson Cooper, and to watch the way that they talk about grief.
WHITFIELD: Yes, that was beautiful. Wow.
RAZOWSKY: Oh, wasn't it, Fredricka? Wasn't it beautiful?
WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh, so powerful.
RAZOWSKY: It was -- and who can't relate to that?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: So powerful. And we can all relate to that. And he brings that to every single thing that he does. Is he satirical? Yes. Is he silly? Absolutely silly. Ridiculously silly. But there's also a heart that -- it's sort of, in a way, it's certainly Jimmy Kimmel and Seth Meyers have those too, but we're ripping out a little piece of our heart when we lost Stephen on late night.
WHITFIELD: Yes. You know, in a strange way, this is kind of full -- kind of full circle because Colbert gave you a beautiful goodbye tribute letter years ago, right?
RAZOWSKY: He did.
WHITFIELD: And this was -- I guess this -- when you all were splitting ways, you know, with the Second City.
RAZOWSKY: Yes.
WHITFIELD: And I'm just going to read a little portion of it because it says so much about him and what he decided to focus on.
RAZOWSKY: Yes, it does.
WHITFIELD: I won't go to the really, really crazy ones, but here's a nice little, tender kind of moment. You know, he says, you know, "you are the energy man. I feel like I'm just, you know, kind of getting his voice. Your joy on stage was, is and ever shall be a wonder to me. I'm lucky to have worked with you. And lucky you didn't have longer fingernails or my eye would be hanging by a nerve. I can't say I'll miss you because I miss you already."
RAZOWSKY: Yes.
WHITFIELD: I mean, he injected his heart and then humor. All of it.
RAZOWSKY: Yes.
WHITFIELD: Tell me about that letter and how meaningful that is to you.
RAZOWSKY: Well, Stephen is like Tom Hanks in that he will write -- he will write a postcard to you. He will write a letter to you and you'll get it in the mail and you go, my God, he took the time in order to connect with me on that level.
I did not expect him to do that. When Stephen left -- Stephen left, Paul Dinello left, Amy Sedaris left to do Exit 57. The cult favorite "Exit 57," and then went on to "Strangers with Candy."
When Stephen left, I felt -- I grieved when Stephen left Second City because he and I connected so much with the work, and we really listened to each other. And very often -- one of the things about working with each other is, there's a connective tissue between you and your improv partner. The two of you suddenly become one. One entity. You are -- you are collaborators in what it is that you're doing.
And Stephen was able to connect with me in some of these scenes. And the -- and so when I got that letter, and when I reread that letter yesterday, after watching his last show, it is full circle, Fredricka. It really is that thing and how he was really -- it kind of was like he was talking to himself when he sent me that, the future Stephen Colbert he was talking to himself.
WHITFIELD: Wow.
RAZOWSKY: And it's just a beautiful letter. And I wrote a book called "A Subversive's Guide to Improvisation." And a lot of that, of my experience in that -- in the memoir portion of that book, has to do with working with Stephen and what it felt like when he left because of his satirical bones and because of his empathy, it really -- it took a little bit of time to -- for Second City to catch up once he was gone from there.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. Well, I think it's going to take a little time --
RAZOWSKY: I truly miss him. He has -- yes.
WHITFIELD: Yes. It's going to take a little time for America to catch up and, you know, piece it together too because he really will be missed. But something tells me, David, I mean, you know him better than I do, something tells me we're going to see him again in some other iteration, some other medium. I mean he's creative. I mean, he's going to figure it out and we're going to see him again and still laugh.
RAZOWSKY: A hundred percent.
WHITFIELD: Yes.
RAZOWSKY: I --
WHITFIELD: David Razowsky, thank you so much.
RAZOWSKY: The world should not be surprised at whatever it is that he's doing.
WHITFIELD: You're right about that. Thank you so much.
RAZOWSKY: You're welcome, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right.
President Trump is determined to build that massive arch in Washington, D.C., and it just got one step closer to becoming reality.
[09:40:08]
And this year's college graduates are entering a rapidly changing job market because of A.I. We're running the numbers.
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[09:45:01]
SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: It is graduation season and this year's college grads are entering an uncertain job market, in big part thanks to, yes, you guessed it, A.I.
CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten joins us now. He is very real. He is very not A.I.
A lot of people seem to be worried, though, about the economy right now, for good reason. You've got gas prices up. You've got prices of everything up. Inflation is going up. But what about students specifically when you ask them that one?
HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Yes, I mean, this is one of the big chief worries right now if you're a student entering this job market. Just look at this trend line. Undergrads who say finding a job will be hard. You go back four years ago, it was just 43 percent. Unfortunately, that's up like a rocket right now. Look at this. Seventy percent of undergrads say that finding a job will, in fact, be difficult. No wonder that we have seen across those commencements a lot of worried students, Sara Sidner.
SIDNER: Yes. The anxiety is real. I mean me looking at that, I'm getting anxious and I'm not in school. ENTEN: Yes. Yes.
SIDNER: Like, this is a real concern for students who are graduating. Young people really don't seem to like commencement speakers when it comes to A.I. This tells you why, correct?
ENTEN: This tells you a big reason why. And, in fact, you can see it in the numbers, right? I mean, just take a look at those under the age of 30, among age 18 to 29, impact of A.I. and the number of jobs. Just 27 percent believe that A.I. will increase the number of jobs. Look at this number, 73 percent. Seventy-three percent say, in fact, they believe that A.I. will decrease, will decrease the number of jobs. This 73 percent looks an awful bit like this 70 percent on this side of the --
SIDNER: Yes.
ENTEN: On this screen, right? So, what you're seeing here is a lot of students are worried about the job market and what you can connect the dots, which is what I like to do. A big reason why they are worried is because they believe that A.I. will, in fact, decrease the number of jobs. And that is why you see those undergraduates really not liking those commencement speakers speaking about A.I. because they're worried for their livelihoods.
SIDNER: Yes. And it's not just decreasing the number of jobs. That's one thing. But well-paying jobs.
ENTEN: Correct. The quality jobs. The quality jobs, Sara.
SIDNER: Yes. So, let me ask you about the overarching, how do Americans in general, not just the young, not just the graduates, feel about A.I.?
ENTEN: Yes, this is one of those things where you get the rare time in which Americans are really connecting on this issue, from the left to the right. I mean say A.I. will make it harder to get a good job. You see among all adults at 63 percent. On the left side you get 68 percent. In the middle, 68 percent. And even on the right, you get the rare trifecta, the left, right and middle, the majority all agree that getting a good job will, in fact, become harder because of A.I. And, of course, the students are the ones who don't currently have the jobs. And that is why there's all that apprehension right now.
SIDNER: So, this is how they feel. But are they right? When you look at the numbers or the numbers of layoffs, for example, that companies have blamed on A.I.?
ENTEN: Yes. OK. So, you know, you can take a look at the Kalshi prediction market. And what is the chance that 2026 tech layoffs will exceed 2025, i.e., more than 447,000? You can see that it is a very clear -- we are approaching percentages, probabilities that we very rarely ever get. And so, to me, this is part of the picture. We got a lot of the fear. And the fear in this case is backed up by the numbers, at least initially. Of course, we're going to have to wait and see as we go down the road with A.I. A lot of the proponents of it believe that it will, in fact, create more quality jobs, up the number of jobs, just different types of jobs. But at least in the immediacy, when it comes to tech layoffs, it looks like those are going to be higher than they were a year ago, at least for the people who are putting their money where their mouths are.
SIDNER: Yes, we're seeing, you know, companies dump large amounts of money into A.I.
ENTEN: Yes.
SIDNER: That does not necessarily equate to more jobs or the jobs that they need.
ENTEN: Correct.
SIDNER: Thank you so much, Harry Enten, it is a pleasure to see you, darling.
ENTEN: Happy Memorial Day weekend.
SIDNER: To you too.
We'll be right back.
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[09:53:34]
WHITFIELD: All right, the big apple is crazy right now. The New York Knicks had all the momentum last night against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game two of the Eastern Conference Finals.
CNN's Andy Scholes joining us right now.
Andy, it's electric in this city.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Oh, I'm sure it is. And the good times is just continuing to roll at Madison Square Garden, down the street from where you are, Fredricka, after that historic comeback in game one. I mean, the Knicks certainly have started to kind of look like a team of destiny. They're now two wins away from making it to the finals for the first time since 1999. Celebrity row was once again popping for game two at MSG. You had Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jon Bon Jovi and others all getting to see a big night from Josh Hart, the Knicks guard. He was on the bench for that comeback in game one, but a huge part of this game two win. Hart made five threes. He led the Knicks on an 18-0 run in the third quarter. That was the difference in the game. Hart finished with a playoff career high 26 points. The fans at MSG were chanting "Knicks in four" at the end of this one as they won 109 to 93 to take a commanding 2-0 lead in the series. But Hart says the team is not getting ahead of themselves.
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JOSH HART, SCORED A PLAYOFF CAREER-HIGH 26 POINTS: We can't be happy with, you know, being up 2-0. This team was just down 2-0, what, last series and came back. So, we got to go out there. We know they're going to have a sense of urgency, a sense of desperation, and we can't just match it. We have to exceed it.
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SCHOLES: Yes, Knicks have now won nine straight games in these playoffs. They're the 13th team ever to do that.
[09:55:02]
Eleven of the previous 12 to do it, made the finals. Game three of that series is going to be Saturday in Cleveland.
Meanwhile, the Stanley Cup playoffs, we had game one of the eastern conference finals between the Hurricanes and Canadians. So, Carolina, they would score just 33 seconds into the game. Didn't look like that 11-day layoff, which was the longest post-season break in more than a century, affected the team. But that actually was not the case, because Montreal would then score four goals in the next 11 minutes to take a commanding 4-1 lead. The Canadiens would go on to win 6-2 to hand Carolina their first loss in this postseason. Game two of that series is Saturday.
Tonight you got game two between Vegas and Colorado. The Knights lead that series one game to none.
Also tonight, Fredricka, we've got game three between the Spurs and the Thunder. Games one and two were must see TV, right, Danny?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
SCHOLES: I mean it was incredible basketball. We will see, you know, what Victor Wembanyama has in store for us tonight in game three in San Antonio.
WHITFIELD: I like it.
FREEMAN: Oh, fantastic. We should play. We should play one on one next time we're in Atlanta.
WHITFIELD: OK.
FREEMAN: We'll have a good time. We'll get Andy in on it too.
WHITFIELD: All right, we got it.
FREEMAN: Thanks, Andy.
WHITFIELD: Hey, thank you so much for joining us. This is CNN NEWS CENTRAL.
FREEMAN: Have a great weekend.
WHITFIELD: Hey, you too. That's right, it is the weekend.
FREEMAN: Holiday weekend. WHITFIELD: Yes, holiday. Uh-huh. "THE SIT ROOM" is next.
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