EXCERPT:
MEACHAM: "Yeah. You know, it’s — Stephen is an architect of the culture. And on reflection, of course, the theater itself is that. The '64 arrival at Ed Sullivan changed global culture in in 1964. In some ways, it’s a hinge in the cultural life of the country and of the West. And what Colbert has done, beginning with his character, 'Stephen Colbert,' and his attack on truthiness and really kind of the prescient ability he had to see where so much of our public life was going back in his Comedy Central days, and then he brought that to this enormous audience, what passes, certainly, for an enormous audience in this atomized world. That’s another thing to think about, is think of how many people had to tune in to Ed Sullivan in 1964 because there weren’t that many other options. And here Colbert was as the capstone and one of the few things that could bring a lot of people together in this media climate. And I think we’re going to miss him, miss his insight. And for those who say, 'Oh, he was too political, too partisan,' you know, always worry when they come for the comedians."