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Tooning Out the News
Also known asStephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out the News
Genre
Created by
Voices of
  • R.J. Fried
  • Maureen Monahan
  • Jack Bensinger
  • Naima Pearce
  • Ike Ufomadu
  • Addison Anderson
  • Simone Norman
  • Jeremy Bent
  • Zach Smilovitz
Narrated byMitch Lewis
Theme music composerTom Polce
Country of originVereinigte Staaten
Original language
  • Englisch
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes243
Production
Executive producers
  • Stephen Colbert
  • Chris Licht
  • R. J. Fried
  • Tim Luecke
Producers
  • Zach Smilovitz
  • Mike Leech
  • Nicole Savini
  • Melanie Loebig
  • Tiffany Pollard
  • Jonathan van Halem
Editors
  • Thomas Berkley
  • Jesse Millward
  • Katey Spinner
  • Melissa Weiss
  • Julie Greiner
Running time
  • 7-44 min. (seasons 1-2)
  • 21 min. (seasons 3)
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseApril 7, 2020 (2020-04-07) –
present
Related

Stephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out the News (often abbreviated as TOTN) is an American live-action/animated satirical news television program created and executive produced by comedian and The Late Show host Stephen Colbert, Chris Licht, R. J. Fried and Tim Luecke. The series premiered on CBS All Access (now Paramount+) on April 7, 2020.

From August 18–20, 2020, the program covered the 2020 Democratic National Convention.[1] It also covered the 2020 Republican National Convention from August 26–28, 2020.[2] From November 1–3, 2020, the program also covered the 2020 United States presidential election. The first season ended on December 11, 2020.

In March 2021, it was announced that the series had been renewed for a second season starting with an exclusive half-hour special on March 4, 2021, which was followed by a full premiere on March 9, 2021. Season 2 added two new segments: "The Establishment with Tory Hughes" and "Smart Talk Tonight."[3] On April 28, 2021, the program also covered the 2021 joint session of the United States Congress. On July 23, 2021, the program made an appearance with special coverage during Paramount+'s "Peak Animation" panel at 2021 Comic-Con@Home. On October 4, 2021, it was announced that the regular episodes would expand to a half-hour starting on October 8, 2021, and the series would switch to a weekly format. The second season ended on November 12, 2021.

On May 18, 2022, it was announced that the series would move to Comedy Central for a third season renewal consisting of 13 episodes, which premiered on October 5, 2022.[4] On November 9, 2022, the program also covered the 2022 United States midterm elections.

Description

Describing itself as an animated news program, Tooning Out the News combines live-action and animation and focuses on topical news satire form from real-life news stories, current events, media coverages, political issues, social commentaries, pop culture topics, and often uses self-referential humor as well.

The first season consisted of four main segments, "Big News with James Smartwood," "Inside The Hill," "Hot Take," and "Virtue Signal," which resemble shows seen on cable news channels, plus added interstitial vignettes covering other stories not mentioned in the main segments. Some interstitial vignettes are previewed on The Late Show. The second season added two new segments, "The Establishment with Tory Hughes" and "Smart Talk Tonight." Both "The Establishment with Tory Hughes" and the vignettes were dropped in the third season.

Three of the main segments originally debut on Paramount+ Tuesday through Thursday (the morning after a new The Late Show with Stephen Colbert episode), with the fourth, plus a compilation "Week in Review" show containing all four plus vignettes are released every Friday. Regular episodes expanded to a half-hour starting on October 8, 2021, and the series would switch to a weekly format. Both half-hour episodes are released every Friday.[5] The third season airs on Comedy Central every Wednesday, following after The Daily Show and runs for 13 episodes.[1]

Cast and characters

Main

  • R.J. Fried as James Smartwood
  • Maureen Monahan as Kylie Weaver/Sarah Sabo/Nicole Vance
  • Jack Bensinger as Tyler Templeton
  • Naima Pearce as Tory Hughes
  • Ike Ufomadu as Dr. Ike Bloom
  • Addison Anderson as Rich Ballard/Austin Sparks
  • Simone Norman as Eleanor Palmer
  • Jeremy Bent as Teddy Hopper/Jonathan Keene
  • Zach Smilovitz as James Smartwood Jr.

Recurring

  • Laurel Zoff Pelon as Bonnie Davis
  • Neil D'Astolfo as Peter Womack/Troy Lawson
  • Alise Morales as Lila Moreno
  • Nathan Min as Brian Min
  • Otter Lee as Otter Lin
  • Keisha Zollar as Susan Shephard
  • Kennedy Baldwin as Morgan Herbert Walker
  • Graham Techler as Kenneth Parsons
  • Moujan Zolfaghari as Catherine Nadaan
  • Steph Cook as Charlotte Fitzgerald
  • Allison Reese as Lydia Parker
  • Jeremy Levick as Jeremy Levy-Levin
  • Rajat Suresh as Rajat Mehta
  • Mitch Lewis as Announcer

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally released
First releasedLast releasedNetwork
1112April 7, 2020 (2020-04-07)December 11, 2020 (2020-12-11)CBS All Access
2121March 9, 2021 (2021-03-09)November 12, 2021 (2021-11-12)Paramount+
313October 5, 2022 (2022-10-05)TBAComedy Central

Season 1 (2020)

Season 2 (2021)

Season 3 (2022)

History

The series was set to premiere on March 16, 2020, but production was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] The series debuted on April 7, 2020, instead, after production continued via remote work, with animators and showrunner RJ Fried, who has also produced The Late Show and Showtime animated series Our Cartoon President, working via Zoom and Slack.[7][8]

Tooning Out The News received mainstream critical acclaim and has recently gained mostly positive reviews from critics for its fresh take on up-to-date current affairs, hyper-topical coverages, and real-life interviews bolstered by hilarious provocative satire, smart writing, and innovative comedy. The series also has been nominated for numerous awards, including a Critics' Choice Award for Best Short Form Series,[9] a Producers Guild of America Awards for Outstanding Short-Form Program and two Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series, but eventually lost to Carpool Karaoke: The Series.[10] It was also won Technical Achievement Video at 2022 Webby People's Voice Award.

On October 4, 2021, it was announced that the regular episodes would expand to a half-hour starting on October 8, 2021, and the series would switch to a weekly format.[5] On May 18, 2022, it was announced that the series would move to Comedy Central as part of its adult animation push. Paramount+ will still simultaneously serve as its streaming home.[11]

On July 23, 2022, senior researcher Jonathan van Halem was offered the role of News Producer, making him the first person of Dutch descent to hold the position in the show's three-season history.[12]

On 29 September, 2022, the animation staff at Tooning Out the News have publicly voted overwhelmingly to join a union with The Animation Guild, IATSE Local 839, becoming the second such group of animation workers and production staff in New York to voted in favor of unionizing. At the same time, the guild is generally submitting a letter for voluntary recognition to CBS Eye Animation Productions, an animation studio division of CBS Studios.

Production

The show inspired by an idea to parody the popular cable news format took shape with short clips featuring animated cartoon pundits on The Late Show, where animated anchors are interviewed with a range of guests while working on a parallel track to produce the week’s segments. Originally, the show used motion capture to "record" the actors' performances on the show, after converting David Letterman's old personal screening room at the Ed Sullivan Theater as a control room.[13]

After the pandemic forced animators to work from home, they switched to remote production, shipping equipment to animator's houses and using Adobe Character Animator, to animate the show's virtual hosts, which allow guests to interact with the show’s animated hosts and panelists in real-time. While the series usually takes months to produce, an episode of Tooning Out the News is turned around a few days before airtime for the concept to stay current, with the topical productions and real-time animation works done remotely.

The pandemic also forced producers to find a remote solution for guests, who were set to be filmed in the studio. Because the show's back-and-forth banter required low latency, producers partnered with The Video Call Center to handle the acquisition and quality control of guest connections.[14] The VCC developed a custom process that enables the show’s animated hosts and correspondents to have topical, live, natural conversations with newsmakers and journalists.[15]

Notable guests

The show features interviews with newsmakers, journalists, analysts, politicians, activists, and celebrities, including:

References

  1. ^ a b Milligan, Mercedes (2020-08-17). "'Tooning Out the News' Launches Special 2020 Election Coverage with DNC". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
  2. ^ "Anthony Scaramucci to Appear on 'Tooning Out the News' RNC Special". 26 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Paramount+ Renews' Tooning Out the News' S2 with New Segments". 11 February 2021.
  4. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (2022-09-16). "This Just In! 'Stephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out the News' Returns Oct. 5". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
  5. ^ a b Tooning Out the News (4 October 2021). "BREAKING NEWS: Stephen Colbert Presents Tooning Out The News is expanding to new half-hour episodes every Friday starting October 8th". Twitter. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  6. ^ a b c White, Peter (2020-03-31). "'Tooning Out The News': Stephen Colbert Animated News Show Resumes Production & CBS All Access Sets New Premiere". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  7. ^ Desowitz, Bill (2020-04-16). "'Tooning Out the News' Reinvented Its Animated Workflow to Fight Coronavirus". IndieWire. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  8. ^ Swain, Rhea. "Having the last laugh: How late-night comedy is moving online during coronavirus". The Daily Targum. Retrieved 2020-06-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ "Critics Choice Awards 2021: The Complete List of TV Nominees". Entertainment Tonight. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  10. ^ Shanfeld, Ethan; Bosselman, Haley; Moreau, Jordan (13 July 2021). "Emmys 2021: Complete Nominations List". Variety. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  11. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (May 18, 2022). "'Tooning Out The News' Moves From Paramount+ To Comedy Central, New 'Inside Amy Schumer' To Also Be Available On Old Net". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  12. ^ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11571316/
  13. ^ Dowling, Amber (2020-04-14). "How 'Tooning Out The News' Pivoted Its Animation Process Amid Coronavirus Pandemic". Variety. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
  14. ^ "Innovative New Animated Series to Enable Live Video Chats Between Newsmakers and Animated Hosts". The Video Call Center. 2020-06-24. Retrieved 2021-08-06.
  15. ^ "VCC Assists with Live Interviews for CBS Animated Series". 25 June 2020.
  16. ^ a b Porter, Rick (31 March 2020). "Stephen Colbert's 'Tooning Out the News' Restarts With Remote Production". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2020-06-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. ^ Goodykoontz, Bill. "Joe Arpaio was interviewed for Stephen Colbert's 'Tooning Out the News.' It was brutal". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  18. ^ "Lincoln Project cofounder Rick Wilson gets sabotaged by Colbert's cartoon news anchors". The Week. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  19. ^ Goodykoontz, Bill. "Why Stephen Colbert's new TV news parody 'Tooning Out the News' really needs to be great". azcentral. Retrieved 2020-06-19.
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