Paramount moved to pull down archived content from MTV News earlier this week, including decades of entertainment coverage. Now the reaper comes for the online homes of Comedy Central, MTV itself, TV Land, Logo TV, the Paramount Network and CMT, instead directing visitors to network-branded versions of Paramount+.
Instead of the traditional versions of these sites, the new pages include tailored collections of Paramount+ content meant to appeal to the fans of each of the company’s traditional outlets. The end of the Comedy Central site marks one of the biggest losses of online video content, including clips from beloved series such as “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” that don’t live elsewhere — not even on Paramount+. It also meant the removal of sharable clips from shows like “South Park,” “Key & Peele” and others that aren’t also available on either the streaming platform or YouTube.
The ongoing dumping of online archives comes just a day after Paramount’s leaders talked with staff about job cuts and other efforts to reduce costs as part of its plan to trim half a billion dollars.
In a statement to TheWrap, a Paramount spokesperson said, “As part of broader website changes across Paramount, we have introduced more streamlined versions of our sites, driving fans to Paramount+ to watch their favorite shows.”
A message on the revamped Comedy Central site explains the shift and asks people to check out Paramount+ or watch via their local TV provider.
“Keep watching your favorite Comedy Central shows,” a heading reads, followed by the message, “While episodes of most Comedy Central series are no longer available on this website, you can watch Comedy Central through your TV provider. You can also sign up for Paramount+ to watch many seasons of Comedy Central shows.”
Similar messages appear on sites for several of Paramount’s other linear channels. However, the sites of Nickelodeon, BET and VH1 remain intact — for the moment.
The news of Comedy Central’s archives being removed was first noted by LateNighter.
