Colbert 's work as a correspondent on Comedy Central 's news-parody series '' The Daily Show '' gained him wide recognition . In 2005 , he left '' The Daily Show '' to host '' The Colbert Report '' . Following '' The Daily Show '' s news-parody concept , '' The Colbert Report '' was a parody of personality-driven political opinion shows including '' The O'Reilly Factor '' , in which he portrayed a caricatured version of conservative political pundits . The series became one of Comedy Central 's highest-rated series , earning Colbert an invitation to perform as featured entertainer at the White House Correspondents ' Association Dinner in 2006 . After ending '' The Colbert Report '' , he was hired in 2015 to succeed retiring David Letterman as host of the '' Late Show '' on CBS . He hosted the 69th Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2017
69th Primetime Emmy Awards
69th Primetime Emmy Awards
Stephen Colbert