Stephen Colbert will set a first for late night with coveted post-Super Bowl spot

CBS is giving the coveted post-Super Bowl spot on February 7 to "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert." That will make it the first late-night series to air in the spot.

"The Late Late Show with James Corden" will then follow with its own special episode.

"It's been a very big year in late night at CBS," said CBS Entertainment president Glenn Geller, in a press release. "We're extremely proud of our two new late night franchises, and we're thrilled to give Stephen and James this big Super Bowl Sunday showcase."

It's an interesting twist for the network as the slot is typically used to bolster primetime shows. The last time CBS aired the game, it gave "Elementary" the spot. Last year, NBC gave it to "Blacklist."

Being the most-watched network in primetime gives CBS the opportunity to use the space in a different way.

Colbert is scoring higher ratings than Letterman year-over-year. Season-to-date, "The Late Show" is up 60% in the advertiser-coveted 18- to 49-year-old demographic (0.8 from 0.5), and up 43% with the show's key audience, 25- to 54-year-olds (1.0 from 0.7). In total viewers, the talk show is seeing a 20% increase in viewers (3.29 million from 2.74 million).

The 19th Super Bowl is set to air at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, February 7.

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