On Tuesday, comedian Hasan Minhaj announced that after two years and six seasons, Netflix canceled Patriot Act. Despite the unexpected axing, it’s a symptom of a larger ailment: streaming can do many things better than traditional broadcast television. Late-night shows are not one of them.
Patriot Act is different from a Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon-type program or even some of the other more timely shows Netflix tried to get off the ground, including The Break with Michelle Wolf and The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale. It was reminiscent of great Comedy Central late-night entertainment like The Daily Show, and it existed alongside Netflix series like Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee and My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with…