Tooning Out the News

Did You Know?

• The show covered the 2020 Democratic National Convention from August 18 to 20, 2020.
• It covered the 2020 Republican National Convention from August 26 to 28, 2020.
• The show covered the 2023 State of the Union Address on February 8, 2023.

Format

The program describes itself as an animated news program, combining live-action and animation to satirize real news stories, political issues, media coverage, social commentary, pop culture, and aspects of the show itself. Its first season featured four main segments: Big News with James Smartwood, Inside The Hill, Hot Take, and Virtue Signal, resembling cable news channels, along with interstitial vignettes. The second season added The Establishment with Tory Hughes and Smart Talk Tonight. The third season dropped The Establishment and vignettes, introducing a new segment called Sparks!. Episodes originally released on Paramount+ multiple days per week, then switched to a weekly half-hour format on Fridays in October 2021. The third season aired on Comedy Central on Wednesdays after The Daily Show.

Production

Originally set to premiere on March 16, 2020, production was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the show debuted on April 7, 2020, after shifting to remote work via Zoom and Slack. In October 2021, short-form episodes expanded to half-hour weekly episodes. In May 2022, the show moved to Comedy Central as part of its adult animation push, with Paramount+ as its streaming home. In September 2022, the animation staff voted to unionize with The Animation Guild, IATSE Local 839, becoming the second group of animation workers in New York to do so. The show is produced by Late Night Cartoons, Inc., inspired by parodying cable news programs. Animated anchors and correspondents were designed by Tim Luecke, David Saracino, Scott Brundage, and Charlie Cooper. Production originally used motion capture to record performances, converting David Letterman's old screening room at the Ed Sullivan Theater into a control room.

Reception

Critics praised Tooning Out the News for its topical humor and real interviews. User ratings on IMDb average 5.6 out of 10, with 55% positive. The show was covered by outlets like the Los Angeles Times, NPR, and The Daily Beast. It received two Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series, but lost both times to Carpool Karaoke: The Series. It was also considered for other Emmy categories but did not receive nominations.

Media appearances

Characters from the show appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and in marketing campaigns. From October 9–10, 2020, the hosts appeared at the 2020 Just for Laughs Comedy Festival. On February 4, 2021, James Smartwood appeared in a Super Bowl LV commercial promoting Paramount+. On July 23, 2021, the hosts appeared during Paramount+'s Peak Animation panel at 2021 Comic-Con@Home.