Steve Bannon Roasts PBS to Their Faces: ‘You Will Crater!’

In what may go down as one of the most delightfully absurd examples of talking smack about your host—on your host’s channel—Steve Bannon delivered a profanity-laden tirade against PBS during a PBS interview. That’s right: “You bunch of f‑ing lying scumbags,” he barked—directly at the people with cameras and microphones pointed at him.

When PBS journalist Mike Wiser pushed him on President Trump’s ongoing attacks on federal judges, Bannon leapt into an unhinged rant. He accused PBS—and by extension, every “phony” liberal institution—of hypocrisy. “You terrorize—you tried to terrorize Supreme Court justices … you guys are a bunch of f‑ing lying scumbags,” he sneered. The moment was so surreal, viewers likely questioned whether this was theater, performance art—or just really bad timing.

Bannon didn’t stop there. He painted a portrait of “weak” liberal institutions: “university administrations? They’re not that tough. The media? Look who’s cratered… PBS is gonna crater. You will crater.” Meanwhile, in real life, the Trump administration just signed a $9 billion rescissions package slashing funding for PBS, NPR, and other public broadcasters. So yes, he was heckling an institution right before—or while—the funding guillotine fell.

In full MAGA spirit, Bannon cast his movement as “resilient,” “battle-hardened,” and above all, anti-fragile—even in the face of prison and trials. Contrast that with PBS, propped up in a studio under his condemnation. The spectacle’s so meta it hurts.