Less than two days after local Milwaukee TV weather forecaster Sam Kuffel was out of her job, her story was featured on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.”
Kuffel was dropped from WDJT-TV (Channel 58) on Wednesday after she criticized Elon Musk on her personal Instagram account for his straight-arm gesture at a post-inauguration rally for President Donald Trump on Monday. Some have likened Musk’s gesture to a Nazi salute.
Stephen Colbert discussed the situation involving Musk ― and Kuffel’s controversial departure ― on his Thursday night show:
What did Stephen Colbert say about CBS 58 meteorologist Sam Kuffel?
After talking about the new CBS show “FBI: CIA,” the temporary blocking of Trump’s executive order aiming to end birthright citizenship and other current events, Colbert addressed the situation with Musk and Kuffel.
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Musk’s controversy “has already had some fallout,” Colbert said. “In Wisconsin, a local meteorologist denounced Musk on social media, writing, ‘Dude Nazi saluted twice. TWICE. During the inauguration,’ then was fired from her job.
“That is terrible. But, to be fair, a meteorologist is never supposed to be that accurate.”
Colbert’s show then showed a photo of Kuffel wearing a blue dress and standing in front of a green screen at a TV studio. In the photo, she is holding her arm bent and about 90 degrees out to the side, gesturing at the screen.
“Wait, where is that arm going, Sam? Don’t do it!” Colbert said.
Colbert then tied things back to “FBI: CIA.”
“The station that terminated Kuffel is WDJT, Milwaukee’s CBS affiliate …,” he said. “Let this be a warning to everyone. You do not want to mess with CBS. May I remind you, they have the FBI-CIA.”
How to watch Stephen Colbert talk about Sam Kuffel, Elon Musk
Colbert’s episode where he discusses Kuffel can be found here.
Colbert’s comments on Musk and Kuffel begin around 9 minutes into the 11-minute, 20-second video. You can watch the video below.
What did meteorologist Sam Kuffel do?
On her personal Instagram account, Kuffel, 31, posted a picture of Musk at the podium, saying, “Dude Nazi saluted twice. TWICE. During the inauguration.”
She added, “You (expletive) with this and this man, I don’t (expletive) with you. Full stop.”
Kuffel then posted a GIF from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” on Instagram. along with the saying, “Screw that old (expletive). He’s a Nazi.”
On Tuesday, conservative radio host Dan O’Donnell criticized Kuffel for her two Instagram posts, accusing her of “spreading the lie that Elon Musk was giving a Nazi salute” during the presidential inauguration. He labeled her posts “vulgar.”
By late Tuesday, Kuffel had made her Instagram account private.
Staffers at WDJT-TV (Channel 58) were alerted by email Wednesday that Kuffel had left the station. Her biography and picture had been removed from the Channel 58 website by Wednesday afternoon.
“Meteorologist Sam Kuffel is no longer employed at CBS58,” said the staff memo from news director Jessie Garcia that was obtained by the Journal Sentinel. “A search for a replacement is underway.”
More:Was weather reporter Sam Kuffel’s exit necessary? Media ethics experts, lawyers weigh in
A spokeswoman for Weigel Broadcasting Co. confirmed via email late Wednesday that Kuffel was no longer with Channel 58. But the spokeswoman said she couldn’t comment further because this was a personnel issue.
According to her LinkedIn page, Kuffel joined Channel 58 more than five years ago. She previously worked at WAOW-TV in Wausau after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2016. She was also a regular on the all-sports radio station WRNW-FM (97.3).
Journal Sentinel reporters Dan Bice and Mary Spicuzza contributed to this report.