EntertainmentNewsTechSebastian Maniscalco’s SiriusXM channel is hurting up-and-coming talent, comics sayManiscalco’s channel replaced SiriusXM’s Raw Comedy, which highlighted a wider pool of more than 800 comics.Maniscalco’s channel replaced SiriusXM’s Raw Comedy, which highlighted a wider pool of more than 800 comics.by Emma RothOct 6, 2026, 9:10 PM UTCShareGiftIf you buy something from a link, The Verge may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.Photo by Michael Tran / AFP via Getty ImagesEmma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco is facing backlash from fellow comics who claim his takeover of SiriusXM’s Raw Comedy channel is harming up-and-coming talent, as reported earlier by Deadline. Many established comics, including Patton Oswalt and Margaret Cho, have posted videos online calling on Maniscalco to carry on Raw Comedy’s legacy by highlighting newer comedians on his channel, instead of mostly focusing on well-known ones.SiriusXM launched Sebastian Maniscalco’s Comedy Radio in April, which is “curated and headlined by Sebastian himself,” according to the satellite radio provider.
The move replaced SiriusXM’s long-running Raw Comedy channel featuring uncensored stand-up comedy shows from a range of talent. Now, the channel airs Maniscalco’s own show, alongside a stream of stand-up content that comedian Dan Soder says features “very famous comics who are dead or who don’t necessarily need the money.”The widespread criticism comes as Stand Up for Standup, a nonprofit organization that provides resources for comedians in need, published a report about the channel’s shift away from emerging talent, who rely not only on the visibility they receive from appearing on the station, but also on the royalties they earn from SiriusXM. The organization says that since March, the spins on Maniscalco’s channels have decreased from a wider net of more than 800 comics to a much narrower pool of 275 artists, largely skewed toward celebrities.“We believe this shift, both in the overall quantity of artists enjoying plays on Channel 102, and the change in distribution across all spin-getters favoring the top few, is bad for comedians, and bad for the future of comedy,” Stand Up for Standup says.“There’s a lot of up-and-coming comedians who are depending on the money and the checks that they get from Sirius,” Oswalt says in an Instagram video. “But 500 of them have been booted off of Sirius… You can easily reverse this decision. Get those young comedians back on the Sirius channel.
Let them get those checks.” Many other comedians, including Liz Miele, Kyle Kinane, and Michelle Wolf, have called out Maniscalco as well.In a statement to Deadline, SiriusXM says Maniscalco’s channel “introduced a new creative direction and a regularly evolving programming mix for the channel,” adding that “SiriusXM continues to invest in comedians more than any other audio platform.” Neither SiriusXM nor representatives for Maniscalco immediately responded to The Verge’s request for comment.Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Emma RothEntertainmentLaborNewsTechMost PopularThe best October Prime Day tech deals we foundOpenAI is adding text watermarking in ChatGPT and CodexGoogle is about to remove free access to Gemini Flash and ProOur minds aren’t equipped to handle AIHBO Max and Paramount Plus will merge into a single streamer under SkydanceAdvertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native ad
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