TED Talks, the video series in which experts explain complicated ideas in a simple and entertaining way, has amassed more than 1 billion views since it launched in 2006, or, as Stephen Colbert pointed out on The Late Show last night, “roughly half the views of Justin Bieber’s penis.” But the series’ popularity means TED Talks organizers must be selective—of the thousands of applications they receive, only 60 to 70 are accepted.
And now, Colbert wants to create a permanent home for rejected TED Talks on his show. Titled “RejecTED Talks,” the segment—which is thus far very promising as a premise, if not quite yet nailing the execution—will air the talks that didn’t make the cut. Among the talks he rescued Monday night is a lecture by Angus MacDougal, a Scottish gentleman who breaks down the “indisputable” fact that “If you don’t eat your meat, you cannot have any pudding.” In another, a kid named Cayden R. summarizes his summer vacation. These talks might not be good enough for Ted, “whoever he is,” but Colbert welcomes every rejected 18-minute presentation because, “Nothing’s not good enough for me.”
