Not too long ago, Stephen Colbert, a comedian, gave an address to the White House Correspondents’ Association with the President in attendance. The funny thing about it is that he went on, did the same bit he always, and now all these guys are upset about it. Why, oh why, invite the guy if you don’t like his material?!?
Anyway, Salon has good editorial discussing how news outlets first ingnored the performance then decided to all agree that it wasn’t funny. I’ve seen the 20 minute clip posted on tons of websites, all over the place. I’ve yet to see so much as a 10 second clip on any TV news outlet. Of course, Colbert did make fun of most of the news guys, so maybe they’re just bitter.
From the Salon editorial:
Colbert refused to play his dutiful, toothless part in the White House correspondents dinner — an incestuous, backslapping ritual that should be retired. For that, he had to be marginalized. VoilĂ : “He wasn’t funny.”This is a battle that can’t really be won — you either got it Saturday night (or Sunday morning, or whenever your life was made a little brighter by viewing Colbert’s performance) or you didn’t. Personally, I’m enjoying watching apologists for the status quo wear themselves out explaining why Colbert wasn’t funny. It’s extending the reach of his performance by days without either side breaking character — the mighty Colbert or the clueless, self-important media elite he was satirizing.
Hey, if you haven’t seen the Colbert video, you should.
May 4th, 2006 at 4:29 pm
I saw this live, and while it was pretty funny, I’ve seen him do much better roasts. And the video he showed with him as the press secretary was horrible. Even worse was that fiasco of Pres. Bush and some imitator at separate podiums swapping lines. They should’ve just brought Conan out and let him run the show.
May 5th, 2006 at 9:41 am
Why, oh why, invite the guy if you don’t like his material?!?
***
You got it.
While I think a certain amount of respect for the office should be maintained, what did they expect??
It is like hiring the MTV dancers and getting upset when they present a vulgar performance at halftime. What did you expect??
It is like going to a bar and being shocked drinks are being served.