#CancelColbert

[jutl]

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/03/27/stephen-colberts-politically-incorrect-joke-on-twitter-has-people-calling-for-his-show-to-be-cancelled/
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23cancelcolbert

So apparently satire is sometimes a way for white males to get away with racism.

Other times comedians have been vilified for similar things:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3076585.stm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Silverman#Racial_slur

[fit bird]

the thing is outside of a racial context the words "ching chong ding dong" are funny so i find it hard to identify with the plight of the modern chinee

[Johnny Townmouse]

[Thomas]

So apparently satire is sometimes a way for white males to get away with racism.

Jewish women, too, based on that Sarah Silverman link.

[jutl]

Jewish women, too, based on that Sarah Silverman link.

Yes, but:

[Thomas]

Ah.

But what if - what if - Stephen Colbert was just being satirical (in the context of the show, not the third party tweeting) and white at the same time? Could happen.

[Noodle Lizard]

I don't watch or care for Stephen Colbert too much, but isn't this sort of thing what he's known for?  I can't imagine this one stands out particularly, and I think the joke is obvious in who its target is.  Do Colbert fans just think he's suddenly lost his mind and become a big racist?  Why do they think it's okay for him to say stuff about Middle Easterners or black people whilst aping extreme-right Americans (i.e. what his fucking career is rooted in), but not do a comparatively mild Chinese joke on a whim, again whilst clearly feigning and attacking ignorance.  He must be more dumbfounded than anyone as to why this is causing such an "outrage".

Also I'm certain other equally famous entertainers (Seth MacFarlane springs to mind, for some reason) have gotten away with far worse.  Why is this such a hot dumpling?

People.

So apparently satire is sometimes a way for white males to get away with racism. 

Or to mock it, which is the clear intention of that joke.  I wouldn't call it the height of satire or even defend its comedic worth much, but it's very clear who the target is.

[Queneau]

That Silverman stuff is just ridiculous. I'm no fan of hers but only an idiot or somebody looking to create outrage would misunderstand that. According to that wiki page, Guy Aoki reckons that comedians should consult groups like his before making jokes. Go fuck yourself, mate.

[Petey Pate]

The fact that the "outrage" was reported on The Blaze (I like how they refer to Colbert's character as "ignorant" in quotation marks) leads me to think that there really isn't that much controversy about this at all.  Anyone with a modicum of intelligence and a vague awareness of what Colbert does would understand that there's no reason to be up in arms about it.

[Queneau]

The fact that the "outrage" was reported on The Blaze (I like how they refer to Colbert's character as "ignorant" in quotation marks) leads me to think that there really isn't that much controversy about this at all.  Anyone with a modicum of intelligence and a vague awareness of what Colbert does would understand that there's no reason to be up in arms about it.

The top Twitter comments I saw, before running away to anywhere else, were all in support.

[jutl]

...but then again Twitter, like all media, is dominated by white, male opinions. Of course they're going to tell you their Trojan Horse is not full of Greeks; not that Greeks are always in horses. Their economy is not failing because they spend all their time in horses.

[Thomas]

I saw an Asian lady and a black lady tweeting Colbert support.

I am confused.

[Famous Mortimer]

I'm more bothered about his genuinely crappy pro-war, worship of "the troops" ideas, or his complete dropping of character when taking on Julian Assange about a video of American soldiers killing civilians, than I am about another lame joke.

The more I see, the more I'm developing sympathy for the point expressed in jutl's picture above though.

[thenoise]

Michael Richard's career appears to have recovered from this extraordinary outburst.

[Old Nehamkin]

Michael Richard's career appears to have recovered from this extraordinary outburst.

Has it? He had a guest role on CYE about 5 years ago and he appeared on Jerry Seinfeld's "Comedians in Cars" show last year, but has he been up to anything else beyond that?

[Noodle Lizard]

The fact that this "outrage" is being legitimised by anyone here is pretty disappointing.

Again, I'm asking why this particular instance is being freaked out over when countless far less-justifiable jokes are made by equally famous and well-liked comedians.  It's almost as if it were orchestrated for some reason.

[syntaxerror]

Tconxte? O CEN TTX

[Famous Mortimer]

The fact that this "outrage" is being legitimised by anyone here is pretty disappointing.

I know Colbert's a smart guy and probably doesn't have a bigoted bone in his body (although as a fairly devout Catholic, who knows), but I just get tired of "liberal" comedians using lazy-as-shit ironic racist stereotypes to get a laugh. I think it's okay to have that opinion as well as thinking the people who started this particular "outrage" are far worse people. But we're a comedy site, not an idiot-US-right-wingers site, so it's fair that we discuss the motivation of comedians more.

[Noodle Lizard]

I know Colbert's a smart guy and probably doesn't have a bigoted bone in his body (although as a fairly devout Catholic, who knows), but I just get tired of "liberal" comedians using lazy-as-shit ironic racist stereotypes to get a laugh.

Firstly it wasn't actually him or anything he said, it was some Comedy Central bod aping his style.  Just learned that.

But I don't think they used the stereotype to get a laugh in the way that 'Family Guy' or something might have, they were clearly mocking the laziness of people who do use those kinds of stereotypes.  The "... Orientals or whatever" part of it is where the joke lies.  You could even say it's mocking people who pretend to be right-on but are actually quite ignorant, which is (ironically) what Colbert's being accused of now.

I think it's okay to have that opinion as well as thinking the people who started this particular "outrage" are far worse people.

I'm not saying they're bad people, just that the reaction seems insincere and dishonest and there are far more deserving targets of this kind of scrutiny.

[Ignatius_S]

Has it? He had a guest role on CYE about 5 years ago and he appeared on Jerry Seinfeld's "Comedians in Cars" show last year, but has he been up to anything else beyond that?

Before that stand-up incident, Richards was hardly doing TV or film. Probably the best role he had post-Seinfeld and pre-incident, which I can think off the top of my head, was in a London production of Arsenic and Old Lace as Jonathan Brewster.  I remember in one newspaper interview for that role, when being asked about his work after Seinfeld Richards joked that he had been told that hard work doesn't kill you, but he doesn't like to take chances,. At the time, I thought it sounded like there was probably a strong grain of truth (i.e. he doesn't enjoy hard grafting) and this had affected how much work he did.

Very recently, Richards was one of the main cast of Kirstie Alley's sitcom... Kirstie. Although I don't think the first season has performed brilliantly in terms of numbers and reviews, it wasn't a disaster and had a good cast, which it got a lot of publicity from. It's going to be the best TV gig he's had since Seinfeld, unless you count his short-lived sitcom, but I don't think anyone does.

[Bored of Canada]

So you're saying pulling a "Kramer" guarantees instant success? Don't know why some of the bit parts from the Harry Potter films don't have racist meltdowns. Shine bright like a diamond, Ginny and Malfoy.

[Noodle Lizard]

Michael Richards surely earns enough from 'Seinfeld' syndication to just live out the rest of his years comfortably in peace.  I'd rather he did nothing than make such a tit of himself.  Though his apology on Letterman is one of the most uncomfortably hilarious things I've ever watched.

Don't know why some of the bit parts from the Harry Potter films don't have racist meltdowns.

They sometimes end up in jail for drug dealing and rioting, which is probably more in vogue in the UK:  http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-17449630 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8161154.stm

[Ignatius_S]

Firstly it wasn't actually him or anything he said, it was some Comedy Central bod aping his style.  Just learned that....

The tweet was taken from the show but the context had been stripped away – Colbert was talking about the decision of the Washington Redskins to keep the name of the football team but to start the Washington Redskins Original Americans Foundation.

This is part of the show:

"Folks, this move by Dan Snyder inspires me, because my show has frequently come under attack for having a so-called offensive mascot, my beloved character Ching Chong Ding Dong....Offensive or not — NOT — Ching Chong is part of the unique heritage of the Colbert Nation that cannot change. But I'm willing to show the Asian community that I care by introducing the Ching Chong Ding Dong Foundation for Sensitive to Orientals or Whatever....I owe all this sensitivity to Redskins owner Dan Snyder. So Asians, send your thank-you letters to him, not me."

More details at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2014/03/27/colbert-report-on-redskins-new-foundation/

[Noodle Lizard]

The tweet was taken from the show but the context had been stripped away – Colbert was talking about the decision of the Washington Redskins to keep the name of the football team but to start the Washington Redskins Original Americans Foundation.

This is part of the show:

More details at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/wp/2014/03/27/colbert-report-on-redskins-new-foundation/

Ah, that makes sense.  But even without that particular context, that line seems perfectly justifiable to me.  The context just allows you to know exactly who he's mocking rather than a general attitude.

[Ignatius_S]

So you're saying pulling a "Kramer" guarantees instant success? Don't know why some of the bit parts from the Harry Potter films don't have racist meltdowns. Shine bright like a diamond, Ginny and Malfoy.

But of course!

Michael Richards surely earns enough from 'Seinfeld' syndication to just live out the rest of his years comfortably in peace.  I'd rather he did nothing than make such a tit of himself.  Though his apology on Letterman is one of the most uncomfortably hilarious things I've ever watched....

IIRC, it was mentioned in the interview that I was talking about, Richards had become incredibly wealthy from Seinfeld – which is one reason why I thought it was plausible that he was happy doing very little work.

[Wet Blanket]

Whenever there's a 'Twitter outrage' about something like this[nb]Every twenty minutes or so[/nb] I'm always surprised by the amount of people out there who are clearly very nice, well meaning and thoughtful yet have absolutely no understanding at all of humour, irony or deliberate bad taste.

[Dusty Gozongas]

May I interject here and advise anybody in a public place using a mobile device not to read this aloud whilst pretending to have no nose.
Nice try jutl. Nice try.

[Famous Mortimer]

Firstly it wasn't actually him or anything he said, it was some Comedy Central bod aping his style.  Just learned that.

That's a rather bizarre twist.

[Tiny Poster]

Has it? He had a guest role on CYE about 5 years ago and he appeared on Jerry Seinfeld's "Comedians in Cars" show last year, but has he been up to anything else beyond that?

It's not as if he was A-list at the time of the incident, mind.

[George Oscar Bluth II]

It's a pretty smart destruction of the frankly pathetic response to the (completely justified) controversy around the Washington Redskins name by the team's owners.

It's a joke yo.

Far better to round on Colbert for his crappy and regular use of LOL TRANSSEXUALS type humour. That's a stick you can genuinely beat him with.