Comedy Central's focus on race is getting tiring

Something Amyss

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Worgen said:
White Power Man prefers it that way, just tell people you have that Michael Jackson disease.
*opens mouth*

...actually, you know what? Good enough.

Dagra Dai MC. VSO. said:
To be fair, genuine projection is predicated on a lack of self awareness concerning what's projected. So, it's not mutually exclusive that they be both oblivious, and projecting.
Yeah, but is it actually placing one's own actions on another, or recognising that other people are, in fact, offended, sensitive, or in another way give a crap?
 

Joccaren

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MarsAtlas said:
I guess thats what happen when you give two shows about topical news issues to people who aren't white - they talk about racism. Its almost as if its prevalent in today's society and still causing major problems.

- snippity snip -
Whilst yes, issues of racism do need to be talked about and bought up, just like sexism, and homelessness, and environmental damage (And no, none of that is sarcastic; They really need to be fucking talked about), I can understand where the OP is coming from as well. You watch the News about a rover finding salt on Mars. What do you expect the discussion to be about? How the salt got there? What it means for Mars? How it was discovered?
Nope, black people and how they're underprivileged.

Like... In that example, it doesn't even make sense, and if it were a serious news show I'd just stop watching - though to be fair this is apparently on a Comedy channel so I'm not sure I'd take it seriously. Report the news, move on. Hell, its the reason people hate Fox news and the like [Other than the fact that 90% of what they say is wrong, that's another big issue] : The topic is on... oh, I don't know... Lets say a rover has found salt on Mars. The discussion on the show is about Jesus and how atheists are going to eat your babies, and they're gay and don't want guns [A bit of hyperbole I admit, but Fox deserves it].

Yes, there is a time and a place. That doesn't mean wait for that time and place and be quiet so much, news outlets should give some time to real fucking issues in society, like rampant depression among male teens, the sexism faced by women, racism faced by people of colour, the homeless people on the street who need help - without a political election agenda - however when else interesting comes up that is utterly unrelated to society and racism and such... Such as a rover finding salt on Mars... then the discussion should be on that topic instead.

Its not a case of no talks should be done on racism - there definitely should be more talk about it and other issues - its a matter of not every talk should be about racism, especially those utterly unrelated to it.

Disclaimer: I don't watch American TV since I live on the opposite side of the world, so I don't know exactly what this show is like and whether it always crosses the line for me or not. However, the example given in the OP is a bit ridiculous I feel.
 

Something Amyss

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mecegirl said:
This is why diversity in media matters op. You noticed how the hosts background influenced the content of the show. Well guess what! Even when the host is White it influences the content of a show. It is not an unbiased or nutral perspective. And those of us who aren't White notice. Unlike your situation though it isn't just an hours worth of television. If that hour is all it took for you to start feeling annoyed how do you think those of us on the other side of things feel?

Besides, if less racist shit happened then they wouldn't have anything to talk about. Even in our oh so enlightened society some people are still racist. And they will continue to be racist if they think they can get away with it. Talking about their words and deeds on a show that reaches a large audince puts pressure on them and those who think like them. And for those who aren't racist but do/say racist things half the time ignorance is the reason why. If racism is spoken about publicly some folks might learn something.
The funny thing is, I forgot about Trevor's rebranded Daily Show until this thread reminded me. I've been watching, and Noah doesn't seem to be talking much about race. Yes, he mentions it occasionally, but so far, he seems less likely to bring it up than Jon Stewart did.

You know, Jon, the white guy most people seemed to love?

Oh, and occasionally, he mentions he's not American in some format.

So yeah. You have like, an hour of major network stuff that has dark-skinned people, but only half of that actually leans to covering racial issues as a given. So, maybe 30 minutes (being generous) out of the 46 total minutes of running time in that hour? Yeah, this is a focus on race, I guess? The correspondents don't seem to be playing the race card, either.

I think this is an extension of the same phenomenon you see when race issues are brought up on the news. People get "tired of hearing about it." I'm sure unarmed black people are tired of dying, too, but sure. Let's drop an issue of systemic violence because it depresses people to be reminded that another group has it worse.

It seems any amount of focus on race (or other issues) is too much. And unfortunately, that's a line where the rest of us should not have to compromise.

Sorry, wandered away from whatever my original point was, but yeah. I love the point that if an hour is all it takes, how does everyone else feel?

Anyway, yeah. The Nightly Show talks about race. That's good since it brings up shit I'm not seeing elsewhere. The Daily Show sometimes covers race, like it did when Jon was in charge. It doesn't seem to have changed its focus just because Not Jon is the new host. And the only thing I can really say about Not Jon is that he's not Jon.

But then, I really wanted Jessica Williams to host, so it's not like I was exactly burned a black person got it. I just really adore Jessica. <3

Dagra Dai MC. VSO. said:
If someone is delusional or outright psychotic they can project their actions on another, but more usually we all project in little ways. The things we most dislike about ourselves, our anxieties and insecurities, we tend to betray them in small ways all of the time. Sometimes if people are particularly maladjusted, or worse, if they have a nasty personality disorder it all gets more gruesome. Those are the people you meet who will scream at you, while you calmly ask them what's wrong. So they scream at you, that you need to stop being so angry.

An extreme example, and a more common one is something we're all familiar with: liars never trust anyone.
Well, as a liar, I can understand that. Though my situation is more a feedback loop, but...I digress. Thing is, I'm not quite sure it's worth jumping to projection when there's another, simpler example.
 

Something Amyss

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Joccaren said:
You watch the News about a rover finding salt on Mars. What do you expect the discussion to be about? How the salt got there? What it means for Mars? How it was discovered?
Nope, black people and how they're underprivileged.
I'm pretty sure I've never seen a news anchor say "And in breaking news, NASA reports that salt water has been discovered on Mars. Let's discuss how this affects black people."

Do you have an actual example?

And since you're bolstering the OP's point, can you do it in the form of Comedy Central?

(Yes, I saw you don't watch American TV. But if you're bolstering a ponint about American TV with what I'm pretty sure is a fictional example, it becomes relevant).
 

Joccaren

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Something Amyss said:
Joccaren said:
You watch the News about a rover finding salt on Mars. What do you expect the discussion to be about? How the salt got there? What it means for Mars? How it was discovered?
Nope, black people and how they're underprivileged.
I'm pretty sure I've never seen a news anchor say "And in breaking news, NASA reports that salt water has been discovered on Mars. Let's discuss how this affects black people."

Do you have an actual example?

And since you're bolstering the OP's point, can you do it in the form of Comedy Central?

(Yes, I saw you don't watch American TV. But if you're bolstering a ponint about American TV with what I'm pretty sure is a fictional example, it becomes relevant).
I would re-read the OP, and my "I don't watch American TV" disclaimer again. Quote from OP:

secretkeeper12 said:
Take the coverage of hydrated salts on Mars. Roy Wood Jr. spent the entire segment lamenting how black people would not be going to Mars, even though NASA has sent over dozen African-Americans into space.
Here we have OP providing an example of the Comedy Central channel breaking news that salt water has been discovered on Mars, and discussing how bad it is that black people will never go there.

Now re-read my "I don't watch American TV" disclaimer again. I don't know what this segment was actually like, and I admit that, but going by what OP has given as an example, that example seems a little absurd. Maybe I could have written that clearer, but I thought I made it clear that I'm only giving an analysis of what the OP has said.
If the OPs description of the coverage of the Mars Hydrated Water is incorrect, and they didn't bring up black people going into space, then sure. What I said was based on faulty information, it doesn't hold. If the section was turned into a discussion on the fact that blacks can't go to space, then yeah, that's a bit ridiculous.

The political discussion? A bit less out there, seeing as race is an issue that politics needs to address a bit more firmly [Firmer laws against racism would be an excellent start]. Personally it still seems a little over the top considering, AFAIK, there is no black candidate running for president so there is no option but a white president, but as said, I don't watch American TV, so I don't know American politics either, or what actually happened in that segment.
 

Trooper924

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I'm just going to throw this out: Yes, the Nightly Show focuses a lot on race...because that's what it's for. The show was specifically created by Larry Wilmore to highlight and discuss stories and issues involving minorities that would otherwise be ignored or underreported by mainstream new sources. In fact, the name of the show was originally going to be "The Minority Report".

So saying that The Nightly Show talks too much about race is like complaining that Toys'R'Us sells too many toys or that Nascar focuses too much on racing. That's what it's supposed to do.
 

Azure23

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inu-kun said:
Azure23 said:
inu-kun said:
Don't see CC but I wouldn't really trust a comedy channel too much for my politics, especially if it's the same opinion over and over again which most likely drive people to start get sick of it rather than think about it.

Though if we talk about the president, if the last 8 years are any sign the president is better white...
U wot.

No seriously, are you actually implying (nah fuck implying), are you actually saying that the president's skin color is somehow tied to his ability to president? That he's a less effective president because he's black? I mean fuck me, I haven't even seen the most conservative pundits just come out and say "Obama is a shitty president because he's black."

Or it could be I'm just misinterpreting you. Which I hope I am.


On the subject of Comedy Central's supposed focus on race: it's two half hour shows a day, and I'd say that the Daily Show doesn't really have a "focus on race" so much as has a black host who reacts to things based on personal experience. Wilmore? Sure, he's got a focus on race, and he's funny but,like I said, a half hour a day among all their other stand up shows, animated shows, and sketch comedy shows does not exactly constitute a focus on race in my mind.
More like being saracstic, that's what those 3 dots are for...

Obama is not a shitty president because he's black, he's a shitty president because he lacks, for a lack of a better term, balls (and has a messiah complex).
So you were saying it ironically to convey your dislike of, what? White presidents or something? I don't quite understand. You think Obama is a shitty president, not because of his race, but because of his lack of balls, but you implied that it was because of his race. That's not what sarcasm is.

Here's a good example of sarcasm, if you had said, "I think Obama is a bad president" and I had shot back with, "that's because you're racist" and then you had replied with (imagine yourself doing a sarcastic voice here) "Yeah, I totaaaaally hate Obama because he's black, it's not about his staid refusal to fight the TPP." See that would have been sarcasm, using a purposefully ironic statement to convey contempt.

What you did was basically say, "Obama is bad because he's black......" Those dots are the awkward silence of an audience expecting a follow up to make it ironic and not getting one.
 

Erttheking

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Worgen said:
Suckering suckertash, you mean a white perspective isn't being represented 100% of the time. THIS SOUNDS LIKE A JOB FOR WHITE POWER MAN. WITH THE POWER TO HAVE FULL CONTROL OVER YOUR MEDIA. WHITE POWER MAN, AWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY.
...Fuck it, I'm going to catch a lot of flak for it but the hell with it.

Because this. Is a job. FOR THE WHITE GUY DEFENSE FORCE!
http://cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/740/740957.jpg
 

Something Amyss

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Joccaren said:
"I don't watch American TV" disclaimer again.
You mean the one I explicitly address and explain why it doesn't work here?

Did you also mean the segment that's been addressed as being untrue? Because it seems those two things combined cover your response in full. And, I mean, you could kind of go so far as to say that was the point.
 

Joccaren

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Something Amyss said:
Joccaren said:
"I don't watch American TV" disclaimer again.
You mean the one I explicitly address and explain why it doesn't work here?

Did you also mean the segment that's been addressed as being untrue? Because it seems those two things combined cover your response in full. And, I mean, you could kind of go so far as to say that was the point.
Please show me someone who has said that OP was incorrect in saying that the person talked about black people not going to space in the Hydrated Salts on Mars report, because going back through this thread, all that I find is still "Its only a couple of hours a day", a lot of jokes about white privilege, and the poster I originally responded to with his rant on how we have to talk about these things and not just ignore them - a sentiment I don't disagree with.

So, yes, the point is if the OPs description was wrong, ignore the points in the post as they don't apply. Kind of why you'd put a disclaimer there saying you didn't watch the show and are just going by someone else's descriptions no?

Your whole 'explicitly address and explain why it doesn't work here' is a bit of a joke as well, to be honest.
It doesn't work here because I'm "Bolstering a point about American TV" - which I'm not. I am saying that there is a time and place to talk about some things, and the OPs example was one of a poor time to talk about things.
And because its "Based one what I'm pretty sure is a fictional example" - so I've linked you to my source, which I have noted as potentially being unreliable, for that example.
If you watched the show and know that it didn't happen, simply saying such would be a much better response than trying to argue a point, especially when the point is about the example provided, and notes that if the example is false, then in this instance the point may not be valid.

I'm not trying to make some larger point about American Television. I am saying that there are some times that it is not appropriate to bring up the racial issue, and providing an example from the OP that the poster I quoted was responding to as a time that would be inappropriate, whilst also adding in a disclaimer that I hadn't watched the show and thus didn't know if the example was what actually occurred, or coloured by OPs perceptions. It seems you may have misinterpreted that as me trying to make a broader point, with my disclaimer there just as a bit of side info, but I assure you that is not the case.

MarsAtlas said:
Joccaren said:
For the record the example you're using is them just playing off of the "the black guy always dies first" [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BlackDudeDiesFirst] gag. The show plays off of this type of stuff a lot. Its generally not funny, but its not necessarily them injecting race into everything. Saying making gag jokes like that is making race too big an issue is like saying that Jon Stewart made race too much of an issue when he made self-depricating jokes about being jewish.
Ah, well, cheers. As I said, I hadn't watched the show and didn't know if it was a serious thing [Though I kind of doubted it from a comedy channel]. In a more serious setting, it would have been a bit of race injection, however as a part of what seems to be a running gag on the show, I don't think its that serious - as I've said a few time, use of that example was based purely on the OPs description of it, I am unable to actually watch the show.
 

Arctic Werewolf

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MarsAtlas said:
Arctic Werewolf said:
And this is just a taste of the HIL-AR-IOUS antics and gut-busting laughs you can only get here, on Comedy Central!
TVTropes has you covered [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NetworkDecay], and besides that, The Daily Show has been one of the more informative political shows on television for fifteen years while still making jokes. Its almost as is comedy is the presentation of philosophical viewpoints through laughter rather than writ. Nah, that can't be. Nah, its not an artform, its just mindless garbage like comic books and videogames.

Eddie the head said:
Fair enough, but the same joke being told 100 times stops being funny. Although admittedly I haven't watched too much of those slots in a while so I wouldn't know if the joke was overused.
Too early to gauge Trevor Noah taking the helm. The problem withLarry Wilmore's show is, in my opinion, not that its covering race too much, its that it isn't funny or insightful in doing so, and in comedy you need at least one of those things just to stay afloat.


Joccaren said:
For the record the example you're using is them just playing off of the "the black guy always dies first" [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BlackDudeDiesFirst] gag. The show plays off of this type of stuff a lot. Its generally not funny, but its not necessarily them injecting race into everything. Saying making gag jokes like that is making race too big an issue is like saying that Jon Stewart made race too much of an issue when he made self-depricating jokes about being jewish.
There's a difference between "Comedy Central" and "comedy". One is a television station that broadcasts comedy programs. The other is professional entertainment consisting of jokes and satirical sketches, intended to make an audience laugh. "Comedy" is the form of entertainment itself, not "Comedy Central". Hope that clears things up a little.

Not all comedy presents a philosophical viewpoint, and that's fine. You can also inform your audience without making them want to decapitate themselves with the nearest fountain pen. Your post made the Nightly Show sound like some kind of fun-killing nightmare. Just go read it. God, kill me now. You're still not even trying to make Comedy Central's programming sound appealing, so I don't know what you're complaining about. I don't think the Daily Show was informative but that's really not worth arguing about.

To the rest of the thread who has devolved into just wallowing in it, apparently: I think programming can theoretically blow chunks even if it has a diverse cast and focuses on race. Sharpen your stakes, because we can't be killed like normal men. Like I'm not supposed to notice the difference in talent and insight and entertainment value between Dave Chappelle and the Nightly Show guy. That must be my "white perspective", and I know how you feel about all that.
 
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I kinda think all of these comedy news shows are boring.

I guess they're not meant to be watched persistently? I really don't know since they're not a big thing where I am. I have watched enough to know that once you've seen a few episodes of one of them you've basically got a handle on the humour. You've seen what the jokes are, now it's just variations on the same thing with little to surprise. I couldn't imagine watching them day after day, year after year, as these things do run on for...
 
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Arctic Werewolf said:
MarsAtlas said:
Arctic Werewolf said:
And this is just a taste of the HIL-AR-IOUS antics and gut-busting laughs you can only get here, on Comedy Central!
TVTropes has you covered [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NetworkDecay], and besides that, The Daily Show has been one of the more informative political shows on television for fifteen years while still making jokes. Its almost as is comedy is the presentation of philosophical viewpoints through laughter rather than writ. Nah, that can't be. Nah, its not an artform, its just mindless garbage like comic books and videogames.

Eddie the head said:
Fair enough, but the same joke being told 100 times stops being funny. Although admittedly I haven't watched too much of those slots in a while so I wouldn't know if the joke was overused.
Too early to gauge Trevor Noah taking the helm. The problem withLarry Wilmore's show is, in my opinion, not that its covering race too much, its that it isn't funny or insightful in doing so, and in comedy you need at least one of those things just to stay afloat.


Joccaren said:
For the record the example you're using is them just playing off of the "the black guy always dies first" [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BlackDudeDiesFirst] gag. The show plays off of this type of stuff a lot. Its generally not funny, but its not necessarily them injecting race into everything. Saying making gag jokes like that is making race too big an issue is like saying that Jon Stewart made race too much of an issue when he made self-depricating jokes about being jewish.
There's a difference between "Comedy Central" and "comedy". One is a television station that broadcasts comedy programs. The other is professional entertainment consisting of jokes and satirical sketches, intended to make an audience laugh. "Comedy" is the form of entertainment itself, not "Comedy Central". Hope that clears things up a little.

Not all comedy presents a philosophical viewpoint, and that's fine. You can also inform your audience without making them want to decapitate themselves with the nearest fountain pen. Not even you are defending the entertainment value of the Nightly Show, so I'm not sure what our disagreement is there. Apparently it's just as painful as you make it sound. You're not even trying to make Comedy Central's programming sound appealing, so I don't know what you're complaining about. You have certainly not convinced me I should tune in. I don't think the Daily Show was informative but that's really not worth arguing about.

To the rest of the thread who has devolved into just wallowing in it, apparently: I think programming can theoretically blow chunks even if it has a diverse cast and focuses on race. Sharpen your stakes, because we can't be killed like normal men. Like I'm not supposed to notice the difference in talent and insight and entertainment value between Dave Chappelle and the Nightly Show guy. That must be my "white perspective", and I know how you feel about all that.
I always wonder why people act like this form of "political comedy" is worthy of much respect. To me it seems very easy to make people who agree with you laugh at the expense of people who don't... What's hard about that? The audience are on your side whether you're genuinely being funny/clever or not.

When I think of skilful comedy I'm thinking of things that are pretty universally funny... Things that don't have a champion and a victim. My preferred comedy is of the pretty silly variety. Things that could be viewed as a little dumb, but actually have a surprising amount of craft to them, or at least interesting perspective. This is why I think Mitch Hedberg's stuff is clever and much of George Carlin's stuff is just circle jerking... But history's going to remember someone like Carlin as a great thinker, and someone like Hedberg as a quirky comedian of note. It's interesting to think about.

I just looked up the Nightly Show on youtube. My thoughts: "Oh, wow... This is truly dreadful." Ignoring the political grandstanding, the performances and the jokes are truly hacky. Bad... Bad bad bad bad bad.
 

Arctic Werewolf

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Sexual Harassment Panda said:
I always wonder why people act like this form of "political comedy" is worthy of much respect. To me it seems very easy to make people who agree with you laugh at the expense of people who don't... What's hard about that? The audience are on your side whether you're genuinely being funny/clever or not.

When I think of skilful comedy I'm thinking of things that are pretty universally funny... Things that don't have a champion and a victim. My preferred comedy is of the pretty silly variety. Things that could be viewed as a little dumb, but actually have a surprising amount of craft to them, or at least interesting perspective. This is why I think Mitch Hedberg's stuff is clever and much of George Carlin's stuff is just circle jerking... But history's going to remember someone like Carlin as a great thinker, and someone like Hedberg as a quirky comedian of note. It's interesting to think about.

I just looked up the Nightly Show on youtube. My thoughts: "Oh, wow... This is truly dreadful." Ignoring the political grandstanding, the performances and the jokes are truly hacky. Bad... Bad bad bad bad bad.
I do think comedians can take sides in political matters and still be very funny. There have been plenty of times when I've said to myself, woah, I don't agree with this guy's point at all, but I have to admit, that's funny. It can also be a crutch though, as you say. Stuff like The Daily Show or the Colbert Report isn't just lazy or obvious jokes. It's not just John Stewart taking something out of context and then making a funny face. They really do have talented writers and comedians. That made it watchable for me for a long time.
 

Neurotic Void Melody

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Awww, one of the many hundred channels you have access to now brings up a prevailant problem within your current society a couple of times a day while the rest are happy to ignore it; excuse me whilst I organise a rag-tag band of Italian violinists to serenade your endless oppressive torment. (Now that's sarcasm, for any interested parties).

Oh and satire is a thing. As time goes on, what's left becomes precious so you mash hobbies together. Comedy is a coping sauce for many a great world problem. To mix it with news is just another way of enjoying life a bit less abrasively.
 

Something Amyss

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Xsjadoblayde said:
Awww, one of the many hundred channels you have access too now brings up a prevailant problem within your current society a couple of times a day while the rest are happy to ignore it; excuse me whilst I organise a rag-tag band of Italian violinists to serenade your endless oppressive torment. (Now that's sarcasm, for any interested parties).
Oh, they're brought up in our society. It's just that black people are doing it, so we're not being reassured that it's not really a problem.
 
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Arctic Werewolf said:
Sexual Harassment Panda said:
I always wonder why people act like this form of "political comedy" is worthy of much respect. To me it seems very easy to make people who agree with you laugh at the expense of people who don't... What's hard about that? The audience are on your side whether you're genuinely being funny/clever or not.

When I think of skilful comedy I'm thinking of things that are pretty universally funny... Things that don't have a champion and a victim. My preferred comedy is of the pretty silly variety. Things that could be viewed as a little dumb, but actually have a surprising amount of craft to them, or at least interesting perspective. This is why I think Mitch Hedberg's stuff is clever and much of George Carlin's stuff is just circle jerking... But history's going to remember someone like Carlin as a great thinker, and someone like Hedberg as a quirky comedian of note. It's interesting to think about.

I just looked up the Nightly Show on youtube. My thoughts: "Oh, wow... This is truly dreadful." Ignoring the political grandstanding, the performances and the jokes are truly hacky. Bad... Bad bad bad bad bad.
I do think comedians can take sides in political matters and still be very funny. There have been plenty of times when I've said to myself, woah, I don't agree with this guy's point at all, but I have to admit, that's funny. It can also be a crutch though, as you say. Stuff like The Daily Show or the Colbert Report isn't just lazy or obvious jokes. It's not just John Stewart taking something out of context and then making a funny face. They really do have talented writers and comedians. That made it watchable for me for a long time.
A crutch. Yes, exactly.

That's fair.

I actually think that Stuart and Colbert are very talented, and they obviously have good writers to hand. But when the novelty of the performance wears off (and Colbert in particular is a very impressive performance) you're basically left with formula. How much a person likes the formula will decide the mileage on it. I mean... CSI is still running, right? There's lots of formulaic programming. It doesn't make it bad. Just potentially very boring.

I really did want to take a shot at Carlin there, because everyone keeps telling me how much I should love him. There's some good stuff in his back-catalogue, but when the loudest cheers are the result of material that can be summed up as "We good, they bad. Go us!" then the atmosphere of the show becomes a little off-putting to me.
 

Arctic Werewolf

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Sexual Harassment Panda said:
A crutch. Yes, exactly.

That's fair.

I actually think that Stuart and Colbert are very talented, and they obviously have good writers to hand. But when the novelty of the performance wears off (and Colbert in particular is a very impressive performance) you're basically left with formula. How much a person likes the formula will decide the mileage on it. I mean... CSI is still running, right? There's lots of formulaic programming. It doesn't make it bad. Just potentially very boring.
Potentially, yea. The Daily Show and the Colbert Report make people feel like they are well informed and part of the 'in-crowd'. This will never get old, literally. It's addicting. That's the political side of it. If you start to disagree with the message, or notice inaccuracies, the illusion starts to crack at the seams. Then you may find the formula has an expiration date.

I really did want to take a shot at Carlin there, because everyone keeps telling me how much I should love him. There's some good stuff in his back-catalogue, but when the loudest cheers are the result of material that can be summed up as "We good, they bad. Go us!" then the atmosphere of the show becomes a little off-putting to me.
I here ya. Being celebrated for beating up the same sacred cow that everyone else is beating up, and congratulating ourselves for being the 'in-crowd'.
 

Cecilo

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Arctic Werewolf said:
Sexual Harassment Panda said:
A crutch. Yes, exactly.

That's fair.

I actually think that Stuart and Colbert are very talented, and they obviously have good writers to hand. But when the novelty of the performance wears off (and Colbert in particular is a very impressive performance) you're basically left with formula. How much a person likes the formula will decide the mileage on it. I mean... CSI is still running, right? There's lots of formulaic programming. It doesn't make it bad. Just potentially very boring.
Potentially, yea. The Daily Show and the Colbert Report make people feel like they are well informed and part of the 'in-crowd'. This will never get old, literally. It's addicting. That's the political side of it. If you start to disagree with the message, or notice inaccuracies, the illusion starts to crack at the seams. Then you may find the formula has an expiration date.

I really did want to take a shot at Carlin there, because everyone keeps telling me how much I should love him. There's some good stuff in his back-catalogue, but when the loudest cheers are the result of material that can be summed up as "We good, they bad. Go us!" then the atmosphere of the show becomes a little off-putting to me.
I here ya. Being celebrated for beating up the same sacred cow that everyone else is beating up, and congratulating ourselves for being the 'in-crowd'.
To be fair "We good, they bad. Go us!" Is pretty much the only thing you find on these forums now adays. You can look at Page 1 to see the circle jerking that epitomizes this mentality.