Conan's Left-leaning political jokes, Are Obama, Biden and all democrats off limits? Options

[djharmon]

Tonight, Thursday July 15th, 2009 Conan did a segment called "celebrity misquotes" or something like that. He picked on Christy Alley, etc. and included digs on Sarah Palin, George Bush and Dick Chaney. Were Obama or Biden or any Democrats the subjects of jokes? Nope. Can't pick on the holy ones.
At least Jay was an equal-opportunity wise guy. He seemed to pick on both sides equally. In fact I never did figure out which way he leaned. When will talk show hosts figure out that it isn't wise to alienate half of America? (Yes, it is a pretty even split)

[c_man]

Just about every night Conan makes fun of Biden.

[Jmart7]

Tonight, Thursday July 15th, 2009 Conan did a segment called "celebrity misquotes" or something like that. He picked on Christy Alley, etc. and included digs on Sarah Palin, George Bush and Dick Chaney. Were Obama or Biden or any Democrats the subjects of jokes? Nope. Can't pick on the holy ones.
At least Jay was an equal-opportunity wise guy. He seemed to pick on both sides equally. In fact I never did figure out which way he leaned. When will talk show hosts figure out that it isn't wise to alienate half of America? (Yes, it is a pretty even split)

How did Kristie Alley get unfortunately lumped in with the likes of Palin, Bush and Cheney? That's worse than anything Conan has ever said about her. No, seriously though, he picks on her every night. That's nothing new. Actually, I think the only person left who's offended by the Kristie Alley jokes is her publicist. Poor bastard.

I think Conan is starting to play it down the middle a little more. Not quite as much as Leno did, but Conan's just playing to his crowd.....like Leno did. As c_man said, he picks on Biden quite a bit and he's got a couple of shots in recently at Obama. Not quite to the level as Bush (when they mostly picked on his articulating abilities), but that's not very surprising. If a couple of more teleprompters go down, he'll eventually get there.

[cheatshot]

Yes ^^ there has been some jabs at Obama lately, and more is sure to come. Part of the problem - and Jay Leno mentioned it several times - is that Obama is very difficult to make fun of, since he's so popular (way more than 50% as was guessed above), and that he's extremely proper, articulate, intelligent, and so on. Several times Jay tried to make something work, but just couldn't do it.

At the very least, this could be part of the reason there are few Obama jokes. When it comes to Palin, she puts her own foot in her mouth everyday, she's regarded as a floozie, a brainless bimbo - and it's extremely easy to make jokes by the minute with her. Regardless of political sides, comedians crack jokes and "pick on" the people who make it easy for them.

[Conan_the_shooti...]

Conan's been the most fair as a talk show host, when it comes to political parties. He made jokes about Biden, Obama, etc from the get go...

Honestly, I really like Sarah Palin and admire her in so many ways so I'd often take her side.

However, fair is fair and I think Conan has been so straight down the middle and doesn't pick favorites... That's just one of the many reasons why I love watching Conan O'Brien, and he gets ALL my respect and undying love!

[FrankV56]

What some of you don't remember was that Johnny Carson didn't forgive anyone if you were in the news you were going to hear about it. Just like Jay did with his routine everynight. But Conan seems to be way to the left with his comments. When he was talking to Dana he made a point of saying how much he liked B.O.. But that doesn't surprise me since Conan is proving he is a smurf with all that blue all around him. Does he own anything but blue clothes? Some of his ties look cheap like they came from Kmart. Blue is nice but the walls, curtains, lights, shirt, ties, suit, even the backdrop behind his mini office. This guy is pushing his political agenda and you don't even know it. Who knows maybe he is setting up for a run to be California's next governor. He can get all the fruits & flakes out there to vote for him. I hope he has a short run on The Tonight Show and we can get a real talk show host not a nut case with no talent.

[cheatshot]

What some of you don't remember was that Johnny Carson didn't forgive anyone if you were in the news you were going to hear about it. Just like Jay did with his routine everynight. But Conan seems to be way to the left with his comments. When he was talking to Dana he made a point of saying how much he liked B.O.. But that doesn't surprise me since Conan is proving he is a smurf with all that blue all around him. Does he own anything but blue clothes? Some of his ties look cheap like they came from Kmart. Blue is nice but the walls, curtains, lights, shirt, ties, suit, even the backdrop behind his mini office. This guy is pushing his political agenda and you don't even know it. Who knows maybe he is setting up for a run to be California's next governor. He can get all the fruits & flakes out there to vote for him. I hope he has a short run on The Tonight Show and we can get a real talk show host not a nut case with no talent.

^^ First post, eh? Thanks for your opinion, but millions of Conan fans, and I'm one of them, respectfully disagree with your assessment of Conan's talent. To us, he's the man - a simply brilliant comedian with his own style that doesn't try to be like anyone else. Conan rocks.

To attack Conan because of the color blue? That is definitely grasping at straws, lol.

[FrankV56]

[quote name='cheatshot' date='Jul 16 2009, 02:15 PM' post='3999323']
^^ First post, eh? Thanks for your opinion, but millions of Conan fans, and I'm one of them, respectfully disagree with your assessment of Conan's talent. To us, he's the man - a simply brilliant comedian with his own style that doesn't try to be like anyone else. Conan rocks.

To attack Conan because of the color blue? That is definitely grasping at straws, lol.

No what I am being is polite. To say he has talent, is to say Clinton never cheated. His humor fails to reach anyone of an IG higher than 90. His jerky moves that mean nothing, his silence when he is standing in front of the camera only goes to show his lack of true talent. His side kick has a better shot at providing entertainment. He has no stage presence. Perhaps if he went back to school and studied technique he might be able to get it in about 10 years. Conan appeals to a much younger audience for a simple reason they don't have an appreciation for true talent, Like Steve Allen, Jack Parr or Johnny Carson. Jay Leno at the least when he started kept the show fresh and talked to his quests about whatever they were doing without holding a card like a 5th grader studying at the last minute. To be blunt Conan is a no talent democrat who needs to go away. At least David Letterman has humor in his show. And thank God for Nightline because Conan kills NBC. The ratings are proving it, look them up and see the truth for yourself.

[cheatshot]

No what I am being is polite. To say he has talent, is to say Clinton never cheated.

Right there. WRONG. Clinton's affair is a fact. To say Conan has talent or not is an opinion. Learn the difference. What might be right for you, may not be right for some... you know.. different strokes.

His humor fails to reach anyone of an IG higher than 90

^^ opinion

His jerky moves that mean nothing

^^ opinion

his silence when he is standing in front of the camera only goes to show his lack of true talent

^^Actually, that's his style. You just don't 'get' it

His side kick has a better shot at providing entertainment

^^ Andy has potential, but his several attempts at tv shows have failed. Conan has been a huge hit for over 16 years now

He has no stage presence

^^ opinion

The rest of what you type is all opinion. I won't fault you for your opinions, but realize your views do not apply to me and the millions of Conan fans.. so your "facts" are irrelevent.

[FrankV56]

Ratings are a FACT, and they are dropping, in the Network business Money talks and BS walks, and if they drop low enough, he will walk too, right out the door. And don't think NBC won't do it.

Right there. WRONG. Clinton's affair is a fact. To say Conan has talent or not is an opinion. Learn the difference. What might be right for you, may not be right for some... you know.. different strokes.


^^ opinion


^^ opinion


^^Actually, that's his style. You just don't 'get' it


^^ Andy has potential, but his several attempts at tv shows have failed. Conan has been a huge hit for over 16 years now


^^ opinion

The rest of what you type is all opinion. I won't fault you for your opinions, but realize your views do not apply to me and the millions of Conan fans.. so your "facts" are irrelevent.

[cheatshot]

I agree that ratings are a concern right now... but the drop is the fault of NBC execs, not Conan. They have a leash around Conan's neck because of their precious "Tonight Show vision". Conan is forced to tone his act down.. and some Conan fans are crying foul and those not familiar to Conan are still trying to figure him out.

But, since Conan rocks - his ratings will pick up as soon as everybody adjusts to the changes.

Same thing happened when Leno took over all those years ago.
Cheers.

[Tiawap]

Tonight, Thursday July 15th, 2009 Conan did a segment called "celebrity misquotes" or something like that. He picked on Christy Alley, etc. and included digs on Sarah Palin, George Bush and Dick Chaney. Were Obama or Biden or any Democrats the subjects of jokes? Nope. Can't pick on the holy ones.
At least Jay was an equal-opportunity wise guy. He seemed to pick on both sides equally. In fact I never did figure out which way he leaned. When will talk show hosts figure out that it isn't wise to alienate half of America? (Yes, it is a pretty even split)

It is kind of interesting to have found this thread, because I actually came to this site specifically to see if other people had commented on the idea of a skewed percentage of jokes against conservatives.

I think it is pretty well known that a large percentage of Hollywood is liberal. Likewise, a lot of writers and comedians tend to be left-leaning as well. If a quick net search serves me well, then it seems that Mr. O’Brien has contributed funds to Christopher Dodd’s senate campaigns in the past. With that being said, I am willing to assume that he is a left-leaning guy. However, I don’t think it should be unexpected for the Tonight Show to have what I (and a few others perhaps) see as an imbalance in political humor.

I can’t stand the focus on making life “equally fair to all people all the time” that has come to play in American political thought. Life isn’t fair, and people shouldn’t be fooled (or legislated) into believing that it is. In that regard, the Tonight Show is coming off as very much like Family Guy at the moment. Family Guy has lots of left-leaning humor, and lots of people on the right are always complaining about that. However, if you really do believe in a “free-market of entertainment”, then you can’t fault someone for making jokes one way or the other.

Is Mr. O’Brien most likely left wing? I think so. Are many of his writers and staff members? Once again, I think so. However, when shows are trying to compete for the all-important advertising dollars, they have to appeal to a certain demographic. Statistically speaking, younger people tend to be very liberal. You see this in colleges in particular, but even beyond that, it seems fair to suggest a lot of 20 and 30 somethings tend to be very liberal (here I would reference the quote often attributed to Churchill in which he is thought to have said something akin to “If you're not a liberal when you're 20, you have no heart. If you're not a conservative when you're 40, you have no brain”). Whether the quote contains wisdom is obviously up for debate. However, since younger folks tend to be the target audience for advertises, and since the Tonight Show is likely composed of left-leaning staff, is it really surprising that there seems to be a lot of jokes about conservatives?

The answer to the issue is very simple I think. If you don’t like the skewed ratio (as I see it at least), then don’t watch the show. I made the same argument in another forum years ago regarding Family Guy. If Family Guy (or the Tonight Show) ever go too far, they will alienate too many people and will begin to lose advertising dollars. If this happens, they will have to step-back a bit in regards to leaning too far one way, lest they be in danger of getting cancelled.

Yet, if there is a sizeable audience that wants left-leaning humor, why shouldn’t the Tonight Show be allowed to make whatever jokes it wants (assuming we aren’t getting into FCC standards territory that is). Once again, life isn’t fair…and to suggest that a show should be “neutral” in political humor is to essentially cast aside the idea that an audience can make up its own mind in regards to what it wants to watch.

I think what probably fuels a bit of the anger I am sensing in the original post of this thread is the idea that no comedians will take on President Obama directly. In this regard, I think there is some relevant material for all people, of all political leanings, to consider. However, this “hands off President Obama” approach is not unique to the Tonight Show. It is has been amply discussed (both pre and post election) by many different folks in both comedy, and wider media, that President Obama does not make an easy comedic target.

Now, I know that some folks are going to point to a few President Obama jokes in past episodes of Mr. O’Brien’s show…but those jokes weren’t really about President Obama. For example (and just off the top of my head), there was an Obama/Pope joke about President Obama’s supporters seeing him as infallible. This joke wasn’t about President Obama, but rather, it was about how some people see him. Likewise, there was a joke about President Obama have to deal with Vice-President Biden being an a**. Once again, this is a joke that includes President Obama, but that is not about him. Or, take the President Obama baseball throw video. Mr. O’Brien produced a video lampooning how “right-leaning Fox news” presented President Obama’s throw. Yet again, this is a joke that includes President Obama, but it is not ABOUT him.

I don’t personally buy that President Obama is too difficult to make fun (especially regarding his “uhs “ and “ums” when not in front of a teleprompter), and I think there is a heavy dose of “he is our guy, so we are going to hold off on making fun of him” thinking present in pretty much of comedy/media right now. Yet, if President Obama is the “perfect being” that many of his supporters believe him to be, then why can’t there be a million different jokes set against the back-drop of a “perfect being” that has to deal with “mere mortals”. I mean, even “perfection” is in and of itself an angle for a joke.

To be fair though, even if a show tries to make fun of President Obama, the audience seems to smack such humor down. For example, on Wednesday Dana Carvey made a joke about President Obama treating an economic knee injury while the economy is having a full-blown heart attack (or something to that end). Go back and listen to the crowd while he is saying this…there were those mysterious “Tonight Show parking lot crickets” chirping during this set of jokes. Realizing that his President Obama humor wasn’t working, Mr. Carvey then threw in a joke about President Bush, and the audience died laughing. This is a pretty standard approach to comedy these days. Most comedians steer clear of making fun of President Obama, and the few who do attempt it seem to have about five or six President Bush jokes waiting in the mental wings in order to sooth the angry audience if the initial President Obama joke doesn’t work (and it never does).

Without wanting to get into a debate about race politics, there is also the simple truth that people have to be a lot more careful about making fun of President Obama simply based on racial concerns. I completely disagree with the knee-jerk reaction that America has regarding any jokes about President Obama, but there is the issue that even if an audience wants to laugh at an Obama joke, some (or even many) of the audience members might be hesitant to do so for fear of coming off as either A: racist, or B: conservative (with conservative being a synonym for the words “fascist”, “evil”, “racist”, “cruel”, etc, in the minds of many people). Take for example the semi-known incident in which John Stewart had to tell his Daily Show live audience that it was ok to laugh at President Obama.

Like it or not, you aren’t going to get a lot of jokes about the left when you watch what is likely a left-leaning show staff, making a program for a left-leaning demographic, and filming in front of an audience that is likely filled with left-leaning attendees. Bill Maher had the same problem with his crowds for Real Time, and he had to beg right-wing guests to come on the show because of how blatantly far to the left his audience leaned (though I am by no means saying that the Tonight Show audience is as left wing as the Real Time audience).

As Mr. Carvey said in Wednesday night’s show, President Obama is a rock star in the eyes of much of the public. Even if we assume that the country is split 50/50 along political lines, then that means that 50% of people are going to watch, and laugh at, a show that seems to lean to the left…and as well they should, as it is their right to support (or not support) a show. With that being the case…if you don’t like the political humor, then just mute the speakers whenever Mr. O’Brien says “Sarah Palin”, and don’t turn them back on for about thirty seconds .

If anything, I think that the complaint (if one prefers to use that word) to be made about the Tonight Show is that it seems to favor repetitive humor. True, the Tonight Show has to have a very quick turn-around on scripts, and the whole point of the monologue is to joke about “in the news today” information (which, I personally believe, lends itself to left-wing humor as I believe many media outlets favor right-bashing stories over left-bashing ones….but that is another topic for another rant). In any case, if you look at all of the jokes on the show, you can see the same jokes over and over. I mean, how many days in a row are we going to get Manny Ramirez jokes? And is there really a need for upwards of three to five jokes about Sarah Palin within a ten minute window?

Now, don’t misunderstand me. I personally can’t stand Sarah Palin, and I don’t mind jokes being made about any person or topic on the planet. However, what does interest me is that, as someone who often watches a few days worth of the show at a time while on Hulu, it seems that the same jokes are being used night after night, with just a little bit of retooling. If you don’t believe me, try playing a drinking game in which you watch just the first fifteen minutes from the last five episodes of the Tonight Show, and you have to take a shot every time the words “Palin”, “Ramirez”, or “Sandford” are used for a joke. You will be drunk off your rear before getting through the second episode I assure you.

Or, for example, on Thursday, July 9th, Mr. O’ Brien said “Pizza Hut has announced they are rebranding themselves as the Hut”, and then he said “When asked why, a spokesmen for Pizza Hut said they are tired of watching their customers get winded when saying the full name.” However, a few weeks (I believe) before that he said something like “Pizza Hut has announced they are rebranding themselves as the Hut”, and he then said “Long John Silvers’ will be known as “The John””. What is up with using the same setup a few weeks later and acting like it is new news?

To be fair, some repetitive humor is to be expected in a 24-hour media cycle society in which perhaps three or four stories get 98% of the air-time (i.e., a story gets framed one way and is repeated over and over…thus grinding it down to a situation in which every time a comedian mentions Manny Ramirez, you know a fertility drug related joke is coming). Yet, when I watch three episodes of the Tonight Show in a row on Hulu, and each of the three episodes has a monologue that basically goes “Palin/broke California/GM/Palin/Sandford/Ramirez/Palin”, I tend to lose a bit of interest, as I already know the punch-line the moment the joke begins.

Hmmm…I seem to have started with one topic, and ended half-way in another. Anywho, even with all of the conservative jokes the show is still very funny, but here’s hoping we get at least one show in the next few weeks that doesn’t include a joke about Manny Ramirez and fertility drugs!

[hanna7]

i think you used up all the interweb space with that post.

[Tiawap]

i think you used up all the interweb space with that post.

Yeah, I tend to get that a lot. You know the whole web 2.0 concept? That is my fault. They need to make a whole new version of the web so that it has enough memory for my forum posts.

[apple_hurler]

Thanks for the well thought ought post, Tiawap. You've said everything I've been thinking about this lately and several things that hadn't occurred to me.

I agree with you completely regarding why making jokes at President Obama's expense just doesn't work right now. Maybe this will change as the honeymoon feeling wears off for our "rock star President". (Why hasn't anyone used the Obama=infallible angle, though? Good point.)

You make so many good points, and so thoroughly, that all I can say is, "Yep, yep, yepyepyep... Oooh hadn't thought of that, hmmm... yep. Nice!"

Cheers!

[FrankV56]

I think you lost track of the main idea and point. The problem isn't so much jokes about B.O. but Conan is the problem. He is the WORST late night talk show host, he even makes Kimmel look good. His antics, and joke telling is the pits. The management team at NBC must be in their 20s. Because no one older than that can enjoy Conan. The man is flat, if Johnny was still alive he would run on stage & kick this imposter off the stage. Conan has no class, no polish, and no talent. I hope NBC understands that the sponsers aren't going to pay for a show with low ratings which this one has. Letterman is way out in front now thanks to Conan. Jay was Number One in ratings year in and year out. Conan is heading towards single digits ratings. Which suits me fine since than they can either bring back Jay or someone new with real talent.

Thanks for the well thought ought post, Tiawap. You've said everything I've been thinking about this lately and several things that hadn't occurred to me.

I agree with you completely regarding why making jokes at President Obama's expense just doesn't work right now. Maybe this will change as the honeymoon feeling wears off for our "rock star President". (Why hasn't anyone used the Obama=infallible angle, though? Good point.)

You make so many good points, and so thoroughly, that all I can say is, "Yep, yep, yepyepyep... Oooh hadn't thought of that, hmmm... yep. Nice!"

Cheers!

[Aquadia]

if Johnny was still alive he would run on stage & kick this imposter off the stage.

Johnny would have done the same thing to Leno. Letterman was his choice to succeed him. He was incredibly upset by NBC's decision to give Leno the Tonight Show and he was the one who convinced Letterman to move to another network. Right up to his death, Johnny called Letterman "his true successor"

[apple_hurler]

I think you lost track of the main idea and point. The problem isn't so much jokes about B.O. but Conan is the problem. He is the WORST late night talk show host, he even makes Kimmel look good. His antics, and joke telling is the pits. The management team at NBC must be in their 20s. Because no one older than that can enjoy Conan. The man is flat, if Johnny was still alive he would run on stage & kick this imposter off the stage. Conan has no class, no polish, and no talent. I hope NBC understands that the sponsers aren't going to pay for a show with low ratings which this one has. Letterman is way out in front now thanks to Conan. Jay was Number One in ratings year in and year out. Conan is heading towards single digits ratings. Which suits me fine since than they can either bring back Jay or someone new with real talent.

Thanks for the valuable input, FrankV56. I believe my post was on topic regarding left-leaning jokes, and I specifically chose to reply re: jokes aimed at President Obama. Your comments regarding your dislike of Conan seem more on-topic in the "Negative opinions spoken here" thread.

[JessicaRabbity]

Making fun of the left doesn’t have to involve Obama at all. Hillary is Chuckie. Lesbians worship the man who invented the flannel shirt. Sex in the City is gay. The sign “Men at Work” had to be changed to the politically correct “Men and Women Who Look Like Men at Work.” All of the Paris Hilton jokes are attacks on liberals. Libs don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a lot of sex partners.

[HarlequinDeBois]

Making fun of the left doesn’t have to involve Obama at all. Hillary is Chuckie. Lesbians worship the man who invented the flannel shirt. Sex in the City is gay. The sign “Men at Work” had to be changed to the politically correct “Men and Women Who Look Like Men at Work.” All of the Paris Hilton jokes are attacks on liberals. Libs don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a lot of sex partners.

It simply is a Homosexual Conspiracy hidden behind heterosexual Late Night Monologues.