Is the new Jib Jab animation homophobic?

[LoZoccolo]

I imagine part of the reason that the first animation, "This Land", was popular is because it takes shots at both sides in the presidential election. But would you consider the new one, "Good to Be in DC", to be homophobic?

http://www.jibjab.com

[One Taste]

1. This is where DU

gets too PC for me.

[npincus]

16. you've got that right!

[bobbyboucher]

32. Crying PC is the shelter of

racists, bigots, homophobes, mysogynists, etc. Sincerely good people don't need the cover, it just doesn't come into play.

[RafterMan]

44. Do you find your opinion carries more weight

when you phrase it like an aphorism?

[NewYorkerfromMass]

61. I'd say you outted them quite well. eom

[Hog lover]

2. Equal opportunity homophobia, though

gets the right-wingers, too

[Behind the Aegis]

3. was hard to choose

It is homophobic in some respects, in others it seemed more along the lines of parody. Implying JK and JE are gay is homophobic in a way, but I felt the creators were making more of a statement about those who toss that "charge" around. Considering the tune that was used, would it had been racist if the creators had shown Condi shuffling around like Aunt Jemima or Powell picking cotton? When you don't know the intent of the creator, it is up to the viewer. That being said, I am gay and I thought it was pretty funny! :)

[MADem]

7. I go for the...

NOT THAT THERE's ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT club. It is satirical. Gays are the new blacks, they have to expect that everyone will want a piece of them (not physically, necessarily, unless you are GOP heavyweights David Drier, Brad Smith, Dan Gurley, Jay Banning or Ed Schrock*) for awhile, until the new 'cool' group comes along. I consider it more topical than anything else. And wait until weewee is losing big time in the polls, he'll pull out the homo hate like we have yet to see thus far...and he's been hating like crazy so far. A silly, meanspirited man. He should be ashamed of himself.

*If you have no idea what these guys have to do with what I said, visit http://www.blogactive.com/ for more information than maybe you need to know!

[npincus]

17. I think the homoerotic humor (JK/JE in bed) is poking fun at

manufactured chuminess on the campaign trail by 'taking it to the extreme'- I thought it was really funny! Of course, I would have liked deeper digs at Bush (like Bush in a cradle being rocked by Cheney- or Cheney in a rocking chair breast-feeding Bush) but ya can't have everything!

[MidwestTransplant]

4. I just thought there were too many pop ups!

[gospelized]

5. i don't know about homophobic

but it certainly wasn't funny.

[Bluebear]

6. Certainly it is.

Sorry if this is too "PC" for some. McGreevey, gay governor of New Jersey, certainly gave a masculine enough appearance for years, so his announcement was a complete shock, yes? This animation has him prancing around and lisping in the worst of stereotypes. Doesn't amuse me.

[LoZoccolo]

18. Ah, I didn't know that was McGreevey. n/t

[secular_warrior]

8. Maybe - I'm not sure

They are using stereotypes to ridicule and get a laugh. In that sense it could be homophobic.

As a straight guy, my natural instinct is to laugh at this. It is funny, but just imagine if that was your religious or ethnic group they were making fun of. That's when "funny" doesn't seem so funny anymore.

But I also agree with the above poster who spoke about intent. Many comedians have fun with stereotypes but they are usually doing so in the spirit of healing the divide between different groups of people through laughter, and have no ill will towards anyone.

It comes down to whether the person making the joke respects the object of the joke. I have a friend who does a gay impressions for laughs. Everyone laughs and has a good time because this guy actually has gay friends and they take no offense to it. This is a small but important distinction.

[lakemonster11]

9. Hmmmm....

I think it's going to seem anti-gay to people who are anti-gay and also to people who are particularly sensitive. I was very much torn about it. I guess I'm willing to give the JibJab guys the benefit of the doubt and say that they were really parodying those people who claim that Kerry and Edwards are gay. It may be an erroneous assumption, but oh well.

[oregon_dem1]

10. It uses stereotypes

In an offensive and unfunny way. And also, unlike "This Land," it's not memorable at all. Thank goodness for that because "DCland" is worthless crap.

[Guaranteed]

11. It's just...stupid. Childish.

I don't see what the hell people are getting out of this. It's dumb as hell.

A bunch of gay jokes? What are we, sixth graders?

[bklyncowgirl]

12. Satire's designed to sting.

I'm not gay so maybe I shouldn't vote on this.

It was cute and pretty even handed. Sure it got some stereotypes going but let's face it showing Bush and Cheney in oil barrels and John McCain in a bathrobe were pretty funny--and did they just out John Ashcroft?

Look, there are people making these comments about Kerry and Edwards, lampooning it may be the best way to neutralize it.

[Junkdrawer]

13. I think it's a vote suppression kind of thing...

"Bush is corrupt and Kerry is gay, so, uh, Vote???"

[bloom]

29. That is how I see a lot of these things...n/t

[Boomer]

14. Not homophobic, but not very funny either

As a member of the minority in question, I saw this as a (very lame) attempt to satirize the excesses of both sides. Falls down because accusing Cheney of Halliburton ties is both serious and credible; trying to paint Kerry and Edwards as gay is sleazy and not credible.

The first JibJab animation was relatively even-handed and light -- I liked it enough to pay for a download. This one was more vulgar and just not very funny. Can't pinpoint why, but it's just not.

[npincus]

15. don't be so PC- my gay friends joke around about "queens" and

poke fun at exaggerated stereotypes all the time. If you want to put JibJab is a PC box, don't expect cutting edge satire. I think the animation mocks the administrations obbsession with infringing on gay rights by outing Ashcroft- I don't think they are mocking gays.

[Bluebear]

47. Many gays find the "queens" jokes offensive.

[ronnykmarshall]

52. Not this queen.

:evilgrin:

[LoZoccolo]

19. Kick for people during the day.

:kick:

[PROGRESSIVE1]

20. These JibJab people are Right Wing Shills posing as moderates.

The first cartoon made Kerry look weak and Bush like a "Rough and Tough" Cowboy, which he is not.

This one has a "homophobic" edge to it. I would like to see them SHUT DOWN and put into GITMO!

:mad:

[LoZoccolo]

21. I would think they are biased in favor of the Republicans.

There's a little bit extra ridicule directed at the Democrats than there is at the Republicans - let's see if anyone can guess where there is not equal time given.

[scoopmeister]

25. OK, now Campaign Extra! is onto this!

http://www.pnionline.com/dnblog/extra/archives/001006.html

[PROGRESSIVE1]

56. How could I send this to Josh Marshall?

[npincus]

27. what a load of horseshit

left-wing paranoia is just as bad as right-wing paranoia

[bobbyboucher]

30. I think he is right.

If you couldn't see it the first time, well, sorry.

[npincus]

35. okey doke...

I'll reprint my earlier post on a related thread which expressed my point of view on this topic, then I'll leave it alone because I respect people's rights to their own point of view (though I may occassionally call opposing points of view "horseshit"- tee hee):

yes, I'm surprised to see hostility toward this new animation at DU... cutting edge satire is bound to push the limits of taste... but you gotta love free speech and freedom of expression.

The homoerotic JK/JE content (to me) mocks the manufactured chuminess of candidates on the campaign trail by taking it to the extreme, and then some. And the Ashcroft bit mocks the administration's efforts to curtail gay freedoms- perhaps they are in denial about their own feelings after all! I heard a JibJab interview on NBC this morning, and they said they got bombarded with requests for McGreevy so they threw that in!

I think if people want to laugh at satire and exaggerations about people they don't like, they also have to be tolerant when the spolight turns on those they empathize with, or themselves. I myself, am Jewish, and JibJab has in their archives an animated character who is Jewish- with very exaggerated steretypical speech, etc. and I couldn't be offended because I laughed at other silly characterizations.

So I say, to those who find the animation offensive- lighten up!

[bobbyboucher]

39. Just repeating it doesn't make it so.

Thanks anyway.

[JI7]

33. i agree, Bush is the biggest coward out there

and i got that sense from the first one also.

[Obamarama]

22. Homophobic? Oh PUH-leeeze, you silly goose....

Hardly. I'm gay and I found it to be amusing and harmless. Lighten up for once. Oy.

[Bluebear]

48. Let's agree to disagree this once :)

[Obamarama]

49. Okay...

I personally was not offended, but can understand how some could be. I don't think those who are offended are necessarily wrong or off base...I just think there's a whole lot of more worthy places to direct our outrage than JibJab.

[Bluebear]

50. Granted re: outrage

It does portray all the gay stereotypes though, and shouting "PC" irritates me. If they showed Condi with a watermelon JobJab would be villified but gays seem to be the last group left that you can aim the stereotypes at and get away with it.

[ronnykmarshall]

55. Maybe we have thicker skin??

This is hardly offensive to me considering shit like Freddy Phelps' hate on the web.

I couldn't give a flying rats ass about jib jab.

[WoodrowFan]

23. "connection refused"

when I tried to use your link I got the error "connection refused"

[LoZoccolo]

31. Try typing the URL in instead.

Maybe they've stooped to a new low and it's blocking referrals from DU!

[malachibk]

24. Homophobic and Disgusting

Politically irrelevant, nonsense. It makes no difference that it calls members of both parties fags, it's disgusting and I can't believe they're showing it on TV.

Imagine if the "gay" theme was replaced by ANY other minority-theme.

I have a pretty high tolerance for this kind of shit, but serously, as a gay man I'm furious.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

58. If I were President, I would copy alot of pages from the LBJ playbook...

by planting some "evidence" of criminal wrongdoing in their offices just so I could get a reason to send in the FEDS and shut them DOWN! You don't have to like it but I would do this. This is thinly disguiesed Right Wing Bigotry! The Right Wing in this country has gone TOO FAR!!!

:mad:

[Toucano]

26. Don't know, but it's not as good

as "This Land". It's just not as funny.

After reflection, I voted yes. The gay part is too pervasive.

[bobbyboucher]

28. I thought the first one was dumb as a stump.

So I won't be wasteing my beautiful mind on it this time.

[ronnykmarshall]

OK Bar ....

don't get your bloomers in a knot.

[ronnykmarshall]

57. OK Bar ....

don't get your bloomers in a knot.

[hippiechick]

34. Just goofy, that's all.

n/t


:hippie:

[drdigi420]

36. of course not, geez, lighten up

[dave123williams]

37. Yes, but who cares?

You mean, more homophobic than the entire GOP campaign? These fuckers are trying to enshrine bigotry in the Constitution, by playing to the worst prejudice in people. They're using the VERY SAME arguments they used to use to keep, say, interracial marriages from happening.

JibJab is merely illustrating (harmlessly) the actual travesty of the GOP position. Plus, McGreevy fucked up so badly, he's due for a little satire.

[eleanor]

38. Fortunately it's not ...

nearly as good as "This land ", so we won't see it plastered on cable or network news. The "Daily Show" might show part of it, but even they might be vetting it carefully. It's a hard call. Part of it offended me, but I laughed at parts too ...

[dave123williams]

41. Yeah - who would be suprised to learn that Ashcroft is a closet case?

Not me.

[fob]

40. I refuse to watch anything those talentless fucks do after the first

piece of shit one that I got 6 million times. Can someone find out who these aholes are and do a jibjab "cartoon" on them?

I'm Jib, a no talent hack!
I'm Jab, and like to smoke crack!
repeat
repeat
puke

[LoZoccolo]

42. Ha, what tune would you sing those lyrics to? n/t

[fob]

46. "This land is your land" of course!

[cheshire]

43. The have gone to far. Faux news just showed it, I didn't see that part.

It's not funny.

[jonnyblitz]

45. at the least it was cheesy and STUPID as shit...

that outweighed any homophobic stereotyping, IMHO.

[ronnykmarshall]

51. I think it's funny.

I'm a big ol' 'mo and it does bother me.

[VOX]

53. Yes, it is. What's more, it's harder on Democrats than Repugs...

It is, IMO, homophobic, and way too heavy on the gay "humor." (My older brother is gay, so maybe I give this a bit heavier weight than most, but nonetheless, I found myself wincing while watching it.)

Beyond that, all the effeminate, pink-panty sight gags play into the GOP talking points about Democrats not being "strong" and "manly" enough to stand up to global agressors. This is a load of horseflop, I know, but it **is** what the Rethugs try do do, what with their "metrosexual" and "sensitive" jabs (obvious code words) -- and all the "macho-drag" of * clearing brush, etc.

Just my opinion.

[blm]

54. I dislike JibJab the way I dislike anyone who says there is no difference

between Bush and Kerry. It's DISHONEST.

[Emboldened Chimp]

59. No, it was satire...

It was skwering the insinuation that right-wing pundits were making when Kerry and Edwards hugged a few times. It's too absurd to be taken seriously, but unfortunately some people do.

[newsguyatl]

60. yes, i think so.

something you'd see right out of a junior high schooler's project.

[tuvor]

62. I'm an honorary homosexual

according to my gay friends. (Actually, they say honorary f**, but, well, there are some sensitive souls here.)

There was nothing here that I wouldn't be ashamed to show them. If I thought the animation was funny, that is.