Colbert Shocks the Media Silent

[dogday]

The same media that's trashing Stephen Colbert gave a pass to Bush's jokes about missing WMDs in Iraq two years earlier.

For days the battle has raged on the Web: Did Stephen Colbert go too far in lampooning President Bush, to his face, at the White House Correspondents Dinner on Saturday night? Is that why his barbs did not generate more laughter around the room of 2700 journalists, celebrities and other guests? Or was it because he suggested the press was spineless in failing to confront the president on Iraq? Or was Colbert just not that funny?

In any case, the event has inspired debate on hundreds of political and media blogs, the posting of the video on dozens of sites, and massive traffic to E&P, where the first in-depth account of Colbert's performance was posted Saturday night.

You'd think from all the criiticism that the guy had based his routine on joking about launching a war and not finding the WMDs that inspired it. Oh, right, that was President Bush, two years ago.

Nevertheless, Dana Milbank of The Washington Post, appearing on Keith Olbermann's MSNBC program Monday night, joined the ranks of those who attended the dinner who felt Colbert "was not funny." On the other hand, he said the president's routine that night with a Bush impersonator was a howl.

http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/35804/

[robbedvoter]

1. best comment comparing the two:

Bush's routine at the dinner was "Ain't it funny how dumb I am?"

Colbert's routine was "It's not funny how dumb you are."

Also, someone else at Huffington Post said that the press reviewing Colbert is like a watermellon reviewing Gallager's performance and finding it distasteful"

[TechBear_Seattle]

2. "a watermelon reviewing Gallager's performance"

That is priceless! And a very good description. :rofl:

[Rude Horner]

3. I like that comment about the comparison.

I'll have to try to remember that one. :thumbsup:

[acmejack]

4. He was speaking "Truthiness" to power!

He wasn't going for laughs, he was making points and make them he did. He elicited a few howls from the audience here, but he rubbed the assembled audience's noses in it but good!

Little gems like when he told *, "I have nothing but contempt for these people", referring to the press. He wasn't joking then either. Funny maybe, truthy, for sure!

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

5. Keith made his OP known with putting Truthiness To Power on the screen

and it was wonderful!!!!!

:applause:

[Chimichurri]

10. Yeah but then Dana burst that bubble as he so often does.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

11. Wasn't it amazing though how Dana turned the conversation away

from Stephen so quickly and wound up babbling about cucumber martinis? He didn't want to touch Colbert with a thousand mile pole.

BTW..he tried to uphold his "liberal bias" by saying that Stephen didn't cross the line.

Too much........

[BOSSHOG]

6. He knows his loyal base loves

the fact that he hates the evil librul press and that he is dumb like them. Unfortunately for george the base is getting smaller, just like the laugh tracks.

[originalpckelly]

7. It was Colbert's version of "Shock & Awe" for that liberal media...

which is destroying our country. I think Colbert was upset people started laughing at him. I mean you come to a dinner to give a speech, and they laugh at you. My goodness, what kind of people do that? Liberals! That's who! Not only that, they worked in collusion to accuse him of doing something wrong, him, out all people the guy who gets laughed at, they're so rude! Just shows how ill-mannered and wild Bush-bashers they really are. Well, at least the President and all the good people at Fox didn't laugh at him, and there were parts where those wild men and woman managed to control their hatred of all that is righteous. Thank goodness the liberals didn't bash the President like they always do. I guess Colbert was the sacrificial lamb, he died on the podium, like our Lord and Saviour, for the Presidents sins. I have never been prouder.

:sarcasm:

[gratuitous]

8. And the funniest goddam thing?

The targets of his humor are STILL trying to figure out if what he said was funny.

Now THAT's funny, I don't care who you are. (To quote a comedian these garbanzos understand a little better.)

[thereismore]

9. Dana Milbank deserves it. nt

[dogday]

12. You have to wonder why Olbermann

would have him on to talk about this...

"This is the same Milbank who last June mocked a congressional forum on the Downing Street memo, and said it was led by a "hearty band of playmates."

[Little Star]

13. I don't give a hoot what they say or don't say

Colbert told the saddest truth in the funniest of ways! I loved him! I think the MSM got their ass spanked and just didn't like it! Toooooo bad. They should take a good look in the mirror and then they would know just how GD funny Colbert was.