Donald Trump did his best impression of a populist Democrat president over the weekend. He suggested that the late night comedy lineup should embrace the so-called Equal Time Rule, the now defunct Section 315 of the Communications Act of 1934 requiring equal airing of opposite views. And on the “Late Show,” Stephen Colbert took up the challenge with the help of former “Daily Show” funnyman Jon Stewart.
Late Night host are dealing with the Democrats for their very “unfunny” & repetitive material, always anti-Trump! Should we get Equal Time?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2017
Colbert would say something negative and Stewart would say something positive and hilarity was supposed to ensue. An original idea with unfortunate execution, as the skit fell flat.
First Colbert did the set up slamming the president for asking for equal time. He mocked Rex Tillerson for accidentally revealing Trump’s secret service codename when he called him a “fucking moron.” And the comic suggested that after Republicans gut healthcare, the orange face of the chief executive was “the only contraceptive women will have left.”
Then Stewart offered the counterweight … At least Trump isn’t a cannibal, he said. Given a choice between having lava poured on his genitals or a Trump presidency, he’d choose the latter. And despite Trump’s repeal of the contraception mandate, he’s still not as bad as serial sexual abuser Harvey Weinstein.
Hilarious? Meh. Original? Kinda in like an eighth grade way. But predictably the skit broke down when Stewart went on another Trump rant. And that’s the problem.
No one should argue that the presidency is above criticism. It’s not. Politicians make good fodder for comedians and that’s healthy for democracy. Clearly the current president can be an easy target. But mocking name calling isn’t enough. There’s supposed to be truth in kidding. There’s never supposed to be partisan talking points—what Colbert and company have been offering non-stop since before the election.
Anti-Trump punchlines are knocking the wind out of late night. While Sean Hannity regularly brings in 3.5 million viewers a week, Colbert is lucky to break three million (sometimes life imitates comedy). And while the whole lineup—Kimmel, Fallon, and Colbert—rack up about 8 million viewers a week, David Letterman and Jay Leno brought in 10 million viewers on the reg.
Those late night legends weren’t bipartisan so much as they were more or less willingly blind to politics. Sure they’d take pot shots at presidents but they never let that become their entire show. Before the internet, it was Letterman who pioneered stupid pet tricks, who made the first top 10 lists, and who wore a suit with 3,400 Alka-Seltzer tablets, strapped on scuba gear, and dove into a 1,000-gallon tank of water.
Letterman was funny because Letterman was original and Letterman knew that late at night his audience didn’t want a lecture. They wanted a laugh. Can’t Colbert and company give us one today?
Philip Wegmann is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
