I confess to not understanding political humor these days. Both sides are far too personal, too cynical, and too determined to
At the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner, black-tie guests were treated to a performance by The Daily Show‘s Roy Wood, Jr. and some uncomfortably banal jokes by Joe Biden. But since the targets of the jokes were mostly Republicans, they really didn’t have to be funny.
Back before reporters became superstars and made more money than almost anyone who read their drivel, journalists took pride in their craft. They took pride in mundane things like accuracy, balance, and a striving for objectivity.
They didn’t always achieve those goals. But reaching for them defined the post-World War II media generation.
But then TV came along, and most of those goals went out the window. Now, it was drama-driven “news” that took over. Networks needed villains, heroes, and sometimes even damsels in distress. If the news managed to be reported, it was in spite of the drama, not because of it.
Today, they’re not even trying. Today, the necessity of being non-biased and non-partisan has been replaced with the groupthink that advances partisan narratives at the expense of any notion of the truth.
Why? Because the communications giants don’t think you’re smart enough to understand what’s happening. You must be instructed in how to vote, how to think, who to like, and who to hate.
