Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Thad » Mon Sep 07, 2015 2:03 am

Mashable: TV host John Oliver has become America's social justice warrior

I think this is the first time I've ever seen the phrase "social justice warrior" used as a compliment.

A lot of this is stuff I've talked about before, but really I think there are two important things Oliver does:

1: He talks about important issues that, often, are things most people don't know about or at least don't think about very much;

2: He explains them in plain English and makes it clear why we should give a fuck.

While it's too early to say he's made a real policy impact (except on net neutrality, where he absolutely and unambiguously has), he has been on the leading edge of reporting issues that are really getting some traction toward reform. Civil forfeiture, bail, and minimum sentencing for drug crimes are all issues that have seen reforms not long after Oliver reported on them. I don't think that's a case of things happening because of Oliver's coverage so much as Oliver covering issues whose time had come and whose advocates had already built up a good head of steam, but either way he certainly seems to be on top of what outrages are going on and what should be done about them.

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:01 am

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Tue Oct 20, 2015 10:56 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Tue Jan 12, 2016 2:38 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Büge » Fri Jan 15, 2016 1:48 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Thu Mar 10, 2016 11:12 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Wed Mar 16, 2016 2:44 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Caithness » Fri Mar 18, 2016 10:42 pm

I believed that one for a second.

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Healy » Wed Mar 23, 2016 9:37 pm

Holy shit, this Clickhole is amazing:

Mike Dean (producer, songwriter): It’s 2008, and Kanye calls me on the phone to say he’s thought of a wonderful new phrase to scream in a church. It turned out that it was actually the worst possible thing someone could scream in a church, but he didn’t seem to realize that.

L.A. Reid: I begged Kanye to keep it to himself, but he still interrupted the national anthem during all five games of that year’s World Series to announce it. I thought his career was over.

Kanye West (rapper, producer): One day, I will be dead and old, and even then, I will still consider the invention of the phrase “God doesn’t eat food; he just drinks a lot of water” my greatest achievement. It is the best thing you can scream in a church because it is not a lie.


It was so funny that my head got all tingly because of all the air my laughter wasn't allowing me to breathe. Go read it.
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Thu Mar 24, 2016 1:24 am

Kanye appears to be legit losing/has lost his mind.

I'm not sure if that makes the joke more or less funny.
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Thu Apr 28, 2016 8:06 pm

The Onion wrote:EPA Urges Flint Residents To Stop Dumping Tap Water Down Drain

'This liquid has been known to cause severe damage to sewer systems and the environment'


oh wow
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Friday » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:53 pm

Kurt Russell is proof God exists, the Blues Brothers is proof he loves us, and the Onion is proof he's one amazing motherfucker.
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Friday » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:59 pm

When you die you go see God and he looks exactly like Kurt Russell and you're like "holy shit Kurt Russell!? You're God?" and God's like "Call me Snake."
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Fri Apr 29, 2016 10:28 am

And again

The Onion wrote:Ted Cruz announced Wednesday that if he is the Republican presidential nominee, he will run with former HP president Carly Fiorina as his vice president. What do you think?

"Makes sense. Someone will eventually have to tell all the staffers that they're fired."
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Fri Apr 29, 2016 6:08 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Tue Jun 14, 2016 5:44 pm

The Onion wrote:U.N. Warns, Trump May Be 7 Months Away From Acquiring Nuclear Weapons
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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Mongrel » Fri Jun 17, 2016 4:20 pm

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Re: Truthiness! (Onion, Clickhole, etc.)

Postby Thad » Thu Jul 21, 2016 12:28 am

The Hollywood Reporter has a couple of good articles on Colbert:

Stephen Colbert on Convention Comeback, Leslie Moonves Sit-Down and His Emotional Response to James Corden Rumors

Stephen Colbert Brings Back 'Colbert Report' Persona for Convention 'Late Show'

I haven't watched last night's yet, but Monday's was...well, I think that second article does a pretty good job capturing what I assume are some very mixed feelings from Colbert on being upstaged by his fictional persona.

Colbert's Late Show has been downright disappointing. Because he is so good, and he's wasting his talents doing the same bullshit as every other late night host.

His Late Show was, honest-to-God, funnier before he actually started doing it. That promo where he hijacked the Michigan cable-access show was fucking genius, and he's never done anything close to that good since starting at CBS.

He's had his moments. When he's interviewing someone he really has a rapport with -- usually a former colleague, like John Oliver or Jason Jones -- and they go off-script, it's a legitimate fucking delight. But mostly it's the same scripted crap, over and over again, with whatever Hollywood celebrity is currently plugging her movie.

There's a reason John Oliver -- and now Sam Bee -- 's format has been such a hit: because it skips all that bullshit.

Colbert's ratings have gotten better since he got a new showrunner in January, but IMO the show itself has actually gotten worse. Monday was a return to form -- and actually the first time in months there's been a Hungry for Power Games segment and I haven't fast-forwarded through it. This was the first time I ever laughed at that bit -- mostly because it's Colbert doing what he does best and actually stirring up shit in a situation he's not in complete control of, but also because apparently somebody finally explained to him that Stanley Tucci and Elizabeth Banks are not actually the same person.

Colbert's so much better than the show he's been putting on. On Monday, he showed it; I hope he can keep it up. Because up until now, there's been a real whiff of Conan's Tonight Show about it: an incredibly talented comedian going for the bland, safe stuff that everybody else in the timeslot is doing.

(Speaking of Conan, the biggest false note in THR's articles is that it treats the "CBS wants to switch Colbert's timeslot with Corden's" rumor as if it's a thing that could actually happen. Er, no; there is no fucking way any late-night host's agent will ever again make the same mistake that Conan's did and approve a contract without a timeslot guarantee in it. Colbert's got four years left on his contract, and you better believe that contract stipulates that the network can't move his timeslot.)

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