www.vulture.com: I wonder if Jerry Seinfeld knows that when he famously said colleges are too PC for stand-up comedy, he sparked a wholly unnecessary feud between stand-up comics and college students. At least in the comedy world, that’s how it feels. Earlier this month, the fire was stoked with the news of student organizers cutting former SNL writer Nimesh Patel’s set short at a Columbia University event.
1 comment:
I will never apologize for asking comedians to be funny. Sorry, but racism isn't funny anymore. At least not to me, and I think it is ridiculous that some comedians get upset at a tough audience. That's YOUR JOB. That said, I agree that student organizers should also be more careful about who they choose to ask to perform and maybe not shut down events so quickly, but, as the author points out, comedians could also do their jobs and actually research the venues they are hired to perform at. Anything less is lazy. The offensive jokes are also lazy. Comedy is not inherently offensive. Comedy can be shocking as it is supposed to be without targeting marginalized groups in a negative way. Comedy is about the reversal of what we expect, which is why research of the audience is so important. When a comedian comes to a college and tells an offensive joke, it is standard and completely unfunny. Make fun of literally anyone or anything other than a group of people who are already constantly put down and college students will laugh, surprise!
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