The Artificial Intelligence (AI) crisis across the creative industries apparently shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon and now comedy seems to have been thrown into the mix of its hapless targets. Only this time comedy appears to have won the opening battle in its own war with AI, at least going by the lawsuit that has been in the news lately.   The said lawsuit was the one filed by the estate of the late comedy legend George Carlin, who died in 2008, against two podcasters for their offending use of AI in the violation of his publicity rights and for copyright infringement ..read more

   Talk of expanding one’s career horizons and you might think of moonlighting as one of those harmless pursuits that people indulge in, sometimes for money, other times just for the hell of it. Except maybe when it comes to comedy, it seems.  Recently, we saw the case of journalist Jad Sleiman, who works for the NPR affiliate WHYY in Philadelphia, who was fired in January last year but later re-instated (thank goodness) after he won an arbitration proceeding against his employers; they were crossed with him over his moonlighting gig as a comedian. Sleiman’s troubles recall the case in fa ..read more

A recent article in The New Yorker by the reporter Clare Malone revealed that comedian Hasan Minhaj had lied about some of the events that he had recounted in his comedy work.  And this revelation has prompted a swift and brutal backlash. Yet, on closer examination, this may well be a case of the proverbial much ado about nothing resulting in a needless attack on the messenger of a rather noble message: social justice. In the article, Minhaj admitted that the following were not true: that his young daughter was hospitalized for exposure to anthrax; that he had interacted with a certain FB ..read more

Say hello to the AI era and its associated headaches: In recent times and seemingly from almost out of nowhere, Artificial Intelligence (AI), has jumped into the center of our public conversation thanks largely to the massive headaches it is causing everywhere from authorities worried about people cheating in their testing sessions to people worried about losing their jobs: Hollywood actors, for instance, are terrified AI could displace them at work and Google is reportedly working on getting AI to write news reports and thus send journalists to the unemployment line. Closer to home in comedy ..read more

Comedy today is a long way from where it was just a generation or two ago considering that it has now migrated from the fringes to the center of the cultural conversation. But will it be allowed to enjoy its newfound fortune undisturbed, or will it become a target of detractors who rather resent the methods by which the art form exercises its right of free speech. At issue here is just how much leeway comedians are permitted when it comes to saying things that other people might find objectionable or simply intolerable. Especially if said objections are made on behalf of vulnerable demographic ..read more

Without a doubt, comedy is a big deal these days in our society, especially in our pop culture, and when done smartly at an appropriate forum, the jokes can mean a lot of money, but when done in a certain way at certain places, they can also be a deadly serious affair that can wind up in front of the judges at the US Supreme Court. Not least when it involves a Comedy Central roast featuring the famous and talented insult comic Jeff Ross and a murder trial in a red state like Texas. And, under the circumstances of this case, the crucial question that pops up is whether an apparent joke is still ..read more

For comedians, getting attacked onstage on occasion when things get charged is something many can relate to. But getting attacked offstage and outside performance venues seems like a different beast altogether. Sadly, though, it happens: just ask Saturday Night Live (SNL) alum Chris Redd who was recently assaulted by an unknown male assailant outside the famed Comedy Cellar in New York City as he arrived to perform at the club. In a vicious attack that left him “gushing blood,” the comedian sustained some rather serious injuries, including two fractures to his nose and one to his cheek. While ..read more

First, there was the slap heard around the world this past March when comedian Chris Rock was attached by actor Will Smith as he stood on stage during the last Oscar ceremony in Los Angeles. Then, not long after came the vicious assault on comedian Dave Chappelle by a crazed audience member at the Hollywood Bowl in May. As one might expect, many are now wondering whether we might be entering an era where comedians have to worry about becoming victims of physical assaults by people who are unhappy with their shtick onstage. Bill Maher has described the situation as a “war on jokes” and other co ..read more

Well, there we go again with the joke stealing thing: another accusation, another comedy star, another lawsuit. This time Michael Che’s number is up in the plagiarism altercations of the internet age. In case you missed it, the Saturday Night Live funnyman has been accused of purloining (okay, stealing) jokes from a TikTok video performer and now both Che and his partner HBO Max have been dragged to court. And the TikToker is asking for more than just money.   But first, here’s the story: Kelly Manno is a TikTok performer who posts videos on the said platform covering various everyday sit ..read more

One remarkable development in our current cultural moment is the growing emergence of conservative comedy as a powerful force in our social conversation. Contrary to other explanations so far offered for it, this essay attributes the rise of right-wing comedy to the intense polarization that has occurred in our politics and culture over the recent decades. At the forefront of this conservative counterpoise to the more dominant liberal comedy is TV host Greg Gutfeld courtesy of his eponymous show Gutfeld! on Fox. According to Nielsen data, Gutfeld has bested the left’s leader Stephen Colbert in ..read more