Why Chris Rock no longer plays colleges

[hack89]

What do you make of the attempt to bar Bill Maher from speaking at Berkeley for his riff on Muslims?

Well, I love Bill, but I stopped playing colleges, and the reason is because they’re way too conservative.

In their political views?

Not in their political views — not like they’re voting Republican — but in their social views and their willingness not to offend anybody. Kids raised on a culture of “We’re not going to keep score in the game because we don’t want anybody to lose.” Or just ignoring race to a fault. You can’t say “the black kid over there.” No, it’s “the guy with the red shoes.” You can’t even be offensive on your way to being inoffensive.

When did you start to notice this?

About eight years ago. Probably a couple of tours ago. It was just like, This is not as much fun as it used to be. I remember talking to George Carlin before he died and him saying the exact same thing.

http://www.vulture.com/2014/11/chris-rock-frank-rich-in-conversation.html

It is hard for comedians in a world where you can't offend anyone.

[LanternWaste]

1. Quite the mythical world that would be, too.

"It is hard for comedians in a world where you can't offend anyone..."

Quite the mythical world that would be, too.

[hifiguy]

2. One of the keys of good comedy,

from Groucho Marx, to Lenny Bruce, Dick Gregory, Mort Sahl, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, and Lewis Black is confronting the audience with wittily, sometimes harshly, observed unpleasant truths about human nature and behavior. Mr. Rock is correct.

[Derek V]

3. "Freedom of speech means nothing if it does NOT mean the freedom to offend"

I don't know who said that, but s/he hit the bullseye!

[hifiguy]

4. Damn right!

[belzabubba333]

5. then why do offensive posts on du get hidden

[snooper2]

6. because delicate eyes- those oh so delicate eyes

I was looking for a circumcision joke earlier online and 99% of them would have gotten my post hidden LOL

[belzabubba333]

8. yea im still wrapped up in that conversation - it's still going on -

[Efilroft Sul]

18. I made a penis joke over there anyway.

I probably offended some Huey Lewis or Liam Neeson fan, so I expect an alert and a hide. I got a post hidden for calling the Duggar kids an offensive name, which has to be the highlight of my posting career on DU.

Oh, those delicate eyes.

[LanternWaste]

11. Comedic wit comes with wisdom. Hidden posts usually come merely with non-value idiocy.

Comedic wit comes with wisdom. Hidden posts usually come merely with a non-value idiocy.

[reddread]

15. what is a non value?

sounds like a class system.

[Derek V]

14. Illuminati

I'm sure of it!

[Odin2005]

26. Exactly! nt

[Kalidurga]

7. sometimes you have to offend people to get them to think

sure most won't get passed the fact that they are offended, but some will think it over and get it.

[notadmblnd]

9. You don't have to look to colleges to see that mentality

That mentality has all but taken over right here.

[hifiguy]

10. That's why I left DU for a year

and didn't return until this past summer. Though it now seems like most of the more notorious thought police have left, been tombstoned, or had their fangs drawn.

[notadmblnd]

12. many still lurk in the corners

they come out when they can find something to express their faux outrage over and alert on.

[Logical]

23. Well, if the jury agrees then maybe they were wrong. Funny how people hate...

the jury system when it rules against them.

[Odin2005]

25. I got scolded for using the word "pussy"

In the context of "rapists think they are entitled to pussy".

[notadmblnd]

32. the one I remember for me- is the scolding I got for asking an obvious troll

if they were paid to post here. Oh yeah, seriously.

I just know that I find myself wondering what class some of these people took where they were told life was supposed to be nice and all people were supposed to be nice to each other? We all know damn well that none of us are without guilt. Not being nice is the norm in this country, not the exception.

[hifiguy]

33. Google "Spider Woman cover" on the DU Google.

Mind-blowing. 500 posts.

Juries have definitely wised up in the last year or two.

[Odin2005]

35. Oh my fucking God.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

13. I know several comedians who don't either

Too many cancellations, too much bad press and social media garbage that just perpetuates whatever they were accused of.

One guy gets protested and harassed for something he didn't even say and was just mistakenly attributed to him online.

[B2G]

16. So do we hate Chris Rock now?

I can't keep up.

[hack89]

17. No - not that I am aware of. Nt

[JaneyVee]

20. We love Chris Rock.

[Spirochete]

22. Of course

Everybody Hates Chris. lol

No, no reason not to like Chris Rock.
Paul Simon loves him like a rock.
Joan Jett loves both him and Roll

etc...

[Logical]

24. I know, Tweety, Michael Moore, I have trouble tracking who we like from week to week. nt

[Recursion]

27. Does Chris Rock have some kind of obligation to play colleges?

Sounds like he's doing exactly the right thing: the venue isn't right for what he's trying to do, so he moved on to other ones.

[hifiguy]

34. Eeyup.

Odd to think that for years comics like Gregory, Sahl, Pryor and Carlin were so popular on campuses for the very reasons they would now be unwelcome. Kids today.....

[rbrnmw]

19. k&r

[JonLP24]

21. I never saw Stewart as the "middle"

He may be but that isn't why he is successful. He audience appears to be very knowledgeable on political events and self identifying liberals score higher on the knowledge -- http://www.people-press.org/2007/04/15/public-knowledge-of-current-affairs-little-changed-by-news-and-information-revolutions/ Basically he appeals to liberal bloggers.

Bill Maher's Real Time is very successful, it came a long way but me personally I watch it for the debates. The opening monologue and the "New Rules" are time wasters and not a big fan of his comedy.

I agree with Rogen in that "comedians forget that they have to be funny". I think Stewart is more successful than the other two because he is more funny (it depends on the format of the comedy as well). Chris Rock when he makes unfunny jokes are often when is making generalizations. "You have never met 2 Indians" might have been funny if it was true.

[joshcryer]

28. Stewart is definitely middle.

I remember the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear. It was supposed to be a political event. It was a corporate event. It was supposed to invigorate the youth vote, it was more of a stupid show where every moderate opinion got a voice.

[JonLP24]

30. That isn't why he is successful

The message seemed to be take the tone in a debate and received criticism on the false equivalency aspect.

It was badly done on several levels but I get what he was trying to do based on the Rachel Maddow interview especially the example that the debate is often left vs right when the debate should be "corruption vs not-corruption". Which I agree 100% but this sort of debate goes on within each party or this one AFAIK where the merits of a policy matter less & while he blamed extremes for some (not all) of this, moderates or people that favor politicians or party over policy have their ways of shutting down policy debates. But I agree with his overall logic.

But as far as his personal political views go I'm not sure how much towards the middle he is, I know he isn't a fan of hypocrisy and calls out Dems on it but criticisms don't seem to be coming from the middle like his take on the Obama bashing ads from moderate Democrats.

Funny that he was criticized on the false equivalency from Maher but Maher seems to express more towards and across the middle opinions than Stewart does and is very conservative when it comes to Islam.

[Behind the Aegis]

29. Two words: Blazing Saddles. n/t

[CrawlingChaos]

31. I would be willing to bet Chris Rock doesn't fully comprehend the objections to Maher

The interviewer speaks of Maher's "riff on Muslims". What Maher's doing with regard to Muslims goes way beyond comedy shtick. He is seriously pushing a focused agenda. It's not comedy. He really wants you to believe that Muslims are dangerous, barbaric and evil. He's not kidding, he's a bigot.