Even though Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert is known for his sense of humor, apparently some things are off limits–on certain platforms, at least. Following a joke about Asians that was posted to the official Colbert Report Twitter account yesterday, Colbert has been branded a racist, with many people demanding that his show be canceled. Colbert has denied posting the offensive tweet, despite making the joke on his show while mocking the owner of the Washington Redskins.
To provide a little context to the situation that spurred the hashtag #CancelColbert on Twitter, Colbert poked fun at Redskins owner Dan Snyder on his show on Wednesday night. Snyder, who has been criticized for shooting down requests to change the Redskins name to something more racially sensitive, sent an open letter to fans earlier this week saying he wanted to start an organization to help Native Americans. As such, Colbert mocked Snyder on his show by saying he was going to start an organization for Asians:
Folks, this move by Dan Snyder inspires me, because my show has frequently come under attack for having a so-called offensive mascot, my beloved character Ching Chong Ding Dong…Offensive or not–NOT–Ching Chong is part of the unique heritage of the Colbert Nation that cannot change. But I’m willing to show the Asian community that I care by introducing the Ching Chong Ding Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever…I owe all this sensitivity to Redskins owner Dan Snyder. So Asians, send your thank-you letters to him, not me.
This is run-of-the-mill stuff for Colbert, and it wasn’t until an excerpt from his comments was posted on Twitter that people became outraged. Check out a photo someone took of the offensive tweet before it was removed from the Colbert Report Twitter page:
WOW! suey_park started major movement against @StephenAtHome #Colbert Report so-called comedy of racist belief #asian pic.twitter.com/ngT1ifelCx
— Rezboots (@Rezboots) March 28, 2014
Colbert is now being branded a racist, which is easy to understand if you aren’t familiar with Colbert’s style of humor and are unaware of the context the joke was made in. While Colbert certainly did make the joke on his show, both Colbert and whoever is managing the Colbert Report’s Twitter page now have both pointed out that Colbert didn’t make the Twitter post.
For the record @ColbertReport is not controlled by Stephen Colbert or his show. He is @StephenAtHome Sorry for the confusion #CancelColbert
— The Colbert Report (@ColbertReport) March 28, 2014
#CancelColbert – I agree! Just saw @ColbertReport tweet. I share your rage.
Who is that, though? I'm @StephenAtHome
http://t.co/e0Pqz7U7i9
— Stephen Colbert (@StephenAtHome) March 28, 2014
While it’s certainly interesting that it is acceptable for certain jokes to be made in one setting but not another, people can drop the #CancelColbert thing for now–unless they just really hate Stephen Colbert. In which case, carry on.
Image via Twitter