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Can it, armchair comedians, the joke's wearing thin Can it, armchair comedians, the joke's wearing thin
(7 months later)
"Everyone's a comedian" used to simply be a withering riposte to a not-very-witty remark. But now – God help us all – the cliche appears to be coming true. Give the world the merest sniff of a quirky news item and wallop, social media becomes awash with related jokes which (if you're lucky) start off funny but become very boring, very quickly."Everyone's a comedian" used to simply be a withering riposte to a not-very-witty remark. But now – God help us all – the cliche appears to be coming true. Give the world the merest sniff of a quirky news item and wallop, social media becomes awash with related jokes which (if you're lucky) start off funny but become very boring, very quickly.
This has been a vintage week: Richard III, the horsemeat scandal and then the pope's resignation. This unlikely trio has been catnip to the world's armchair comedians, with gag after gag being posted on Twitter and Facebook and underneath news articles.This has been a vintage week: Richard III, the horsemeat scandal and then the pope's resignation. This unlikely trio has been catnip to the world's armchair comedians, with gag after gag being posted on Twitter and Facebook and underneath news articles.
Now, I run a comedy listings website, and so am immersed in humour more than most, and I'm particularly exposed to this phenomenon by virtue of following hundreds of comedians on my professional Twitter account. But this week's satire overload found my limit. Is this what water coolers have been putting up with all this time?Now, I run a comedy listings website, and so am immersed in humour more than most, and I'm particularly exposed to this phenomenon by virtue of following hundreds of comedians on my professional Twitter account. But this week's satire overload found my limit. Is this what water coolers have been putting up with all this time?
I don't blame comedians for making jokes – that's their job – but the least they could do is have a quick peek online beforehand to see how the land lies. If it's looking crowded, stay inside, don't make things worse. No better are non-comedians. Ever seen those school penalty shootouts you get at football games at half time? Exactly that. Enthusiastic, but lacking quality. Perhaps both comedians and non-comedians should adhere to these three golden rules before putting satire on the internet: a) Try your best. No landfill. b) Credit someone else if you're borrowing, it's only polite, and c) seriously, no landfill.I don't blame comedians for making jokes – that's their job – but the least they could do is have a quick peek online beforehand to see how the land lies. If it's looking crowded, stay inside, don't make things worse. No better are non-comedians. Ever seen those school penalty shootouts you get at football games at half time? Exactly that. Enthusiastic, but lacking quality. Perhaps both comedians and non-comedians should adhere to these three golden rules before putting satire on the internet: a) Try your best. No landfill. b) Credit someone else if you're borrowing, it's only polite, and c) seriously, no landfill.
Aside from the sheer volume being incredibly irritating, it makes cynics of us all, about such a joyful thing such as humour. Some of the Rat-zingers doing the rounds after the pope quit on Monday I found laugh-out-loud funny, but when similar gags appeared just moments later, I'm just rolling my eyes at the massive loser who was presumably in the toilet in the vital seconds when the story broke.Aside from the sheer volume being incredibly irritating, it makes cynics of us all, about such a joyful thing such as humour. Some of the Rat-zingers doing the rounds after the pope quit on Monday I found laugh-out-loud funny, but when similar gags appeared just moments later, I'm just rolling my eyes at the massive loser who was presumably in the toilet in the vital seconds when the story broke.
This onslaught can also make us disengage from the actual news story. Once it's been frisked for every conceivable angle, and every possible wordplay (a "pundle"), it's hard to feel inclined to read further into the actual story – which is a shame given just how juicy they are are.This onslaught can also make us disengage from the actual news story. Once it's been frisked for every conceivable angle, and every possible wordplay (a "pundle"), it's hard to feel inclined to read further into the actual story – which is a shame given just how juicy they are are.
The life cycle of this phenomenon is grimly fascinating to witness. The first trickle of incredulous posts are simply about the story itself, ascertaining fact, establishing it in the public consciousness:The life cycle of this phenomenon is grimly fascinating to witness. The first trickle of incredulous posts are simply about the story itself, ascertaining fact, establishing it in the public consciousness:
So, Pope Benedict XVI is resigning: bbc.co.uk/news/world-214…. Who even knew it was possible?So, Pope Benedict XVI is resigning: bbc.co.uk/news/world-214…. Who even knew it was possible?
— Claire Marie Slight (@clairemslight) February 11, 2013— Claire Marie Slight (@clairemslight) February 11, 2013
Soon, the first gags appear:Soon, the first gags appear:
RT @helenholliday19: @schofe the pope is resigning . Will he be known as Ex Benedict ?!RT @helenholliday19: @schofe the pope is resigning . Will he be known as Ex Benedict ?!
— Phillip Schofield (@Schofe) February 11, 2013— Phillip Schofield (@Schofe) February 11, 2013
Everyone's happy and everything's swell. Then the trickle becomes a flood, and it starts to become less fun.Everyone's happy and everything's swell. Then the trickle becomes a flood, and it starts to become less fun.
This bit continues for far too long. Then the cross-pollination comes in, people weaving in different stories:This bit continues for far too long. Then the cross-pollination comes in, people weaving in different stories:
Horse meat found in pope due to snow. #pope #horsemeat #snow #topicalcomedyHorse meat found in pope due to snow. #pope #horsemeat #snow #topicalcomedy
— Harry Deansway (@Deansbomb) February 11, 2013— Harry Deansway (@Deansbomb) February 11, 2013
Next comes the mocking, from the delicious to the direct:Next comes the mocking, from the delicious to the direct:
ATOS have just declared the joke about ATOS declaring Richard III fit for work dead and thus fit for work.ATOS have just declared the joke about ATOS declaring Richard III fit for work dead and thus fit for work.
— Robert Florence (@robertflorence) February 4, 2013— Robert Florence (@robertflorence) February 4, 2013
You can hear the death rattle by the time news organisations enter the fray with"top 10 Twitter jokes about xyz" (actually I quite like this bit, but why let that fact get in the way of a good rant). Then, finally, Andrew Neill does one last funny on This Week and whole nations immediately lose faith in an interventionist god.You can hear the death rattle by the time news organisations enter the fray with"top 10 Twitter jokes about xyz" (actually I quite like this bit, but why let that fact get in the way of a good rant). Then, finally, Andrew Neill does one last funny on This Week and whole nations immediately lose faith in an interventionist god.
The good news is that we really can all be comedians – just look at the example set by Robin Flavell who wasn't a comic when he started tweeting as @jacques_aih. However his one-liners were so funny and so consistent that he is now a professional comedy writer. And he didn't achieve that by writing landfill gags.The good news is that we really can all be comedians – just look at the example set by Robin Flavell who wasn't a comic when he started tweeting as @jacques_aih. However his one-liners were so funny and so consistent that he is now a professional comedy writer. And he didn't achieve that by writing landfill gags.
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