Late night is currently in a bit of a fight for their right to Free Speech. Stephen Colbert had his show “canceled” and Jimmy Kimmel was suspended because, basically, the President said so. While Kimmel is back, the issue still remains. And Jimmy Fallon is taking the coward’s approach.
Fallon, who is arguably the least political of the late night hosts, is the one who had Donald Trump on his show and “humanized” him by playfully messing with his hair. Now though, Fallon has decided that the show is not going to be political moving forward so that he doesn’t get in trouble with the Orange in Charge.
“Our show’s never really been that political,” Fallon said on CNBC’s Squawk on the Street. “We hit both sides equally, and we try to make everybody laugh, and that’s really the way our show really works. Our monologues are kind of the same that we’ve been doing since Johnny Carson was doing The Tonight Show.“
Sure, Johnny Carson was not an overtly political person but you also have to remember that politics at that time were not messing with Free Speech. But hey, if you want to be a coward, Jimmy… He went on to say “Really, I just keep my head down and make sure the jokes are funny. I have great writers, clever, smart writers. We’re just trying to make the best show we possibly can and entertain everybody.”
It is pathetic and weak
There is no “on the one hand” about this situation. Fallon is being weak about this. Putting your head down when our right to Free Speech is being tested is not a “brave” move. You spoke up for two seconds when Kimmel was suspended and then Donald Trump said he was coming for you and you folded?
Now, I do recognize that Fallon was never the political one. When he was on Weekend Update with Tina Fey, she was the political one in the way that Seth Meyers was with Amy Poehler. The difference is that Amy Poehler did show her stance in politics with shows like Parks and Recreation and she speaks up when she needs to. Fallon, clearly, does not.
Unfortunately, we no longer live in a world where you can be apolitical. Silence means allowing the Trump administration to take away our rights. So laying low so you can play silly games with celebrities and pretend like you’ve seen their work, Fallon, is disgraceful.
He has never been the best in late night but it is sad that he’s probably going to be the one who lasts the longest because he’d rather be a coward and refuse to speak up than actually stand up and do something. I love that Meyers, Kimmel, and Colbert are not holding back and I wish we weren’t watching the time tick down on Colbert’s time. Because that ticking clock should belong to Fallon.
Remaining almost neutral helps no one, Jimmy Fallon, and you’re part of the problem.
(featured image: NBC)
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