What's going on with Bill Mahr?

[blindpig]

Last night he announced that he was making an effort to attract a conservative audience. Why should he make such a statement, why not just do it?

Last night's show was as unfunny as the previous week's was funny. Don't believe Gannon was even mentioned last night. Did he touch a Nerve last week? Has he received a Message? He's been taken off the air before.

Mr. Mahr is certainly not obliged to present an antibu$h pov but it's easy and it works. We provided enough market share to keep his boat afloat. I don't think he'll get far with the wingers as long as he's making in your face atheist statements. Guess he just wants to hang on to that big paycheck as long as possible. Guess we'll see a lot of Kid Rock and PJ O'Rourke in the near future.

The ONLY thing I look at on tv is going south. Oh well. At least I'll be consistent again.

[ladjf]

1. Mahr is a lightweight who has succeeded in the TV business

to a level beyond what his lack of talent should have dictated.

[stanwyck]

2. And, yet

compared to Colin Quinn, the man is a genius.
Mahr wants to be Jon Stewart. He's just missing the intellect, charm, and amazing staff. Stewart is able to host conservatives without being a sellout to his own beliefs or being rude. He gets his point across in a subtle way while keeping the respect of his guests. Mahr is too full of himself. He needs to quit thinking about what his next zinger is going to be and listen to what others are saying. Plus, his new straddling the fence demeanor just alienates everyone.

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Stewart has such an amazing personality.

You know that man's I.Q. is off the charts, but he never comes across as conceded or arrogant. Maher on the other hand isn't someone I'd consider friendly and it's obvious he's squeezing every one hundredths out of his magic number.

[fujiyama]

24. Well said

Maher is one conceited SOB.

I still find him amusing (I enjoy his rants on the religious right), but I've always found him pretty shallow and superficial.

Stewart has a wit that probably no one else on TV posesses currently (maybe with the exception of Olberman). He is the epitome of modern political satire. Maher is a hack compared to Stewart.

[Seabiscuit]

17. Mahr personifies the "Peter Principle"

In the corporate structure of TV entertainment, he's risen to his level of incompetence.

[GR]

4. Last Week's Show Was Bad Too...Except For The Gannon Part

It looks to me like Bill is going the way of the once great Dennis Miller. I'm not sure why he's doing it...Could it be $$$$$$$ or is he really that dumb.

It seems to me that Maher may have lost some good writers too as his stuff was trite and hackneyed, I thought, when it used to be sharp and brilliant. His purile ridicule of the Muslim religion, "women in bee keepers outfits" and "draping a towel over their heads" was really ignorant and demeaning...I don't like religion much either, but making fun of religious dress is brainless and unfunny except to religious bigots.

His comments that he now likes the Bush approach of "spreading democracy" although he didn't like all the lies and stupidity earlier is morally bankrupt. The ends do not justify the means Bill...Screw your head on straight. You don't just say "oh never mind" for the lies and purposeful deceit which cost thousands of lives and even more thousands of mutilations. His ignorance of the 100k civilian deaths and assertion that that was probably, with no proof, par for the course with Saddam was another dumb remark...And the so-called "free" elections weren't free at all and do not by the farthest stretch of the imagination make Iraq "democratic"

[blindpig]

9. such a change in direction

compared to the run up to the election. Admittedly I've only watched for about the past year, upon recommendation of folks in this forum. Just seems very abrupt considering the happy time he was having with Gannon last week.

As an environmentalist I should know better than to put any faith in a Libertarian.

[mark414]

5. that's bill

bill is more of a libertarian than anything, he's even said so himself, so i guess we can't always be happy with what he says

still better than most other things on television

[GR]

10. How Is It Libertarian To Illegally Invade A Country On The Wings Of Lies..

is that what libertarians are about...I think not...he's acting whorish...that's all there is to it...

[mark414]

12. that's not what i said

or rather, what i meant

what i meant was, you aren't going to agree with people 100% of the time and to expect perfection from anyone is to expect disappointment

bill is bill, you are you

that's all

[Seabiscuit]

18. I think Mahr's only a "libertarian" when it comes to legalizing pot.

On any other issue he's a self-contradicting ignoramus.

[B Calm]

6. I watched about half his show last night & changed channels. He

is slowly turning into another right wing whore. It really sickens me, because I always enjoyed listening to his rants.

[JitterbugPerfume]

7. Better than most things on TV

is faint praise

[GR]

11. Yes It Was Bad...Not Even Funny At All...Weak Writing Too...

nfm

[Dirty Hippie]

13. I Agree

I turned it off after a few minutes when I found myself agreeing more with Tucked Carlson than Maher. Yuk!

[terrya]

8. Maybe his bestest buddy Ann Coulter is convincing him.

:shrug:

[Taverner]

14. Maybe he thinks he'll actually get lucky with her

If he goes neocon...

He should know by now - the only way to score with a neocon is to go head to head, pummel them into the dirt and make them cry. They like that kind of abuse.

[Seabiscuit]

19. You know you can't trust a guy who calls Coulter his "good friend".

[terrya]

20. He says that once you get past her politics, she's apparently just swell.

But since she's so upfront about the political stuff, it's probably a bit difficult to see this "nice" Ann Coulter Maher is referring to.

[Seabiscuit]

21. I think they're both just potheads.

Mahr touts the stuff, Coulter's mumm in public on the subject, but when they get together in private to share a bong she probably begins to lose control and say stuff like: "Hey, Bill... wanna see how deep my throat really is? My adam's apple works like a 'snapper'!"

[xmas74]

22. I remember seeing

Ann Coulter on a VH1 show called (I had to look it up) My Coolest Years. She confesses to being in high school, as she put it, "a dirty, potsmoking hippie".
Maybe she is now teaching Bill a thing or two.

[Seabiscuit]

25. Yeah... that huge adam's apple's got to be good for *something*!

[Seabiscuit]

26. I was never ashamed of graduating from New Canaan High School

in New Canaan, Conn. until I read that Ann Coulter did too - I don't even know if she was born by the time I graduated, though. When I was in high school no one was smoking pot. It hit the college campuses in my junior year.

[xmas74]

27. I feel sorry for you.

I hope that the school does not brag about her being an alumni. It would just bring the entire school down.

[Seabiscuit]

31. I have the feeling the school is ashamed of her.

She's such a fraud, and it was such liberal school with a proud academic tradition. Hell, just the two different drivers' licenses she possessed would be enough for students there to tar and feather her. She may brag about graduating there, but I can't imagine that school wanting anything to do with her.

[xmas74]

33. She needs to be shunned!

[XanaDUer]

15. I saw that, too

and I hardly ever watch that show. He just lost this liberal on that one.

[Az]

16. Got to be careful about placing comedians on pedestals

Maher makes his living critiquing politicians. His sense and criticism is aimed at the absurdities of power. Its quite easy to take it to conservatives. Thus most comedians target them. Taking the steam out of someone that fights for the little person is much more difficult. Thus the left does not catch the brunt of humor.

But what this tells us of the political comedians sensibility is not that they support left leaning ideologies. It tells us that they favor criticizing power. And this is more in keeping with libertarian thinking.

The political comedian sees themself as the outsider. Taking sides doesn't come to their mind. Where ever they see a puffed shirt or a enlarged ego they will take a shot at it. Too often we project our hopes and ideologies onto these individuals in the belief that their wit speaks for our concerns. And then when that wit turns on us we feel betrayed. But it was never truly on our side. It has always been on the side of deflating ego.

[Rhiannon12866]

23. I missed last week's, dammit all. I did hear that it was very good

And I was anxious to hear how he'd handle this Gannon-Guckert thing, since Bill Maher, more than anyone else, like Jon Stewart and Keith Olbermann, for example, tends to just go way over the top. But, this week, there was just a passing remark in his monologue. I was totally prepared to be pissed off by Tucker Carlson, who i can't stand, but he was actually pretty reasonable, for a change. But it wasn't a particularly amusing program, and he totally lost control of it and never got it back. As for attracting a more conservative audience, why? There are plenty of shows just for them already on the air!:shrug:

[iamjoy]

28. Read This Article

it's his rant about free speech, published in some of the Tribune papers. Utterly hysterical, makes his point and even gets in a dig at Fox News:

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/orl-edpmaher23022305feb23,1,1850027.story

As for Maher's friendship with Ann Coulter, people of different political persuasions CAN be friends - I know Coulter can be quite vitriolic in her rants, but I just don't think Maher takes all of it seriously (more fool him).

I don't understand why people persist in sticking the "liberal" label on Maher. What, if you don't spout the Bush admin talking points you are liberal? As for us true liberals, lets not judge him too hastily, just because some one has a contrasting viewpoint does not make him a Dennis Miller Conservative Whore SellOut

I do agree that Maher, although entertaining to watch, can't hold a candle to Jon Stewart

[GCP]

29. Stephanie Tubbs Jones was an idiot

When she tried to defend the Muslim practice of not shaking a woman's hand. She was bending over backwards to be policitically correct. When Carlson called her on it she dug herself in deeper and deeper.

[Rhiannon12866]

32. I know. I didn't get that, either.

I actually found myself agreeing with Tucker Carlson!:wow:

[Babel_17]

30. The right has nothing comparable and

Maher has, probably correctly, concluded that throwing them a few bones will make his show "the guilty pleasure" and "the show they hate to love" of many of them.

Maher is first most an entertainer and a political activist second.

He has a lot to gain if he follows though with everything implied by his last show. He's already made things a lot easier, politically, for his host HBO with his "reach out".

I found the latest installment much inferior to the one prior.

I was amazed and very puzzled by his words regarding the makeup of his audience.

While Maher has much to gain he also has much to lose. My viewership is no longer a given.

If he makes his show more right wing friendly he had also better start including progressives and liberals who go for the jugular.

I appreciate the name activists he includes on his show but if the format is going to be changed so the right can better represent its voice than Maher had better balance that with debaters from our side who know how to make their points.

I'm seeing hints here of the attitude that destroyed Crossfire on CNN.

The right was getting devastated in the discussions and whined about it.

The show soon after caved in. It became a pitiful mockery of the show that had at one time had some moments that were actually worthy of ones time.

HBO needs some mail.

[atommom]

34. I was puzzled by his desire for a conservative audience too.

Did Annie refuse to come back to the show until the audience shaped up? Bill's not really a liberal, but his brand of humor is more palatable to liberals than conservatives. The conservatives, after all, are such easy targets for comedians these days. The material almost writes itself.

Speaking of writing, I agree that it seems to have gone downhill. He seems to be recycling old material now. (I've heard the "beekeeper suits" line so many times now ... and it wasn't even that good the first time!) :eyes: