As political talk shows continue to remain the staple of cable news channels, the industry’s habit of imitation and saturation has begun to manifest itself. Shows that feature angry political pundits and their theatrically played out viewpoints are gaining loyal audiences and respectable ratings, which signal to programmers that viewers don’t want to watch a civilized debate where all sides can be heard. The formula of raging political pundits whose egocentric opinions refuse to give any ground to that of a differing one has turned the format of political talk into useless, noisy rhetoric, and the concept of verbal compromise has vanished.
Amid the flood of such shows remains a select few that have either refused to adapt to the concept of dramatized debate or have strived for originality in an attempt to create their own identity. Some are better known than others, but one, HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” stands in front in terms of bi-partisan representation and entertainment value. Maher, a Libertarian atheist, strict vegan and advocate for the legalization of drugs, will always struggle for legitimacy because of his roots as a stand-up comedian and his radical viewpoints. Yet, for all the farfetched proposals of congressional reform, law legislation and negative sentiment of organized religion, it is Maher who regularly features guests from all sides of the topic being discussed.
The assembly of comedic monologues and sketches combined with panel discussions consisting of A-list celebrities, authors, politicians and professors create an original format for a diverse environment of open forum discussion. On any given show, three guests of vastly different frameworks and lifestyles come together to talk about contemporaneous issues. One such example is an episode that featured guests like comedian/actor and star of “Law and Order: SVU” Richard Belzer, a liberal strongly opposed to the Iraq war, Irshad Manji, a Canadian Muslim and lesbian who has authored books on women’s rights in the Middle East and is for the Iraq war, and long-time conservative Democrat Barney Frank (D-MA). Combine these guests with Maher’s unique perspectives and an entertaining, funny and well-balanced debate ensues over issues that the viewers are familiar with.
What truly separates Maher from other hosts is that he routinely tells his audiences to shut the hell up and listen. Often on political talk shows, a conservative will be reluctant to appear on a show with a liberal host and a loud and applause ready liberal audience and vice-versa. This one-sided atmosphere poses an intimidating environment for someone with a vastly different viewpoint to truly feel comfortable in expressing themselves. Regardless of whether Maher agrees with the guest or not, he gives them the respect they deserve by regularly reaming out an overtly aggressive audience or guest. While the satirical genius of “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” continues to merge politics and comedy in harmony, the liberal bias of the clap-happy audience makes it difficult to hear out what a conservative guest has to offer. The same holds true for Bill O’Reilly’s “The O’Reilly Factor,” where a liberal is often granted a three-minute token speech and then subjected to a 57-minute onslaught of conservative values from O’Reilly.
The medium on which Maher’s show is presented also supplies him with more freedom to debate issues that network and broadcast shows won’t touch or will but are forced to sidestep around FCC regulations of verbal content. Because HBO is a premium service that requires a subscription fee, it is not subjected to the government pressure of self-censorship and the FCC influence of that of a broadcast or cable show. Guests occasionally use profanity, something people off the camera do every minute of every day. Pictures or news clips of a particularly grotesque nature are allowed to be presented if it is deemed necessary in presenting a story. Most refreshing of all, topics that are either off-limits or taboo to other shows are presented in an informative manner. Subject matter such as questioning religion, obesity and nutrition in America and the faults of both Republicans and Democrats have been outlined in previous episodes.
Verbal exchange, as opposed to stubborn rants of egocentric tirades, is the key to understanding each other. With a country that is divided in half on political ideology and a TV industry that forces programs to align itself to a particular bias, HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” gives all points of view the access they deserve. A comedian with an English major from Cornell University, Maher discusses politics more fairly and entertainingly than any supposed journalist or political personality in the media today.
Who could have thought that a libertarian atheist that looks like a koala bear could be the TV’s voice of reason?
Rick is a junior majoring in radio/TV/film. He would like to thank all 14 or so of his loyal readers for going along with the charade of laughing at or critically examining the field of media arts. Rick can be reached at [email protected].
