Seinfeld Smackdown
If you ever start wondering why there are so many specialized comedy blogs like this one out there, allow Jerry Seinfeld to explain the need to a mainstream journalist:
“Americans, when they write about comedy, they just try to remember the jokes, and then they mangle them and misquote them and print them,” he said. “And it’s like, ‘Well, what did you think?’
“… So it’s like, why are you hired to watch a comedian if all you’re going to try and do is transcribe what they say?” he asked. “It’s a complete abdication of any creative writing, which is what I thought you were hired for at the paper.
It’s part of a rather embarassing read courtesy of the Seattle Times. Winner of eight Pulitzers. Not for their comedy reporting.
About the Author
Sharilyn Johnson is the author of the book Bears & Balls: The Colbert Report A-Z. Called "one of the city’s most discriminating comedy critics” by NOW Magazine, Sharilyn has been covering comedy for longer than she cares to admit. She served as the comedy reporter for Winnipeg's Uptown Magazine for five years, and was the host of the radio show Laugh Tracks for three seasons. Her work has also appeared in the Toronto Star, the Winnipeg Free Press, The Apiary, and on CBC Radio's national comedy programs LOL and Definitely Not the Opera.
