Your thoughts on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

[Parasondox]

Oh, I'm not going to kill ya. I'm just going to hurt you really... really... bad. NOW PULL MY FINGER!!!

I was sad when he left the Daily Show and I know he would have been Jon Stewart's replacement but man is he good. Why was he not appreciated more in the UK, unless he was. Only saw him on Mock The Week a few times.

However, this isn't about the host but the show itself. In the last three episodes they have brought up some very eye opening issues that would often be ignored by TV media or just brushed aside. Internet abuse, Trangender and Stadiums. Yes, stadiums. Actually, nearly all of his episodes have been eye opening to me as someone who isn't in the US and may I add...

People of the USA. How do you do it? How do you put up with so much shit and nonsense from those up top. I mean, yeah I know no country is perfect but for a first world country, doesn't that just push you over the edge? I thought the UK had it bad. Okay, we do but not over the top bad. Okay maybe in certain parts of the country but you get my point.

I am babbling on here sorry.

Main point or TL;DR, what are your thoughts on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. If you haven't seen a segment yet, here is their YouTube homepage. Sorry if it is unavailable in certain countries.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3XTzVzaHQEd30rQbuvCtTQ

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

He's very...scattered. Like his staff appears to be very good at research and getting to the bottom of things, but then he does episodes on like online harassment or Scottish Independence and its way more a personal rant than investigative journalism.

I mean fuck he used Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming and that GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming. And you really have to try to come to those opinion. Like you have to ignore a lot of facts.

So I'm guessing one of his staff volunteered to "research" the episode, no one questioned, and this staffer just got to use the show as his personal pulpit.

Outside of that, yeah I like his show. Wish it wasn't just on once a week, but its fine for what it is.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

...but then he does episodes on like online harassment or Scottish Independence and its way more a personal rant than investigative journalism.

I mean fuck he used Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming and that GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming. And you really have to try to come to those opinion. Like you have to ignore a lot of facts.

And the over-under ended up being two posts.

Here's the piece on harassment, where he briefly mentions Sarkeesian and Wu, and doesn't mention GG at all.


So this...

Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming

And this...

GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming

Are not things he actually asserted. In fact, he even phrased it as such...

"...when they spoke out against what they saw as sexism in the gaming industry..."

The words "noble and proud" were never used. GamerGate was never name checked, nor characterized as "an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming". You literally made that up out of whole cloth.

I'll say it again, if anyone ever wanted to know what confirmation bias looks like, this is how it's done. Selectively interpret information to fit a preferred narrative, and if it doesn't fit, either ignore it, or change it to make it fit.

Main point or TL;DR, what are your thoughts on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

It's a decent show. Quality edu-tainment. No one should confuse it with rigorous investigative journalism or hard news, but it's mildly informative and generally quite funny. And he does a good job finding topics to comb over.

His Snowden interview was particularly good, I thought.

Spoiler

 

[renegade7]

I mean fuck he used Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming and that GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming. And you really have to try to come to those opinion. Like you have to ignore a lot of facts.

The episode in question was more about the complete inability of the law to handle crimes committed mainly online like revenge porn, character attacks, and harassment. The main subject of that segment was a female English professor whose ex-boyfriend used naked pictures of her to create a profile on a porn site where he also posted her address and work phone and email along with suggestions that she would have sex for money. She went on to explain that there was no legal recourse for her, and that the only way the law could act to take the site down was with a DMCA claim that would require her sending nude photos of herself to the copyright office and file a court case, and the media response turned out to be mocking amusement that she had taken the pictures of herself in the first place (because, you know, why should you expect the law to protect you from creepy sickos trying to ruin your life?). You have to admit that it's a bit ridiculous that it's not only difficult to prosecute an invasion of privacy like that, but in most states it is not even illegal because it hasn't been brought up in the legislature.

Sarkeesian was on screen to give a sound byte for about 4 seconds, and video gaming culture had approximately 30 seconds of attention. Gamergate, nor anything related to Gamergate, was not mentioned or even hinted at, nor was anything said about video gaming culture in particular, other than that they were two among many individuals who had been prominent subjects of online harassment. It did not promote their perspective at all.

 

[Queen Michael]

I'm a casual fan. When somebody posts a link I'll watch it.

 

[Fappy]

...but then he does episodes on like online harassment or Scottish Independence and its way more a personal rant than investigative journalism.

I mean fuck he used Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming and that GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming. And you really have to try to come to those opinion. Like you have to ignore a lot of facts.

And the over-under ended up being two posts.

Here's the piece on harassment, where he briefly mentions Sarkeesian and Wu, and doesn't mention GG at all.


So this...

Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming

And this...

GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming

Are not things he actually asserted. In fact, he even phrased it as such...

"...when they spoke out against what they saw as sexism in the gaming industry..."

The words "noble and proud" were never used. GamerGate was never name checked, nor characterized as "an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming". You literally made that up out of whole cloth.

I'll say it again, if anyone ever wanted to know what confirmation bias looks like, this is how it's done. Selectively interpret information to fit a preferred narrative, and if it doesn't fit, either ignore it, or change it to make it fit.

Yeah but anything that doesn't give GG a thorough tongue bath is going to be demonised. Even if it doesn't actually attack it in any way.

I knew going into this thread that it would be tainted by GG nonsense. This is why we can't have nice things

OT: I was proud of myself after watching the Trans episode. I already knew everything he discussed!

 

[TakerFoxx]

Well, I don't have television, so I can't watch him regularly, but I will say this much: his episode on the death penalty was what finally got me to change my views on the subject when Key and Peele's episode on the same subject actually sort of made me support it more out of spite.

 

[Parasondox]

He's very...scattered. Like his staff appears to be very good at research and getting to the bottom of things, but then he does episodes on like online harassment or Scottish Independence and its way more a personal rant than investigative journalism.

I mean fuck he used Anita Sarkessian as an example of a noble and proud woman in gaming and that GamerGate was just an online harassment campaign to get women out of gaming. And you really have to try to come to those opinion. Like you have to ignore a lot of facts.

So I'm guessing one of his staff volunteered to "research" the episode, no one questioned, and this staffer just got to use the show as his personal pulpit.

Outside of that, yeah I like his show. Wish it wasn't just on once a week, but its fine for what it is.

Gamergate was never even mentioned and Anita was only mentioned for a few seconds as an example of online harassment. I really don't want any Gamergate crap in the thread and making false claims by not really listening to the video is a bit much.

 

[Andy Shandy]

Any episode I've seen has been pretty great, although being outwith the US, trying to watch it can be a bit of a pain at times.

He's particularly good at making a variety of topics interesting and engaging to those that may otherwise have not bothered.

 

[doggy go 7]

Any episode I've seen has been pretty great, although being outwith the UK, trying to watch it can be a bit of a pain at times.

I watch it through [link]https://uk.proxfree.com/permalink.php?url=s54aaHA%2FaGsaD5vHs0QZLcUclS%2FcUxrnNZwEMCiA0I83otqjZrxs934yCWvTygn7r%2FGYu72lghxjT8wSfnKdoiTkSO8Ye0Z1S8rKJEzczYuaUpEiFT1A6UleR6o6xRfm&bit=1[/link] which seems to work consistently (sorry, for the long link, I can't remember how to do the hyyperlink with one word thing)

I love Jon Oliver, even when he's not doing LWT (he's great on community), and I'm pretty much always on his side. Even if he does claim to be a comedian rather than a journalist, I think what he's doing is really important in brining up stupid but not well reported subjects to light (which makes him different to Stuert, who does pure satire of the main headlines, equally important and funny, but in different ways).

 

[visiblenoise]

He may sound British, but the delivery seems very American to me.

He always makes sense, but I don't find the show especially funny.

Those are two separate points, I'm just saying he's both American in delivery and underwhelming in humorousness.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

I've been enjoying the series up until the last couple episodes.

It seems there's been something of a...tonal shift? I guess? Like a couple different writers or something. Probably just my own biases creeping in and altering my perception of things.

*shrug*

I'll keep watching it and selectively ignore bits, just like I've kind of had to do with Colbert and the Daily Show in recent years. Perhaps I'm just getting less 'left' as I'm aging? Not really sure that's the case. I've maintained the same overall outlook since my late teens/early twenties, when I adored these guys.

Maybe the goal posts are just moving?
Maybe I'm a bit more disinclined to believe what I'm told by shows I like?

Man, college-age days were so much simpler. D:

Oh, and OP?

We don't really have much choice. Unless several hundred thousand of us march on something or *****, en masse, online, not much gets done...and even then, they can just ignore whatever is said or placate until the rabble dies down.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

It seems there's been something of a...tonal shift? I guess? Like a couple different writers or something.

Online Harassment and Transgender issues?

Can you give me an example of the tonal shift you're referring to? Or what was presented that you disagreed with?

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

I really liked the transgender issues episode and I like John Oliver as a person, even if I often disagree with him.

Seriously that first bit on the trans issues episode, where he talked about why it's wrong to talk about a trans persons genitals was a really important point:

Spoiler: I'll just leave this here

Edit: That's basically the only one so far I've really bothered to watch all the way through. He seems to approach issues in a rather unbiased way. Still I lack HBO at the moment and kind of can't be bothered to watch his stuff.

 

[Robert B. Marks]

Personally, I love the show. My wife and I consider it required viewing on Sunday nights.

It's not the easiest thing to be thought provoking and gut-bustingly funny at the same time, but Oliver manages it with panache. Absolutely love it, and can't wait to see what he comes up with next.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

Online Harassment and Transgender issues?

Can you give me an example of the tonal shift you're referring to? Or what was presented that you disagreed with?

Not sure how I can quantify this is any way you'd care about or find reasonable.

The subject matter is the most glaring change to me, sliding away from general issues/unfair laws/horrible business practices and more into social justice territory. The tone seems (note the word, completely subjective here) more biting as well; less funny mockery, more "don't agree? fuck you."

Again, likely just my biases creeping in or I'm misremembering segments. I'm not saying THIS IS HAPPENING AND IS HOW IT IS or anything, mind, thus all the "seems" and question marks.

 

[KyuubiNoKitsune-Hime]

Online Harassment and Transgender issues?

Can you give me an example of the tonal shift you're referring to? Or what was presented that you disagreed with?

Not sure how I can quantify this is any way you'd care about or find reasonable.

The subject matter is the most glaring change to me, sliding away from general issues/unfair laws/horrible business practices and more into social justice territory. The tone seems (note the word, completely subjective here) more biting as well; less funny mockery, more "don't agree? fuck you."

Again, likely just my biases creeping in or I'm misremembering segments. I'm not saying THIS IS HAPPENING AND IS HOW IT IS or anything, mind, thus all the "seems" and question marks.

As far as I can tell he's getting a bit more targeted on subjects, which is a rather natural direction for edu-tainment shows, you can't stay general forever.

On the topic of the former episode, if you're not in the trans community, it can be almost impossible to see the issues we face. People discriminating against us with general hostility/trying to pass unfair laws/using horrible business practices against us. So it's still rather the same just a bit more targeted here.

I'll have to watch the Online Harassment one to see if it's all social justic heavy.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Not sure how I can quantify this is any way you'd care about or find reasonable.

Wasn't laying an ambush for you Gryphon, just was genuinely curious.

I hadn't seen the Death Penalty one (and quite a few others) and I've been marathoning them all morning. I also re-watched the online harassment one before replying to Pony to make sure there weren't any GG jabs I'd failed to remember.

I find the tone of the show virtually identical from episode to episode, which is unsurprising given it's only been on the air for a year, and shows generally experience tonal drift over a significant period of time. I was just curious if you could give me specific examples of what you were finding problematic so I could see where you were coming from.