Viewers of this year’s Oscars ceremony who were unfamiliar with the work of Seth MacFarlane were probably shocked or even offended by some of the host’s irreverent and off-color attempts at humor. In particular, many Jews were outraged by the scripted comedy routine in which the animated teddy bear “Ted” (whose voice is spoken by MacFarlane) told actor Mark Wahlberg that “if you want to work in this town” you had to be Jewish. The bear went on to say that his claim of Jewish identity and contributions to Israel might earn him a private plane after the next “secret synagogue” meeting. These lines earned MacFarlane a stiff rebuke from the Anti-Defamation League, which inveighed against the use of age-old anti-Jewish stereotypes even if the intent was purely humorous.
But the problem with any such complaint, even one as measured as that of the ADL, is that in contemporary American popular culture ethnic and religious slurs, such as those that are spewed on MacFarlane’s long-running animated show “Family Guy,” are par for the course. Anyone who watches that show knows that its author will make fun of any individual or group in pursuit of a cheap or even clever jibe. The whole point of “Family Guy” is to push beyond every conceivable boundary in an effort to lay all our foibles, prejudices and even sacred beliefs bare in order to laugh at them. Any outrage directed at him, no matter how egregious his jokes might be, merely serves his purpose. Remonstrating with MacFarlane about his insensitivity and bad taste just makes the complainer sound like a whiny fool whose feathers ought to be ruffled.
Thus, the ADL will probably garner more brickbats than applause for criticizing the routine. But the ADL nevertheless had a point about the audience for the show that goes to the heart of the problem.
The group acknowledged that “insiders at the Oscars” knew the joke “should not be taken seriously.” Many viewers would point out that the definition of “insiders” should be expanded to mean anyone in the television audience who was familiar with the popular comedian’s work. That means most Americans got the joke and realized it was not to be taken any more seriously than his song about which actresses had exposed their breasts in their movies.
It may be hard for us to accept the idea that nasty stereotypes such as those uttered by “Ted” are just jokes. In fact, they aren’t–and can help spread the lethal virus of anti-Semitism. However, in the context of an America in which the barriers to Jewish achievement that were once both widespread and impenetrable are gone, it might be possible to treat the old “Jews control Hollywood” meme as merely humor when performed in such a manner as to lampoon hate.
But the problem here is that the Oscars show is viewed by more than a billion people around the world. While the abuse hurled at Jews and other groups in a “Family Guy” episode isn’t worth complaining about, the same thing must be understood differently when placed in the context of international opinion.
As the U.S. State Department noted last year in its annual report, anti-Semitism is on the rise around the globe. Crude and hateful traditional stereotypes about Jews mixed with anti-Israel propaganda are gaining more of an audience throughout the globe. Jew-hatred has become a principle export of the Arab and Muslim world, and Europe is seeing a revival of anti-Semitism that has not been seen on such a scale since the Nazi era. Just as they were once singled out for dissenting from the views of the majority about religion, now the Jewish people are once again marked for hatred and violence because of the belief that Israel has no right to exist or to defend itself.
To date, these offensive views are confined to the fever swamps of the far right and the far left in America, though they are gaining a foothold on college campuses with the BDS movement that seeks the destruction of Israel.
But for those inclined to tell the ADL to get a life, it’s important to remember that one of the most-watched television mini-series broadcast in the Muslim world in recent years was based on the premise that The Protocols of the Elders of Zion was real and not an anti-Semitic forgery, and that anticipation is keen for another such show in production that will celebrate a seventh-century genocide of Jews.
That is why MacFarlane’s equal opportunity offender defense of his use of anti-Semitic stereotypes falls flat. Perhaps in a more perfect world, in which such hatreds were just heard on the margins of society, there might really be nothing wrong with poking at these old wounds with the comedian’s sharp stick. But in one where Jew-hatred is the engine driving an international movement whose goal is the elimination of the one Jewish state in the world and the slaughter of its people, the joke doesn’t seem quite so funny.
I'm sorry, Family Guy is an equal opportunity offender? really? have they spoofed Muslims recently? when was the last time there was an anti-Islam episode? n nbut leaving that aside, because we all know that the world is full of cowardly dhimmis who refuse to stand up to Islam… n nJews DO control at least a big old chunk of Hollywood. and as Ben Stein wrote many years ago, we should celebrate that, not run from it. heck YEAH we built Hollywood: that's because we were the only people smart enough to do it!
You're flat out wrong about Family Guy. Go to YouTube and search "Palestinian Alarm Clock" for one example among at least several.
The bear said nothing that wasn't true. Time for American Jews to acknowledge that many of them are part of the Establishment. Read "An Empire of Their Own."
Really? There are "secret synagogue" meetings for making large contributions to Israel? Please, tell me about the you vile anti-semite.
it wasn't intended to be exactly "true" — more along the lines of Eddy Murphys' White Like Me sketch….
I had no idea who McFarlane is, never watched "Family Guy", and only knew "Ted" from the ads for the film. Most of McFarlane's jokes were not funny, but this bit was so "Protocols", well, shame on the Academy. n nGood thing the world now thinks Ben Affleck is manic…
I think the answer to those who say, lighten up, is to ask whether McFarlane or anyone on the Oscars would joke about well-known stereotypes applied to Black people. Fat chance. n nBy the way, though, the thing about the Oscars being watched by a billion people is a silly loose claim made by the Academy based on the fact that it's available on various cable channels globally. Whether anyone actually watches it in Egypt or India is anyone's guess. The actual audience, as measured by Nielsen, was 40.3 million.
Actually, there is a lot of racial stereotype jokes on Family Guy. I don't know how many black people actually watch the show, but I do know black comedians like Dave Chapelle have been making stereotype jokes acceptable, and the other writer on the show was white (and little seen). The audience seems to accept racial jokes but only when not given by a white male. Louis CK (a white male) got a lot of flak for his use of racial slurs. Seth still hides behind his animations to say racially inflammatory things. n nThe two things to be pointed out is the religious double standard rulieg pointed out that they rarely go after Muslims (except the occasional South Park / Sacha Baron Cohen toe dip into the genre). n nAnd the second thing is that Seth McFarlane really goes after women. My wife really thinks he's a woman hating homosexual in the same vein as Clive Barker.
Jews 'rule Hollywood, finance & the world? n nGood, be proud! n nIf 15 million Jews can do all that, what does this say about the other 7 billion non Jews? n nYou can ONLY be offended if you let yourself to be offended!
A well armed Jew is a much safer Jew
McFarlane regularly traffics in racist, anti-Semitic and frankly vile "humor" (as anyone who's seen the detestable "Family Guy"or "Ted" can attest) but it's all ok because he's a noted liberal and thus he can't possibly really harbor these views. Of course, his defense that he's actually mocking such views rings more than a little hollow.
Very true, why is who says the insult more important than the what the insult was? If Mel Gibson said the same thing as Seth MacFarland would it be funny or acceptable? Who can prove what someone else actually meant when they insult another group? Sorry if you were offended i.e. you cannot take a joke or a looking for victim status. n nBut did not making caricatures of the views of others start with "All in the Family"? If it is acceptable for Norman Lear/Johnny Speight to do well maybe done badly by Seth MacFarland is the price to be paid? What next th KKK sues for libel?
On one hand, I’m sympathetic to the “no big deal” argument.
I mean, c’mon, who HASN’T heard a zillion jokes about old Jews running Hollywood over the years? The reason the jokes were, and still are, made is that there’s truth in them: plenty of old Jews do, in fact, have tremendous power in Hollywood. Acknowledging that– and teasing about it– isn’t subscribing to some “Protocols of the Elders of Zion” insanity.
That said, the larger point about the worldwide audience for the Oscars is important. After all, here in America, we can joke about these sort of things because they don’t matter. We are NOT an anti-Semitic culture here. For the same reason why nobody bats an eye at Polish and Irish jokes anymore here. Alas, the same unfortunately can’t be said about other ethnic groups now-since protected by the PC veil.
But the rest of the world isn’t America. In the rest of the world, there are large pockets of people who *actually believe* this bunk. They don’t recognize the joke.
So… I don’t know, I’m conflicted. It’s bad enough that we have to censor ourselves for fear of offending *other Americans*, now I have to worry that our jokes may make some jidhadi idiots nod their heads and go, “Aha! The Americans finally admit that the Jews are behind everything, we can no bomb Israel!” Riiiight.
Mark Wahlberg: “if you want to work in this town [Hollywood] you have to be JEWISH. Claim of JEWISH identity and contributions to ISRAEL will earn you private plane after your next Secret Synagogue meeting”. The joke is written by a deranged Jew Joker and since Seth MacFarlane Warships Dawkins phallus these lines earned MacFarlane stiff rebuke from Anti-Defamation League, which inveighed against use of age-old anti-Jewish stereotypes even if the intent was purely humorous. Hollywood Israelifirsters lost their mind. They wanted to exploit Oscar headlines even its too silly, stooopid and Semitic.
I do not watch TV, so no comment on the Oscars in particular. However, I just watched "The Inquisition" take by Mel Brooks (History of the World). Funny? How about Borat? We usually accept Jews making fun of Jews, but are sceptical when non-Jews (dare I say Goim) do. Do Italians get upset when they are pictured as pasta munching mafiosos? Bet the Germans loved Hogan's Heroes. I consider some Jewish jokes funny, some not, some anti-semitic. As the saying goes. I know it when I see it.
The jokes that Jews tell about Jews (or about Judaism) tend to have a very different focus and a very different tone than the jokes the non-Jews tell about those subjects. I have yet to hear a Jewish joke told by Jews to Jews whose theme is that Jews as a group are stingy, or cheap, or that Jews conspire against gentiles, or that Judaism is inferior to the Christian religion.