Conservative media criticized Stephen Colbert for his jokes about Trump.

Today in Conservative Media: No Fans of Stephen Colbert

Today in Conservative Media: No Fans of Stephen Colbert

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May 3 2017 5:12 PM

Today in Conservative Media: No Fans of Stephen Colbert

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Stephen Colbert.

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A daily roundup of the biggest stories in right-wing media.

In his monologue on Monday night, Stephen Colbert repeatedly insulted President Donald Trump, describing him as “a sign language gorilla” and suggesting that his “mouth is only good for being Vladimir Putin’s cock holster.” Conservative media isn’t psyched.

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Breitbart asked, “Advertiser Friendly?” While the article itself didn’t directly answer that question—offering little more than quotations from the host’s monologue—it did conclude by suggesting that Colbert had been attacking Trump for attention. “Colbert has ramped up his attacks on the president as his show has seen a steady rise in the ratings since Inauguration Day,” the site wrote. Breitbart also featured a short post describing quarterback Joe Namath’s assertion that the monologue was “not cool” and that he “didn’t like it at all.”

Independent Journal Review rounded up a few reactions to Colbert’s jokes, noting, “Some pointed out that similar jokes about former President Barack Obama wouldn't be received as well.” LifeZette took a similar approach in its criticism of the “cock holster” line. It added, “To top it off, any conservative or right-of-center comedian making such a joke would be accused of homophobia—a criticism the media likely won’t throw Colbert’s way, since he says ‘all the right things’ politically, as far as they’re concerned.” (Some on the left did criticize the line.)

Noting that some social media users were mobilizing around the hashtag #firecolbert, LifeZette acknowledged, “Despite the outrage, Colbert will likely escape all of this unscathed.” Where LifeZette seemed vaguely disappointed by that, the Daily Caller’s Jim Treacher was dismissive of the whole affair, calling the campaign to get rid of Colbert “pretty dumb” and arguing that objectionable remarks from celebrities like Colbert actually helped get Trump elected by driving undecided voters away from the Democrats. “My rule of thumb is: Liberals want conservatives to shut up, and conservatives want liberals to keep talking,” Treacher wrote.

An article on Fox News’ website connected Colbert’s monologue to Jimmy Kimmel’s “heartfelt and very personal comments about health care access” on his own show. “[W]ill the attention cost Kimmel and Colbert some fans? Or will they have the last laugh?” the article asked. Ultimately, it proposed that the late-night television landscape was shifting toward partisanship.

Meanwhile, in National Review, Michelle Malkin had some strong words for Kimmel, telling him, “I feel your pain. But please use your brain.” Calling Kimmel “hysterical,” she suggested that his family situation had little bearing on national healthcare policy.

On Facebook, a “FreedomWorks” post characterizing Hillary Clinton as out of touch spread widely: