Cancel Culture Boomerang
We’re concerned about the stifling of voices deemed inappropriate by the corporate masters who control social media and the like. There has been a considerable muzzling of conservatives and of pro-Trump folks…to the point that some people have lost their jobs or book deals, and companies find retailers refusing to stock their products any more.
Now, the first example of a boomerang…someone espousing liberal views perhaps losing a TV gig because of it.
Katie Couric got a lot of attention for telling TV host Bill Maher that “the question is how are we going to really almost deprogram these people who have signed up for the cult of Trump”.
Many on the left praised her for wisdom and courage for the statement. But not everyone was impressed.
Witness the producers of the venerable game show “Jeopardy!”, which is playing out the balance of this season with a series of celebrity guest hosts, in the wake of the passing of long-time quizmaster Alex Trebek. Couric was announced as one of the upcoming hosts, something many saw as an audition for the full-time gig…and only a few days later, made the “cult of Trump” comment.
The show’s producers are now evaluating whether it’s such a good idea to put Couric on, even for a week. A newspaper report quotes a source close to the show as saying, “Jeopardy viewers are quite a traditional bunch, and there’s fears she might be too polarizing after this.” Apparently complaints have already come from long-time viewers, who were used to the show steering far away from politics. And the same source says even if they do allow her to host for a week…she “appears to have ruled herself out of becoming the permanent host”.
I’ve never been a fan of people losing their jobs over their beliefs. The remedy for such things is not to shut anyone up, but rather allow all voices to be heard so truth can rise to the top.
But at the very least, this may show that tolerance is not such a bad thing…and if it takes the threat of shutting a liberal voice down to allow more conservative voices to be heard again…that might be the best final “Jeopardy!” answer of all.
