Say No to Sycophantism

James Poniewozik over at his Time magazine blog hits the nail right on the head with his analysis of Stephen Colbert's performance at the White House Correspondent Association's Dinner last Saturday. Money quote:

"To the audience that would watch Colbert on Comedy Central, the pained, uncomfortable, perhaps-a-little-scared-to-laugh reaction shots were not signs of failure. They were the money shots. They were the whole point. "

http://time.blogs.com/tuned_in/2006/05/stephen_colbert.html

While Richard Cohen completely misses the point:

"Self-mockery can be funny. Mockery that is insulting is not. The sort of stuff that would get you punched in a bar can be said on a dais with impunity. This is why Colbert was more than rude. He was a bully."

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2006/05/colbert_wasnt_funny.html