#Trending....

A couple of days ago I noticed that Ann Coulter was trending on a social media page.  I have never been a fan of hers on any level, but for some reason I was curious.  So I researched her "hash-tag".

It turned out that the trend was mostly YouTube out takes of comedians taking a shot at her on a Robb Lowe Comedy Central Roast.  The civility level of the "Roast" has sunk to a nasty name calling frenzy with the ability to say anything on cable television.  Even though I think she deserves all she gets, there were clips from the show that made me wince a little.  I couldn't tell from her reactions if she thought they were laughing with her or at her.  It would be hard to tell since the humor was so deeply buried in cruel remarks.  That said, why did she agree to do the show?  She had to know she would be a big target and no one would go easy on her.  It might not have been her worst decision of the evening.

Although the show openly admits the fact that a team of writers will write comedy material for non-comedy performers, Ann chose to write her own comedy material. Not unexpectedly, known for neither her comedy writing nor her ability to deliver a cleverly timed retort, her set bombed. This lack luster performance just gave fuel to those who followed her.  Case in point, one roaster said, "Ann's performance is the first bombing she can't blame on Muslims."

Again I ask, "Why would she agree to do this show?"  I certainly understand why the show would have wanted her to join the festivities.  One of the most hated women in politics with opinions that sound like she studied at the Sarah Palin school of Smarts, she is the perfect comedy target.  I think Ann Coulter is smart enough to know she would not be elected home coming Queen at this event, so why would she agree to stand down range?  

Of course I know the answer, but since it just doesn't compute with my sense of rationale I still don't understand.  Ann is one of those people who think that any publicity is good publicity. If your face is out there, it is always a good thing.  As long as you are #trending it is good.  I just don't agree with that marketing idea.  

In the art world it is not uncommon for someone to be "famous" for being a villain. There are those characters in Drama and Comedy plots where we love to hate the bad guy or gal. But we love to hate the character not the actor.

Ann Coulter is not an artist. She is not a performer. She is most definitely not a comedian.  She is a political pendant making living selling books that berate legislators and governmental philosophy.  She is a hateful person spouting hateful rhetoric to people who can’t think for themselves.  Ann is not playing a character; she is asserting herself as that hateful person.  To dislike what she says is to dislike her.

While other performers like Jewel proved to be more talented than we thought with a well-performed turn, Ann did nothing to increase her likability. In fact Ann Coulter proved how unlikable she is even more.  However, since I have never bothered to even think about her before, I guess she considers this blog good publicity for her. 

Fame is a drug. Like all drugs if you lose control over it and become addicted, it will eventually destroy you.  Fame doesn’t care if you are famous for being the one who discovered the cure for cancer or the very cancer itself.  Hitler enjoys the same level of historic fame, as does Louis Pasteur if name recognition and trending #hashtags are all you consider.  I just don’t understand the idea that any time someone is talking about you it is a good thing.

I don’t know what Ann Coulter got out of being a participant on the Robb Lowe Roast. Perhaps she has skin as thick as her skull and none of the extremely pointed jokes they threw bothered her.  She was called a whore, hell hound, Skinny Bitch, Transvestite and Kentucky Derby winner. One British comic even suggested to her that it was not too late to “kill yourself”. 

The universal rule and cautionary tale is obvious.  Whether it is a pursuit of fame or just trying to market your books, what you give out comes back to you heaped up, shaken down and over-flowing. She has made so many cruel remarks, and spouted so much partisan hatred toward others it was only a matter of time before that spotlight was turned on her.  Her particular payback was delivered by some of the best comedy minds, and performers in the business on a show divorced from FCC regulations.  If there was any question to the fact that Ann Coulter is an intelligent writer, or has any sort of interesting insight, her decision to participate with her own “humor” in a room full of comedy masters, proves she is just a low level egotistical fear monger.  

If this had happened to anyone else but “Coulter” I would be feeling very sorry for her right now.  As it is, I just see it as “social media” justice.

As you were,

Jay