Jerry Seinfeld has started a minor internet shitstorm by saying he doesn't care about diversity in comedy — but before you get angry, let's consider what he actually said.
During a Buzzfeed interview that aired on CBS, Seinfeld was asked about the idea that he presents an exclusively "white" view of comedy — an enduring criticism that goes back to the height of his sitcom's popularity and extends to his web series, 'Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee'.
"It really pisses me off," he responded. "People think [comedy] is the census or something. This has gotta represent the actual pie chart of America? Who cares? Funny is the world that I live in. You're funny, I'm interested. You're not funny, I'm not interested. I have no interest in gender or race or anything like that. But everyone else is kind of calculating... 'Is this the exact right mix?' To me, that's anti-comedy. It's anti-comedy. It's more about PC nonsense than, 'Are you making us laugh or not?'"
{youtube}EsEr6xNN8Hw|560|420|0{/youtube}
Gawker has since taken the above quote and misrepresented Seinfeld to drum up furious internet anger/clicks, writing: "[Seinfeld] seems to suggest that any comedian who is not a white male is also not funny... Which is too bad, because Seinfeld is downplaying the work of everyone from Richard Pryor and Bill Cosby to Aziz Ansari, Mindy Kaling, and Eddie Huang, who are all in various stages of their own sitcoms that just might turn out to be the next 'Seinfeld'."
This is, frankly, absurd — at no point during the interview did Seinfeld suggest that only white males can be funny, simply that he doesn't factor racial and gender considerations into his appreciation of comedy.
Buzzfeed's line of questioning arose out of an episode of 'Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee' that featured Tina Fey, which seems to kill the whole 'White Males Only' argument dead in the water. The show has also featured Chris Rock, Sarah Silverman and Mario Joyner.
Rather than filling a quota, Seinfeld just wants you to be funny, and he's a guy who knows something about funny.
Anyway, we all know Michael Richards is the racist one on 'Seinfeld'.
