Bill Maher probably won’t be fired by HBO, but his brand is ‘toxic’ now

Bill Maher

You know what this Bill Maher situation reminds me of? The Don Imus situation from 2007. Don Imus was a well-known, respected and wealthy radio and TV host. His morning show used to air concurrently on MSNBC. He also had a history of saying racist and problematic sh-t, mostly about women, and mostly about black women. In 2007, he referred to a women’s college basketball team (made up of mostly young black women) as “nappy-headed hos.” Suddenly, all of Imus’s big, powerful, political friends couldn’t walk away fast enough. Even then-senator Barack Obama had to say something. The thing about the Imus situation is that it all snowballed rather spectacularly within the space of a week, and Imus was out on his ass very quickly.

What’s happening with Bill Maher is sort of different, and probably reflective of the different space we’re currently occupying. Like, we have a racist moron in the White House who is too stupid to even speak in dog-whistles. So Bill Maher used the n-word live on his show, then apologized for it the next day. What will happen to him? Probably nothing. I was waiting to do a follow-up on this story when HBO hopefully sh-tcanned him, but that hasn’t happened, and according to TMZ, it won’t be happening at all.

Bill Maher will not be benched for his comment about “house n*****” … TMZ has learned. Sources familiar with the situation tell us, HBO will not yank Bill from the air or fire him for the comment he made to Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse on last Friday’s show. Maher apologized quickly and the fallout from the comment got quickly lost after the London terrorist attack.

By the way … the fact that HBO does not run advertisements makes the situation vastly different from networks that advertise … HBO will not lose money because it’s subscription-based and, realistically, very few people would unsubscribe. Maher’s show will stand or fall on ratings.

[From TMZ]

It will be interesting to see if this one is more of a slow-burner. I mean, it’s not like people of color didn’t already know the real Bill Maher. Like the Don Imus thing, this is not some new revelation about his personality. I feel like right now, we’re just in the cycle of all of Bill Maher’s big, powerful, political friends all backing away from him. Al Franken has canceled his appearance on Real Time already. The Hollywood Reporter did a story about how Maher’s booker is going to have a really tough time getting five guests a week for the rest of the season, and Maher’s brand is likely too “toxic” now for most politicians and serious politicos. But Ice Cube is still going on this Friday, which should be… interesting.

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82 Responses to “Bill Maher probably won’t be fired by HBO, but his brand is ‘toxic’ now”

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  1. Patricia says:

    As a liberal I’m not happy with this smug person being seen as any kind of representative of me and my views anyway.

    I was done with him already, but I hit 110% done after I saw him interviewing Milo Yanapawhatever and nodding along and agreeing with the hateful sludge falling out of Milo’s mouth. I’m appalled that he thought that “house n*****” was a phrase to be used as a joke, by a white man of all people, but I’m not really surprised. SAD!

    • Lolo86lf says:

      Although I am not “done” with Maher yet because I believe we need his intelligence to fight Donald Trump I must admit that some of his guests on the show are rather infuriating. The guest that I detest the most is Ann Coulter. That woman makes my blood boil. She is the high priestess of white supremacy and racism in America. She loathes people with brown skin.

      Unfortunately our voices on the left are not perfect, Griffin and Maher are imperfect human beings like in the right, but until perfect angels descend from heaven to help us fight the orange one we will have to make do with what we got.

      • Merritt says:

        @Lolo86lf

        Who are you trying to fool here? Maher wasn’t helpful in combating the lies from the Bush Administration and you think he is going to be helpful in combating the lies from the Trump Administration?

        Intelligent people don’t fall back on racial slurs for a cheap laugh. There is nothing about intelligent about Maher. He is just arrogant. Mistaking arrogance for intelligence is a bad idea.

        And as I stated in the original post about Maher, he is not a true leftist. He is not an ally to women or POC. And frankly anyone who is willing to throw women and POC under the bus every single time is not worth supporting.

      • Alex says:

        Lol okay. Except Bill is a known racist and Islamophobe as well. Most minorities had his number years ago.
        But keep pretending he’s some champion on the left

      • LAK says:

        Alex: Maher is not an Islamaphobe, he is a religion- phobe. He is not content to just be an atheist, he is offended by, and makes fun of ALL religions. His film RELIGIOSITY, made in 2006, is an ode to his views about christianity. He doesn’t hold back. In comparison, his friends Richard Hawkins and Christopher Hitchens are/were more restrained in their views on Christianity. Which is to say, not at all.

        Right now he is focusing on Islam in the same way he used to focus on christianity and Mormons, BUT he never misses a chance to slip in a joke about other religions.

      • Merritt says:

        @LAK

        When a person repeatedly denigrates Islam, they are an Islamophobe. That doesn’t negate their contempt for other religions. His language and treatment of Muslims is unacceptable and racist.

        A person can be an atheist without being a sexist or a racist. Maher, however chooses to be racist and sexist.

      • LAK says:

        Merritt: i guess you missed my point where i said he is a religion-phobe not content to be an atheist who leaves religious folks be.

        He denigrates ALL religions and holds them in contempt, and doesn’t hold back in sharing his views on the matter on every single platform he can find.

        I am not downplaying his view on Islam when i point out that he feels the same way about ALL religions and has never been shy about sharing his views about it.

        Finally, i gave no opinions about sexism or racism in my comments. Just pointed out the religious point. That is all.

      • Kitten says:

        “he is a religion-phobe not content to be an atheist who leaves religious folks be.”

        THIS!^^^^^^

        and this:

        “Saying he is an Islamaphobe implies that his views on other religions are less vitriolic and they are not.”

        Agreed, LAK. I recently watched Religiosity with my BF (a former Catholic turned atheist) and as a born-and-raised atheist I was rather horrified by some of the disrespectful comments he made. Contrast that against my BF who thought it was “important” that Maher make such statements.
        OT but I think it’s because my BF is *relatively* new to atheism that he has such contempt for religion. I’m so far past that stage and am firmly in the live-and-let-live camp of nonbelievers.

      • Merritt says:

        @LAK

        You missed the point. Hating all religions does not negate his extreme Islamophobia. End of story.

      • LAK says:

        Kitten: oops i edited my comment to remove that one line, but i stand by it. He is equally vitriolic about other religions as he is about Islam.

        My family is fairly religious, and they find Monty Python’s LIFE OF BRIAN offensive. I dare not show them RELIGIOSITY because they will be pitchforks.

        I’m a religion-raised-turned atheist like your friend. I regularly wince at the comments he makes about other religions.

      • Clare says:

        @LAD and Merrit I personally feel his comments re: Islam have been far more vitriolic than his comments regarding other religions. Perhaps stating hateful views about Muslims/Islam is more ‘on-trend’ and ‘current’ at the moment hence him doing it more often, I don’t know.

        And I agree that he is an Islamophobe. I’m absolutely not intimating that he doesn’t say insulting things about other religions, but that being Islamaphobic and hateful towards other/all religions is obviously not mutually exclusive.

        He has used really hateful language with reference to other minority groups, and as a Liberal, I definitely don’t identify with his brand of commentary or humor.

        Personally I have no time for people who denigrate others based on religion, race, gender, sexual preference – and Maher does all of the above.

      • Elsa says:

        I’ve never heard him say a bad word about Judaism

      • Kitten says:

        @ LAK-Ha!

        It’s an interesting discussion: Can you be anti-religion and Islamophobe? IDK…to me it seems like it all falls under the same umbrella, with Islamophobia being a distinction that is attached to people who specifically hate Islam but support other religions.

        Almost always when I see an Islamophobe or read Islamophobic comments, it comes from a religious person. Not to say that there aren’t Islamophobic atheists, but usually those people are just “religion-phobes”, if that’s the correct term.

        Personally, I’ve been going to bat hardcore for Muslims. I’m disgusted and appalled by all the misinformation I see on social media. This is the worst I’ve seen it in the US since 9/11.
        The only thing I can think is that besides being emboldened under Trump, these people are isolationists who have simply never met a Muslim person in their life. Not an excuse though and still revolting.

        @Elsa-He mocked Judaism on Religulous but he has gone on record saying this re: Judaism “I mean it’s certainly not as dangerous as Islam and Christianity. Those are warlike religions.”

        Personally I don’t see how you can say that but eh…

      • Anja says:

        @Merritt,

        Criticizing Islam does NOT make you an islamophobe! Criticizing religion is the foundation of a secular society and human rights! Stating that criticizing any religion make you a islamophobe/christianobphobe(?)/etc is not only not true but harmful to the society and liberal goals.

        Do not get me wrong, I do think that Bill Maher is an islamophobe (and a misogynistic anti-vaxx moron on top of that). However, that is based on his comments against muslims as people. If you despise all muslim people based on their religion and keep lumping them into one homogeneous unit stating that all of them are barbaric terrorists, well, then that’s clear islamophobia. You don’t even need to go that far to be an islamophobic jerk.
        HOWEVER, pointing out all of the archaic, illogical, misogynistic, homophobic and downright hateful things in religious doctrines (e.g. islam) without demonizing its followers is not hateful! It goes for any religion. In fact, pretending that there’s no flaws in islam and supporting people like Linda Sarsour (who supports Sharia law etc) is actually suppressing and harming muslim reformists who are doing their best to modernize their religion and fight for equality.

        @Kitten, it’s rather easy to have a “live and let live” attitude towards beliefs or systems that have not oppressed you and caused you harm. As a Catholic-raised European, I have a lot of criticism for its doctrine Church interference in state matters and the abhorrent abuse of children that is actively shielded by the Pope and other high ranking members. On the other hand, in my experience, ex-muslims or people who were raised in the Middle East or other Islamic theocracies tend to think that Catholicism is bad but that it’s nothing compared to Islam. Because the latter directly hurt them, while the former did not.
        I feel like we could use racism as an analogy. While I think that mistreatment and oppression based on one’s skin is horrible and we should work as hard as we can to abolish it, I, as a white person, have not been marginalized by racism. Therefore, I only have a removed experience and my opinion about it is based on logic and empathy. A person of colour, on the other hand, is much more likely to have stronger feelings on racism due to being directly oppressed and marginalized by it.

      • Tiffany :) says:

        I do think Maher goes too far a lot of the time. Especially with this incident, the slur served no purpose (like making a point about racism), so it really made me question why he went there.

        At the same time, I do value the space that Real Time has created that allows people in power on both sides to have conversations about the issues. There are a lot of Republican representatives and senators that have been on the show, and it was great to see them have a conversation with people outside of their bubble and be held accountable for their positions. It’s a show that will have both Madeline Albright and Darrell Issa on it, and I think it is unique in that regard.

        Bill regularly has Dr. Cornel West on his show, and I’d be interested in hearing him discuss the issue with Bill. He doesn’t hold back!

      • Kitten says:

        “@Kitten, it’s rather easy to have a “live and let live” attitude towards beliefs or systems that have not oppressed you and caused you harm. As a Catholic-raised European, I have a lot of criticism for its doctrine Church interference in state matters and the abhorrent abuse of children that is actively shielded by the Pope and other high ranking members”

        @Anja-Excuse me? You do not know me nor do you know my experience so I’m rather galled by your assumption that I’ve arrived at my stance because it’s been “easy” for me.

        Here’s a little background for you: I grew up in a small EXTREMELY Irish Catholic town south of Boston. It was a town where literally EVERYONE went to church, except for me and my family. I was bullied and teased mercilessly in school, on the playground, on the bus. I was told I was going to Hell, that my parents were cultists and called a “devil worshipper” by fellow classmates. So unless you went home crying every day because of non-belief please miss me with that “you had it easy” shit.

        Additionally, perhaps you’ve hear of John Geoghan or John Hanlon or Paul Shanley? What about Robert V. Gale or Jesuit priest James Talbot? Have you heard of Bernard Francis Law? Because I KNOW people who were molested when the Boston Archdiocese was turning a blind eye and a deaf ear to their experiences. I don’t need you to lecture me about the ills of institutionalized religion nor do I need you to tell me about religious authorities closing ranks.
        I lived through one of the biggest religious scandals in history–it happened in my town FFS.

        Finally, my current stance on religion wasn’t one that was “easy” or easily made. It was an evolution for me; a personal journey that took me from being angry to a place of peace. I respect other peoples’ beliefs because I respect people, PERIOD. Now I draw the line when people start legislating their religious beliefs but that’s a whole other thread. As long as people keep their religion personal and don’t try to infringe on my freedom and ability to live my life how I choose to then I have no issue with it. That’s their business just like my atheism is MY business.

      • DystopianDance says:

        He who is without idiotic statements, cast the first stone!!I Do liberals all need to be Ghandis and Mother Theresa? I also believe we need immigration reform, because the loopholes of handouts have been taken advantage of. Our local hospital lost over 3 million in one year due to people coming over the border to have babies with zero intention to pay one single dime. Whoa. There was a rant I didn’t know I had. So see? I’m no Perfect Philanthropist, but Trump is one outfit away from HIlter, and we need ALL varieties of voices to fight this orangeApocolypse. If we keep making every imperfect person “toxic” then we’ll have NO ONE.

    • doofus says:

      I agree with everything you wrote here.

      what initially turned me off was his attitude toward people who practice some sort of organized/major religion. he’s an atheist and, while I have NO problem with atheism (believe or don’t believe what you want) HE IS SO DAMN arrogant to believers…condescending and mocking of them even. he gives atheists a bad name.

      and then, add what you said above…I don’t like him and it astounds me that my mother LOVES this man. she’s a Catholic but as liberal as they come and she is always saying “Bill Maher said on his show last night….” and I have to stop her and say “I don’t give a shit what that a**hole says” and she’s like “OK…but he said…”

      it’s infuriating.

  2. Alex says:

    Must be nice to be white and male in America. You can get away with everything from being racist to a murderous cop.

    • Alexandria says:

      Don’t forget shooting someone on Wall Street, grabbing pussies and oh treason (exhibit: babyfists).

      • QQ says:

        Brock and his bros would like to add that Rape is also something you can skate by, even with witnesses God Bless ‘Merica tho

    • Wilma says:

      Yup, and you don’t even need talent when you’re white and male.

  3. Aiobhan Targaryen says:

    Oh please. A lot of this is coming off as disingenuous hand ringing from certain people. What he said was disgusting BUT he has said this like this before and he gets away with it because he is a casual racist and not an overt racist.

    He is going through it right now just like Kathy Griffin, within a few weeks or months they will be back to trying to pull the same stunts and mostly getting away with it because

    a) they gave money to Obama, so somehow this makes them immune to any criticism.
    b) they supposedly support liberal causes
    c) the context should be considered
    d) they aren’t the real enemy. This implying that non-whites should just accept casual racism.
    e) it was just a joke. As if words don’t matter at all.

    Bill’s janky ass will be fine. The system is built for him and it will continue to support him.

    • littlemissnaughty says:

      Okay but can we not compare him to Kathy Griffin? I know a lot of people don’t like her brand of humor because she’s mean or whatever. That’s fine, she’s not for everyone. But she hasn’t “supposedly” supported “liberal” (women, LGBTQ+ community) causes. She has actually been an activist for a long time. You can still think what she did deserves all the vitriol but that doesn’t take away from everything else.

      Kathy Griffin is bitchy. Bill Maher has been racist, misogynist, homophobic, and all-out sh*tty on his show for a long time. He’s an arrogant douche. He often makes interesting and intelligent comments on current events though, because he has a different take on a lot of issues than the rest of late night, which is why I occasionally check in with him on youtube.

      He will be fine. She has already lost 2 jobs.

      • lizzie says:

        i agree with you. what she did was tasteless and disgusting but it was actually an attempt at irreverent comedy, which is her signature. it wasn’t anything “-ist” just aggressively unfunny.

        but it is pretty clear with the ease it rolled off his tongue that bill maher says the n-word a lot, which means he thinks he entitled to say it. he is not. no white person is. what he did was knowingly, willfully and very familiarly say the one word white people are not allowed to say. not just not allowed to say but a word we should never want to say. a word we should never think. a word that should fill us with deep shame and embarrassment. saying that word it is the one thing that really and truly does not ever belong to white people ever again. he did not just say it as a joke, but rather to antagonize the right. it is apparent he was pushing ben sasse to react and it backfired completely.

      • littlemissnaughty says:

        lizzie, I was pretty shocked to see the interview and the way he said it. So easy, so smooth. Sometimes it’s how you say things. I keep thinking about that Ray Rice elevator video and the way his body language gave me chills. That was not a man who was in any way upset that he had just knocked a woman unconscious and I will be damned if it was the first time he knocked a woman out. And Bill Maher, in that moment, did not seem like a man who was using that word for the first time. That speaks to his character.

    • grabbyhands says:

      THIS. It is embarrassing how easily people are willing to dismiss this – I don’t give a sh*t how many Democratic causes he supports – he is a crappy person and making it okay for him to do what he did when we condemn others for the same thing isn’t helping our cause at all, and it confirms one of the stereotypes that people have about those of us on the left – that we’re giant hypocrites.

      • Gina says:

        I completely agree with you. I’ve never been a fan of Bill Maher’s so I don’t pay any attention to him. I didn’t know about his past but it sounds like he is a shitty person. It feels very much like – here we go again.

  4. smcollins says:

    I’m so torn about this. I was definitely shocked when he said it, like “he did NOT just say that!”, but on the other hand it’s not the worst, most offensive thing he’s ever said. I’m glad he’s being called out for it and being forced to face the carelessness & ignorance of his “joke,” but I don’t think he deserves to be fired. And I don’t think it’s the same as the Imus controversy. He didn’t make the derogatory and racist comment about someone else, he said it about himself. That doesn’t excuse it by any means, but the context was not at all the same. I have no doubt he’ll address it on Friday’s show, and I hope Ice Cube takes him to task for it. Like I said, torn, torn, torn…

    • WeAreAllMadeOfStars says:

      I agree. I was shocked when he said it, but Imus is a piece of garbage who is genuinely racist and was fully intending to harm and degrade an entire race when he said that. Bill Maher has grown in arrogance and become more and more of a loose cannon as he ages but I think he is still insightful 85% of the time. Hopefully this is a wake-up call for him to dial it back and not continue down the crazy old man path if he wants to retain a diverse group of guests and oh yeah, his credibility as a unique voice on the left.

    • Wilma says:

      I can’t believe you’re torn over this. Why would it ever be okay for a white man to use this word? There’s always going to be someone who is worse, but that does not make it even a tiny bit okay for Maher to say this so (so casually, so normalizing) especially in the context of all the awful things he has said and done throughout the years.

  5. Aang says:

    🙄 sometimes context matters. He should not have said it, it was stupid. We should not be trying to silence a strong pro environment voice, it is not helping our cause. I’m not going to worry about the splinter in my pinky until I tend to the bullet wound in my heart. I’m going to keep watching Maher, just like I did after the far more offensive Milo interview.

    • Marty says:

      Homeboy thought it would be funny to call himself a house n****r, what kind of context do you need?

      • lizzie says:

        thank you.

      • Kitten says:

        The context doesn’t help me though.

        I feel dumb saying this but I’m late to the game and didn’t even know about this controversy till now and I just now clicked on the embedded link and read his comment. Gross that he was so comfortable with using that word but can I just ask what he even meant?

        “I’m a house n-word”??? I don’t even understand what he meant by that comment at all. I’m not excusing it and I recognize that what he meant doesn’t have any bearing on the disgusting fact that he used the worst racist term so casually, I’m just curious because the added context does nothing to explain it.

      • doofus says:

        Kitten, he said that because the GOP dude he was interviewing suggested he “work in the fields with us”, meaning, out with the people that the dude was repping, and not behind the scenes on TV.

        Maher took the “in the fields” part and made a stupid racist (NOT funny) joke.

        (sorry if that came off as pedantic, I wasn’t sure how much of the context you heard. cheers.)

      • Kitten says:

        @ Doofus- O_O
        Oh god that is so much worse now that you explain it. I feel incredibly stupid for not getting it the first time but now that I DO get it, I’m even more horrified. Just NO, Bill Maher.

        Gah. He sucks.

      • Marty says:

        Don’t feel bad for not getting it Kitten, it’s not a term that’s used a lot outside of the black community. And even then, it’s seldom.

        A lot of times we’ll use it as a diss. My father calls Ben Carson and Omorosa house n****rs because he says that’s how they’re viewed in the White House by their peers. Point is, Bill Maher should have known better than to try and tell a racist slavery joke.

      • Tiffany :) says:

        I think he was just trying to say that he doesn’t like doing physical labor and getting dirty….and decided to use a racist way to express that. It was such a weak need to go there! Why was THAT the hill he wanted to die on?

        Compared to the Louie CK episode, where the n-word was used repeatedly, but it made a point about generational gaps. If you are going to go there, have a greater purpose.

        The causal use made it seem like this is his regular habit. Very troubling to me.

      • Penelope says:

        He was also quoting the movie “Gone With the Wind”–that exact line is in both the book and the film. If he thought at all, maybe he thought that would excuse what he said?

        There IS no excuse, though.

    • littlemissnaughty says:

      Yes, context matters. What context are we talking about in this case though? And where do you draw the line when it comes to your cause? Is he really making a difference or is he just being a narcissist on HBO?

    • Merritt says:

      What exactly has Maher done for the left? Oh right, he has done absolutely nothing.

    • Courtney says:

      There are absolutely no acceptable reasons for a white person to say the “n word”. I don’t care what else he’s done, I have zero tolerance for that language. With “friends” like him, who needs enemies?

  6. grabbyhands says:

    Please, his brand is far from toxic now. In fact, this has probably only elevated him in the eyes of many, including people on the left falling all over themselves to excuse or explain away what he did.

    I will say again, until we on the left condemn in our own sphere what we scream about the extreme right doing and saying, then we don’t get to take a bunch of moral high ground about morons like Bill Maher. He’s been a sexist, racist, intolerant xenophobe for YEARS. This is in no way new, but people have looked the other way.

    • Cleo says:

      👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

    • Alex says:

      You are so right. Just read an article “The right doesn’t have a race problem the left does” (not verbatim title) and this just reminded me of that again.
      When you see supposed liberals willing to throw minorities (or women for that matter) under the bus in the name of “unity” you’ve lost my vote (looking at you Sanders). Fact is minorities come out in DROVES for the left but the Dems seem to think they can just count on us coming to the polls because of the right. But we are the first to blame or toss away when we aren’t needed (see post election analysis about lower minority turnout)
      It’s a problem they need to fix if they want a chance in midterms

      • Kate says:

        AMEN!!!! The so-called progressives really think they can do everything to us, POC and we will crawl back to them. Ignore voter suppression, blame political corectness and identity politics for HRC’s loss (looooooool, as if Trump and the GOP was not identity politics for white folks), go after any black woman who speaks up (this weekend, it was Maxine Watters’ turn). POC are the base and are treated like shit. Unbelievable.

    • cr says:

      Where are you seeing this elevated him on the left?

  7. kNY says:

    He needs to be fired. It’s not okay. And it’s not like it’s the first time he’s said some awful stuff. He’s not worth the distraction. The longer he is kept around, the more he can be used as a tool for the alt-right as sign that the left is everything wrong with the country.

  8. Nancy says:

    Don Imus is exactly the kind of tool with his big ole cowboy hat that Maher loves to bring down. I hate that Bill so easily let that word slip out of his mouth. He is older, from the era when dads were all like Archie Bunker. Sucks. But we need someone like him, who hates trump like we do to be present somewhere. Either you keep watching Real Time or unsubscribe to HBO, or just don’t watch. It will be very interesting when Ice Cube gives him the reality check he needs and makes him squirm in the safety of his own set. You can’t forgive and forget, but I will give him another chance.

  9. Cleo says:

    I’m a bit grossed out by people that are all saying, “We need him to fight Trump, so I’m going to ignore this.” Just because he says liberal things does not make him our ally! Sorry, but blasting Trump from time to time isn’t going to make up for the misogyny, racism, and Islamophobia.

    What has Bill Maher done for you lately? We don’t NEED a professional blowhard to fight Trump; we NEED strong political voices in D.C. that will advocate for marginalized groups.

    • Jenns says:

      I’m as liberal as they come and I can’t stand Maher. The only good bit on his show is the New Rules segment, and that’s because he has someone writing the material for him.

      And why do we need him to fight Trump? Does anyone really listen to Bill Maher?

    • Merritt says:

      Exactly. Maher has done nothing of note. As I said above, he wasn’t helpful in the fight against Bush so why does anyone think he will be helpful against Trump.

    • littlemissnaughty says:

      Yes. I just posted above before I saw your comment. This seems to be a case of my enemy’s enemy is my friend. But is he really?

    • QQ says:

      Im more more wayyy more than a bit grossed out by that Cleo, Especially so many comments telling us how “Not Offended” her her and him happen to be.. or how “it wasn’t the worst” Good for ya’ll shorties, you don’t get to decide if that was maximum offensive or not just cause it isn’t something that in any way applies to ya’ll.. Honestly is kind of galling and truly makes me reconsider the amount of time i’d like to spend in the company of such people even if it’s in a Virtual setting, And trust me on this my texts and DMS tell me I’m not the only person Gasfacing these comment sections

      • Kate says:

        Same. Honestly, as a black woman, this thread is really disgusting but it kind of reflects the current climate within the Dem Party, right ? It’s a race to know who will throw the fastest POC under the bus in favor of the mythical, forgotten white working class man (how can they be fortgotten when there’s a profile about them every week on the NYT, I don’t know).

    • Otaku Fairy says:

      +1. I’m grossed out too. On the one hand, Trump supporters/normalizers on the right feigning concern about racism just so they can have an excuse to go on about left hypocrisy’ are obviously being manipulative and full of shit as usual. But on the other hand, a lot of liberals have been trying to portray to people who aren’t ok with his behavior as oversensitive perfectionists or ‘too divisive’.

  10. All_Damn_Day says:

    My 73 year old black mother would be upset if he WAS canceled. I viewed this as him trying to upset/shake his guest, and just going full stop. He’s a provocateur at heart, not a comedian; which is why he was too lenient on Milo. He could have said “Negro” if he was simply trying to “joke” about working in the fields- he could have done an obsequious southern voice without even mentioning race, he chose the word he did for a reason.

  11. PunkyMomma says:

    Maher is not a Democrat – he’s a Libertarian. And although he thinks he is some great political commentator, he’s a comic. A comic who laughs at his own jokes, often before he can deliver the punchline. I haven’t watched Real Time on a regular basis this year because while Bill may have book some interesting guests, rarely does that guest have an opportunity to complete a thought. We’re taking Chris Matthews territory in that respect.

    Oh, and Bill, if you’re reading this, lay off the weed before the show — your monologues are all over the place and, sadly, you’re headed down Dennis Miller territory.

  12. Kitten says:

    Just so f*cking gross. I can’t even say that word in my head without feeling like I need a shower and this sh*tbag says it so casually and easily?

    I’ve always had mixed feelings about Maher but this is the final straw for me. Cancelled.

  13. Persian says:

    I find myself defending him I mean sure , it was a bad joke but because of his mistake he’s being portrayed as a big bad racist hypocritcal liberal ( the narratives republican go for) !
    And following his show , He’s not a racist by any means , don’t discredit his whole persona based on a bad joke
    He’s in damage control mode and It saddens me many of respected people dont want to go on his show for now which is fair considering the backlash
    , because his panels are diverse and very interesting

    • Cleo says:

      The point is that it wasn’t just one bad joke, he has a history of sexism/misogyny, racism, etc. He once asked Zayn Malik where he was during the Boston Marathon bombing, for Christ’s sake.

    • cr says:

      Defending his right to be an asshole? Or defending him as a person? Because as a person he’s got a long history of being an asshole.

    • Kitten says:

      I don’t know….my BF sent me a clip of Maher talking to Dr. Cornell West and I was really grossed out to see him use the BLM movement to lead West into an argument about why Hillary would have been better than Trump.

      Even though I obviously agree with Maher, the way that he exploited/manipulated that situation left a bad taste in my mouth. It was an obvious set-up and very unfair/disrespectful to Dr. West IMO.

  14. jugil1 says:

    I hope Ice Cube schools this racist fool! Maher is an arrogant blowhard who needs to be taken down a peg. I’m hoping Cube will do just that.

  15. Zeddy says:

    Right. So this ashhole gets to keep his job for this atrocity, but KG was fired for doing something the media had done to Obama for years. What’s going on with you guys in the states??

    • Otaku Fairy says:

      The Kathy Griffin controversy was the first thing I thought of after seeing that Bill Maher wasn’t fired. It also makes you wonder how many of the people defending him and basically telling his (liberal) critics to calm down reacted very differently to what Kathy Griffin did and supported her being fired. “Being mean 2 Trumps” is basically considered worse than or somehow on the same level as racism, transphobia, and misogyny now to some folks.

  16. minx says:

    I can’t defend Maher. I’ve enjoyed some of his rants over the years–his Trump bashing has been delicious. But when he does stupid things I think, you’re on your own, buddy. Not defending you.

  17. Kate says:

    I was so wrong about the state of race relations in the dear old USA. I thought that the battle, especially among so-called progressives, would be about ‘subtle’ racism, microagressions. But, here we are, in two thousand goddam seventeen, and y’all still arguing if the Deplorables who knowingly voted for the KKK-endorsed candidate and the man who lovingly drops n-bombs on live TV are racist. FFS.

  18. Onemoretime says:

    Just like Trump supporters who claim they aren’t “racist” . “I just support Trumps position or his platform but no way I’m racist.”
    What’s the difference in supporting this bozo? He is a racist, has always been a racist & with people choosing to overlook his racism will continue to be one. No we don’t need bill to support our fight against Trump. Do you really think he is going to change any Trump supporters mind? They don’t watch his show. He is a white man with a black women fetish and was way to comfortable saying that word. Shrugging it off like no big deal. He is NO different than Trump and those who support him are no different than Trump supporters.

  19. Xtrology says:

    I think you guys are being a bit hard on Bill. I have watched his show since its inception. It has never crossed my mind he is a racist. But he is a comedian. And the remark he made, the guy just set it up for him, is funny. I think we’re too quick to criticize. We need Bill Maher. He speaks his mind — which he totally has a right to do. I don’t think he’ll have any trouble finding guests. And I am surprised by Al Franken. I’m sure he’s said a few unsavory things in this life.

  20. AlmondJoy says:

    The excuses and justification are absolutely disgusting. I regret coming to this thread.

    • Cleo says:

      I can only apologize for the people on here making weak-ass excuses. I’m sorry.

  21. Magnoliarose says:

    I don’t believe in censorship by any means and one of the reasons is because people eventually reveal themselves if they keep talking without restraint. He has often made me squirm uncomfortably when he tries to pontificate on black issues as if he knows everything.
    White people have no place to tell black people what is offensive or when to be offended. Black people don’t have to defend being offended. Just believe and support and listen and maybe learn something.
    It’s ugly and he deserves the blowback. I am sick of all this racist crap.

    BTW Anyone who thinks this fool is Jewish, he aint. Nope. We don’t claim his sorry ass. Not even by birth.

    • Ksenia says:

      Actually, though he was raised in his Irish Catholic father’s faith, his mother is Jewish. That doesn’t mean he should be an embarrassment to other Jews or that he reflects on Jews and Judaism even remotely. He is as an individual a horribly toxic man, and his birth religion has NOTHING to do w that.

  22. Ms_TShady says:

    I’ve told bad jokes before…and none of them included a racial epithet.

    I would love to see the reaction if a presenter used the word ‘k*ke*’ on live television – would that be trivialised to the same extent?