February 27, 2013 – In era where we worry too much about being politically incorrect, I am going to do something that I thought I’d never do. I am banishing the satirical publication “The Onion” from my life.
Basically, that means I’ll “unlike” them on Facebook and no longer visit their site. And no matter how small that may seem to the publication or the rest of the world, it’s a huge statement for me because I’m always the first to cry “don’t read/watch it if you don’t like it” when people call for a ban on something.
My protest makes me feel a little sad because “The Onion” has provided me with a lot of laughs through the years with its clever commentary. Lately though, whether they’ve hired a new crop of writers or I’ve turned into a bitter curmudgeon, I no longer find them funny.
Their latest stint on Sunday night involving Twitter and their vulgar comment about Quvenzhane Wallis, the adorable and talented nine-year old who was nominated for Best Actress for her performance in “Beasts of the Southern Wild”, was not only tasteless it had me scratching my head wondering what they could be thinking. I don’t care if they apologized. I can’t bring myself to read a publication where anyone associated with it could possibly think that remark was appropriate or funny.
“The Onion” has never been one to shy away from controversy. Last year, they made headlines for their doctored photo of a plane with the Sears logo flying into Chicago’s Willis Tower, the tallest building in the country that used to be known as the Sears Tower. The headline read “Sears extremists fly a plane into Willis Tower.” Thousands of people complained to the site that it was too soon to attempt that brand of humor, and it probably would never be funny in our lifetime.
The following week, they shocked people again with purposeful and bad timing. While hundreds gathered to memorialize the six Sikh worshippers gunned down at a temple in Milwaukee, “The Onion” featured a photo of Christian Bale (in the spirit of his visit with the victims of the Aurora, Colorado shooting) with the headline, “Christian Bale Visits Sikh Temple Victims.”
While these stories aren’t what I consider funny, and are arguably insensitive, they are not nearly as offensive as referring to an innocent young girl by a word so horrid, I believe it to be the worst in the English language. It crossed the line a little too much for this former fan, and I must bit them adieu.
Thankfully, I still have some satire to enjoy, but phillygameday.com isn’t updated nearly as much as I’d like it to be. Any other ideas?
janemcmaster 