As the funniest, and most sarcastic person I know, even I have the good sense
to understand when to keep my humor at bay.
While appearing on “The Colbert Report”, which aired earlier this week, Brooklyn
Rep. Yvette Clarke offered a surprising glimpse into both her lack of historical
knowledge of the borough she represents, as well as a current understanding of
her own sense of humor. In this
interview, Clarke told Stephen Colbert that slavery persisted in Brooklyn until
as late as 1898. However, slavery was legally abolished in New York in 1827. You
can see the clip HERE.
To be fair, this is not an easy show for a guest.
Mr. Colbert is a genius with a staff of brilliant writers. It’s tough to
compete with that. Clarke should not have tried. But since she did, she had plenty of opportunity to lighten
the moment by simply saying, “I was kidding.” Better yet, don’t joke about a
topic that simply isn’t funny (i.e. slavery). Instead, she made Colbert, and
the rest of the country, uncomfortable with her comments and poor
delivery.
I have never met Representative Clarke, nor do I
pay much attention to her as I live on the Upper West Side and no one in public
office tries to be funny up here.
Perhaps she has a great sense of humor and is always the funniest person
in the room. Or her jokes are always met with uncomfortable laughter. One thing
is certain; she was not funny in this spot.
Here’s my advice. Humor does not always work. Don’t
try to be funny in situations when you are not 100% positive that your jokes
won’t die on the vine. In
print interviews, sarcasm never works, as a journalist cannot put an emoticon
after your quote. On television, it’s a bit easier, but jokes have to be clear.
Not everyone gets sarcasm and if you are in a serious profession or senior
role, the expectation is that everything you say should be taken seriously.
Sarcasm can be quite dangerous. Consider that your
comments will be repeated verbatim without the wink and nod that you delivered
with your statement. Think about
how those comments will resonate among a broader audience. Often, you will see
that not everyone will get it and some might be offended. Worst case is that
you may appear ignorant (see above).
As a result of this interview, Clarke's
spokesperson’s response has been that the representative was simply joking with
Colbert. "It's a comedy show -- it's meant to be light and meant to be
funny. Unfortunately, it was a joke that some people understood and some people
didn't understand," he said. For
the record, I did not understand it.
I’ve been a spokesperson for many people over many
years, on a wide range of topics. I’ve never had to publicly explain that
my boss just simply isn’t funny.
That wouldn’t be uncomfortable at all.
Melissa Daly has worked in financial communications for
nearly 20 years, with a special focus on media relations and key message
development around critical issues. Melissa formed MFD Communications after
spending three years at Goldman Sachs as Vice President, Corporate
Communications. Prior to that, Melissa was a Director at Brunswick Group, a
London-based financial and business communications firm. There, she spearheaded
its financial services business in the US, managing communications for hedge
fund, private equity, insurance and traditional asset management firms. Melissa
also worked at Fred Alger Management, The Hartford and Lipper in communications
and media relations roles and has frequently appeared on CNBC and CNN as
an industry commentator. Her experience spans across business sectors
and continents.
No comments:
Post a Comment