Last night, Hollywood rolled out the red carpet to celebrate the best in television with the Emmy Awards. It was your usual evening of A-list celebrities basking in the glow of their accomplishments (full winners list here), however, what everyone seems to be talking about this morning is one huge, sour joke that is leaving a bitter taste in the mouth.
As part of his opening monologue, Stephen Colbert wheeled out former White House press secretary Sean Spicer to the shock of those inside the Microsoft Theater. Some celebrities were delighted, others far less so, and after a quick joke about the audience size, the moment was over. However, Twitter lit up, and there was plenty of condemnation about letting a man who actively worked to shut down the press, and gamely pushed forth Trump’s talking points without question, get a free pass at prime time redemption.
The idea for giving Spicer some awards ceremony shine came, somewhat surprisingly, from Colbert and his producing team, who certainly haven’t been shy in their criticisms of the Trump administration. They also knew the moment would create strong blowback, but what no one guessed is that Spicer would become an instant hit. Or that he would get defended by Alec Baldwin, of all people.
What pariah? Sean Spicer getting mobbed in #Emmys lobby. Posing for pics, drinking beer, soaking up all attention after onstage appearance pic.twitter.com/WqJpaRtAvK
— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) September 18, 2017
Alec Baldwin on Sean Spicer backstage: "I've done some jobs that are things you shouldn't admire or respect either." #Emmys pic.twitter.com/GZRM5Uk4uO
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) September 18, 2017
Not everyone was keen to let Spicer — who only four months ago said that Hitler didn’t use chemical weapons — slide, and condemnation came swiftly from all corners:
https://twitter.com/zachbraff/status/909583547131817986
https://twitter.com/jennyslate/status/909629529919954944
Sean Spicer on the Emmys is the Fallon patting Trump's head of the Emmys
— J. Escobedo Shepherd (@jawnita) September 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/theplaylist/status/909762259492229122
Can you believe these morons, applauding Spicer and laughing along. Yeah it was super funny watching him announce the travel ban. https://t.co/pH3UME28UJ
— Hari Kunzru (@harikunzru) September 18, 2017
I know people who were offered opportunities to lie for Donald Trump and quietly declined.
Harvard & The Emmys calling the wrong folks
— Tim Miller (@Timodc) September 18, 2017
Hey remember that time when Sean Spicer blatantly lied from behind the White House podium? It's now a punch line…that he is in on!
— Matt Viser (@mviser) September 18, 2017
However, Colbert isn’t the only one who should be shouldering the blame for Hollywood’s participation in rebranding Sean Spicer. Just last week, Jimmy Kimmel gave the former politico twenty minutes of airtime on his show, to essentially say he was just following orders.
It doesn’t need to be explained how bad the optics on this are, especially considering how thoroughly Jimmy Fallon was raked over the coals for “normalizing” Donald Trump (a source on the production team on the Emmys lamely commented to CNN, “Donald Trump normalized Spicer”). Now, here’s two late night hosts essentially ignoring Sean Spicer’s very recent past, all in the name of ratings. And lest you think that was the most tone-deaf moment of the Emmys, don’t forget that disgraced Fox chairman Roger Ailes was featured in the In Memoriam section of the show.
Thoughts? Hit up the comments section.
