Alec Baldwin is singling out Stephen Colbert and John Oliver for using their talk-show pulpits for political purposes, issuing a tweet in pointing specifically to the hosts of Global’s “The Late Show” and HBO’s “Last Week Tonight.”
“Talk shows were once promotional pit stops for some blithe chit chat about movies, etc.” wrote the “Match Game” star in a tweet.
“Now the likes of @iamjhnoliver and @StephenAtHome have flipped that and they are beginning to resemble grand juries,” he continued.
While Baldwin’s statement doesn’t make clear whether he’s praising the hosts for elevating talk shows into more substantive political discussions or taking them to task for rendering a form of televised judgement, there’s an argument to be made that it’s the latter.
That’s because Baldwin’s tweet is preceded by his retweet of a Twitter video by “White Famous” actor Michael Rapaport, in which he shreds Oliver for blindsiding Dustin Hoffman during a panel discussion about “Wag the Dog” by relentlessly pursuing questions about allegations of sexual harassment that have recently been levelled against the 80-year-old actor.
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Rapaport’s tweet is below, but be forewarned that he uses explicit language that could prove offensive to some.
Baldwin was quickly slammed on Twitter by those who disagreed with the argument (which he didn’t necessarily make) that talk shows are becoming too political.
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However, Baldwin later made it very clear that his vague statement was intentional when he replied to a Twitter user who sarcastically wrote, “Oh to return to the glory days where charming tales of rampant misogyny could be told to an adoring audience while smoking a cigarette and drinking a cocktail!”
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To which Baldwin replied, “Notice, if you will, that I don’t express a preference. If I could bottle the sanctimony here…”
The Twitter exchange continued: “Beg to differ,” wrote the Twitter user. “Your subtext seems pretty clear. Evoking a grand jury is freighted with meaning.”
“What meaning is that?” replied Baldwin.
Accused of being “obtuse,” Baldwin fires back by dismissing the Twitter user as “angry” and “harsh.”
Baldwin continued to explain himself in subsequent tweets, noting that the “tidal wave of accusations” regarding Harvey Weinstein and his ilk have yet to result in any convictions.
He continued to reply to Twitter users who interpreted his tweet in a way that he says he didn’t intend it to be.
Baldwin also plays an inept Donald Trump character on Saturday Night Live, for which he won an Emmy.
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