OPINION: This article contains commentary which may reflect the author’s opinion
It’s hard not to love Greg Gutfeld. The hard-hitting funnyman has been a staple of political commentary on Fox News for 15 years.
Most of us remember his first late-night talk show, Red Eye which started in 2007. Well, those of us who stayed up until 2 am (11 pm on Saturdays). The satirical talk show was a much-needed break for many from “politics as usual.”
Now the comedian hosts Gutfeld! and The Five on Fox News.
Last night Gutfeld went off on President Biden in hilarious fashion, stating:
“Once again, the Democrats have a wartime president. The problem is he’s declared war, not on drugs or poverty or even pumpkin spice lattes, but on other Americans. You, me, your parents, those freaks on “Fox & Friends.” But I guess there’s bad in everything.”
Gutfeld got some amazing news himself at the same time, making cable network history, proving that conservatives can be popular with most Americans with a tad bit of humor thrown in the conversation.
According to Mediaite, “Gutfeld! became the first non-broadcast network late-night show to defeat ABC, CBS and NBC for an entire month, as it was the most-watched program of its kind during the month of August.”
Roughly 18 months into its run in the 11 p.m. ET hour on Fox News, the Greg Gutfeld-helmed talk show topped every program among its broadcast competition.
“Gutfeld! averaged 2.19 million viewers for the month, edging out The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS for the top spot. The Late Show finished a close second with an average of 2.15 viewers,” Mediaite added.
Stephen Colbert had been on top of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon on NBC and Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC since January 2017.
According to a Fox News statement about Gutfeld and his history-making late-night program:
FNC’s Gutfeld! made television history, becoming the first late-night cable program to finish the month as the most-watched late-night show in all of broadcast and cable, outpacing CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert for the month of August. This is the first time Colbert has been unseated as late-night’s highest-rated host for a full month in more than five years (January 2017).
In August, Fox News finished third most-watched, behind CBS and NBC, but ahead of ABC.
An article in Forbes stated earlier this month, “Gutfeld! became the second most-watched late-night show in all of broadcast and cable.”
“For July, it averaged 2 million viewers — and 326,000 in the key demo. That put the Fox show above all of the late-night stalwarts, including NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, with CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as the only broadcast to beat it,” according to the report.
Said another way: More viewers are watching Gutfeld and his nightly panelists than anything on CNN and MSNBC. Those Gutfeld! panelists, by the way, include Kat Timpf, who’s now the highest-profile woman in late-night comedy, following TBS’ cancellation in recent days of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee.
Gutfeld’s show, moreover, also feels very much like an answer to a question posed by The Atlantic back in 2015, after Stewart had announced he would step down after 16 years helming The Daily Show: “Why,” writer Oliver Morrison wondered at the time, “hasn’t a conservative Daily Show found its own place on Fox?”
Forbes quoted Gutfeld as saying he doesn’t want to be an ideological antagonist, so to speak, but instead, wants viewers to have something entertaining to watch.
“I’m interested in pulling people in who want to have a good time and are open to stuff — but a lot of it is just weird stuff from me,” Gutfeld explained.
“I’m not interested in being anybody’s ideological foe,” he added. “I’m a class clown, who every now and then has a piece of wisdom.”
He has largely monopolized late-night since he broke out.
Dave Berg, a co-producer of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, told Fox News “He’s up there with the best of them.”
Gutfeld slammed Biden last night over his insane Second Amendment remarks.
Biden said “For those brave right wing Americans who say it’s all about shaping America, keeping America as independent and safe. If you want to fight against a country, you need a F-15, you need a something a little more than a gun. No, I’m not joking.”
Gutfeld commented:
“So he says he’s not joking. Which means he’s stupid because nothing he said suggests he understands anything about America. Okay. Supporters of the Second Amendment, good luck using that against a tactical fighter aircraft.
Sorry, jackass. I’m sorry, Mr. President. Jackass. With that logic, we should give up all our rights because they’re also no match for someone flying a bomber. The worst part is he thinks this is clever.”
He continued lambasting the dullard, saying:
He’s like Jesse Waters when he discovers a new word. Do you ever notice he just says it over and over again and always in the wrong context.
Look, the right to bear arms exists, whether there are bombers or not. In fact, it’s the Second Amendment that keeps us, not from being bombed by Joe, but for being invaded by other countries. There’s no way anyone could invade the United States. Didn’t you see Red Dawn? Yeah. We got 400 million guns, and that’s just under Judge Janine’s bed. It’s true. Don’t break out of that place. But one small town would decimate the enemy and why? Second Amendment. So you can have your F-15, but it’s also our F-15, and fat chance you get any American pilot to bomb an American city.
Source: The Republic Brief