Billy T James made jokes at his own expense and was almost universally loved for it. A recent Broadcasting Standards Tribunal ruled the name - when not directed at a specific individual - was not offensive, but the complaint itself is telling; we've stopped having a good laugh at ourselves. We all enjoy a good laugh and we've all laughed when someone has slipped and fallen or spilled something over themselves. Oddly, I find most NZ comedians, especially those on programs like 7 Days, profoundly "unfunny", but I enjoy laughing at their descriptions of themselves. We've started taking ourselves far too seriously, and I reckon we all need a good laugh at ourselves for just being ourselves.

Source: Stuff December 18, 2019 22:18 UTC