Nikki Glaser revealed on Tuesday that she purposefully scrubbed political and TRUMP-related jokes from her opening monologue at the 83rd GOLDEN GLOBE Awards. During an appearance on Howard Stern’s radio show, the comedian explained that making light of the current political climate simply didn't feel "funny" in the present moment.
Glaser admitted that her team had written several bits targeting the administration, including a play on words regarding the ongoing national debate over ICE. One proposed joke involved Glaser announcing that the bar was "out of ice," only to follow up by saying, "actually, I hate ICE."
"It just felt like, oh, even that’s just being too trivial," Glaser told Stern, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She noted that even a joke written by comedy legend Steve Martin regarding the newly renamed TRUMP Kennedy Center was left on the cutting room floor. "It was like, you just don’t say that guy’s name right now. I just want to give it space."
A Political Room Without a Political Host
While Glaser attempted to keep the tone light, the audience at the Beverly Hilton was anything but apolitical. The ceremony took place as tensions remain high following the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis.
Celebrities including Mark Ruffalo, Wanda Sykes, and Jean Smart prominently wore "BE GOOD" and "ICE OUT" pins on their formal wear. The red carpet activism served as a silent protest against the DHS surge operations currently being conducted across the country.
Inside the ballroom, the rhetoric was even more pointed. Director Judd Apatow claimed during his remarks that the country had entered a "dictatorship," a sentiment that drew both cheers and hushed whispers from the star-studded crowd.
Targeting the Media Instead
Glaser chose to redirect her comedic fire toward the media, specifically the network airing the ceremony. She famously mocked CBS News for its recent history of editorial scandals, including accusations of deceptive editing leveled by the President and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.
"The award for most editing goes to CBS News," Glaser quipped during the broadcast. "Yes. CBS News: America’s newest place to ‘see BS’ news."
The joke highlighted the ongoing credibility crisis at the network, which recently settled a $16 million lawsuit with the President regarding "election interference." The DOJ is reportedly still monitoring media practices following that settlement, as the administration continues its "America First" push to revitalize legacy news organizations.