Colbert roasts the press

I know this is old news, and probably you’ve heard or read most of the jokes already, but I still think it’s fascinating to watch Stephen Colbert’s roast of the press at the White House Correspondent’s Association dinner. In part it’s just plain funny, but in part it’s also instructive. On top of telling the truth in a way that only satire or parody can, the event is weirdly surreal. Every so often the C-SPAN cameras roam the audience and you get a picture of all of the people in the room — the very people Colbert is making such fun of. Not simply the wimpy White House press, who can’t seem to ask any worthwhile questions, but all of the glitterati, as well. It makes the point, better even than Colbert’s monologue, of how much these groups are truly “in bed with” each other, and hence unable to really be critical or investigative.