For the past 21 months (whoa!), I’ve been writing here at Mediaite and throughout that period there’s been one conversation that I feel like I’ve had more than any other. For nearly two years now I’ve debated the same question over over again with people here and in my daily life; Why doesn’t conservative comedy work?

Who: Gilbert Gottfried, interviewed by Judy Gold
What: “Gilbert Gottfried with Judy Gold”
Where: 92 Y
When: November 7, 2011
Thumbs: Up, in a way that offends someone

The four-decade-long rule of Moammar Gaddafi in Libya has been dealt blow after blow in the last few months, and people who previously felt censored by the regime are now free to speak their minds about the “Brother Leader.” Political comedians in Libya have obviously not been free to openly mock Gaddafi, but one comic [...]

If someone flips by the Manhattan public access on Wednesday nights and catches The Chris Gethard Show, it’s unlikely that they’re going to say to themselves, “Ah, now here’s the future of television.” A goofy, low-budget show featuring a bunch of comedians and self-admitted weirdos taking calls from strange and sometimes hostile New York citizens doesn’t initially scream out “innovation.” However, for those that stick around, it gradually becomes clear that Chris Gethard and friends are doing something very interesting. In addition to airing in New York, the show is streamed live out on the Internet and is steadily building a devoted following of comedy nerds across the country. By combining the approach and aesthetic of a cult public access show with the streaming and interactive capabilities of a high-tech Internet property, the show has found a fascinating middle ground between the old and new. In a lengthy conversation, we talked to Gethard about the genesis of the show, his thoughts on public access and social media, and the crazy and wonderful people he shares the network with.

The team over at Conan made the mistake (cue sly wink) of booking two comedians – Jon Dore and Rory Scovel – to perform their stand-up routines on the same night. How awkward yet opportune! How embarrassing yet rife with comedic possibilities!

The result was a fun look at the nature of the genre itself, complete with a joke about butt warts.

Actor Will Ferrell finally paid a visit to Zach Galifianakis‘ interview series – the aptly-named “Between Two Ferns” – to promote his new movie, Everything Must Go.

In this week’s New York magazine, John Swansbourg takes an entertaining look at the deft comic stylings of NBC News Anchor Brian Williams and how he has developed a legitimate side career in comedy. As one who was an early chronicler of same (see: SNL maiden voyage, Colbert WristStrong stunt, Jon Stewart spar-fests, earnestly following up on a 2005 quip about Bea Arthur). I appreciated seeing how Swansbourg traced his gestation from anchor-who-hosts-lots-of-dinners to legit OMG-is-this-a-residuals-check? funnyman. And it’s nice to see BriWi no longer apologizing for cracking a few jokes outside the 6:30 – 7pm timeslot. Good times all around.

The rise and fall of the “birthers,” America’s foremost conspiracy theory punchline, has been a veritable goldmine for the nation’s comedy industry. And as with all goldmines, people get possessive about who is encroaching on whose land. Earlier today, Bill Maher objected to The Onion stealing a joke about “afterbirthers” demanding to see the President’s placenta– a joke The Onion printed six months before Maher’s performance.

Last week, we had the distinct pleasure of attending the launch party for a new site created and written by female comedians: the G.L.O.C. (“Gorgeous Ladies of Comedy”). Kristen Schaal – whom you likely know from such programs as Flight of the Conchords and The Daily Show – was on hand to read from her new book, Sexy Book Of Sexy Sex, and attendees had the option of getting made over to look like a beautiful lady or a beautiful zombie lady. Raffle prizes were given out, obscenities were shared, and party-goers did something approximating dance moves. Our interest was piqued.

Say what you will Anthony Weiner, but it’s undeniable that the man has quite a sense of humor. This is, after all, a person who made his awkward high school yearbook picture his Twitter avatar. Weiner was able to show off his comedic ability – while giving some on-point media advice – at the Congressional Correspondent’s Dinner, which was broadcast last night on C-SPAN 3.

Previously, we told you about former CNN host Larry King‘s plans for a multi-city comedy tour. It seems he’s not ready to shake the comedy bug anytime soon, because new reports indicate he’s in talks to join The Daily Show as a contributor.

On Fox News Sunday, each week Chris Wallace highlights a “Power Player of the Week” and this time he featured the stars of the Iranian version of The Daily Show called Parazit. The comedy starts with the name of the show itself, which is Arabic for “static,” since the comedic show is so often blocked when telecast in Iran.

Have you been desperately missing Larry King now that The Suspendered One is no longer on CNN? Worry not: Not only is he appearing on Piers Morgan‘s show, but he’s also planning to embark on a comedy tour.

Former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele made his long awaited return to The Daily Show and not only talked some serious issues with Jon Stewart, including the possible raising of the debt ceiling and why there was a “steele” curtain that prevented him from appearing on the show earlier, but most importantly Steele got to meet his puppet look-a-like.

Former CNN host Larry King, who just last week promised on his final show not to go away, stayed true to his word appearing on Jay Leno‘s The Tonight Show last night and launching a new career as a stand-up comic. Leno introduced the crowd to the “bright young comedy stylings of Larry King” and King jumped up with microphone in hand and delivered humorous stories (note to comedy bookers: King doesn’t do jokes).

Bo Burnham is a young, musical comic, who gained fame on YouTube, where his videos have been seen millions of times.

His latest Comedy Central special, “Words Words Words,” premiered last night. It included one song that was more honest than funny, a brilliant self-critical look at celebrity culture, “Art Is Dead.”

Who: Steve Carell, interviewed by Tad Friend
What: The New Yorker Festival’s “Steve Carell talks with Tad Friend (that’s what he said)”
Where: Acura at SIR Stage37
When: October 3, 2010
Thumbs: Up

This morning the comedy world woke up to the news that there’s a a potential deal for Virginia comedian Jay Pharoah to become the fourth new cast member for the 2010-2011 season of Saturday Night Live.

Pharoah has made a small splash online with dead-on impressions of Denzel Washington and Will Smith and dozens of others – including our Presidnet. The big question for fans of political comedy is: Does SNL have a new Barack Obama?

We here at Mediaite usually try to refrain from just throwing up videos we like without comment, but sometimes funny is just funny and the following video by some of the geniuses at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre is absolutely hilarious. The video depicts a meeting at the British Petroleum offices that goes a bit awry when a cup of coffee is spilled on the desk. The team quickly tries to figure out what to do and…well, just watch it.

CNN tried to bring some levity to the health care debate yesterday with their coverage of the Tea Party march on Washington attended by representatives Louie Gohmert and Michele Bachmann– and the now-traditional homemade signs that are staples of the movement. The network assigned its comic relief correspondent Jeanne Moos to preside over a montage of clips from the rally and, while the segment was obviously intended to be funny, the jokes flopped, and Moos’ hostile commentary belies CNN’s insistence on objective news coverage.

Exclusive! Here is another scene from “Ronna & Beverly,” a pilot made for Showtime earlier this year that got a last-ditch airdate — which creators Jessica Chaffin & Jamie Denbo turned into a chance to catalyze a veritable movement to get it seen (and, hopefully, loved). According to IMDb, it’s up 628% in popularity over [...]

So! “Ronna & Beverly” aired last night. Did you watch? Did anyone? Did the army of Twitter followers of comedy tastemakers like Rainn Wilson, Mindy Kaling, Joel Stein, Paul Feig, Rob Corddry, Rob Riggle, Paul Scheer and Diablo Cody — remember to set their DVRs? Anyone subscribing to the theory of Twitter as a cross-platform [...]

What do you do if your TV pilot finally gets made — in the middle of a media meltdown and the worst recession in years? And what do you do if it isn’t picked up, but at the last minute, randomly, gets scheduled to air? In the olden days (read: a few years ago), you [...]

Proving just how low the bar is for humor in Washington, DC, Obama economic adviser and campaign flashpoint Austan Goolsbee completely outclassed the competition at the 16th Annual “DC’s Funniest Celebrity” contest last night. His routine was a total lift of Kevin Nealon’s “Mr. Subliminal” bit from Saturday Night Live.