John Oliver and Propaganda: A lesson in why words matter

Oliver’s show has often had its biases under question.

Credit: HBO

If you know me, you know I’m a huge fan of John Oliver. I think he’s funny, witty, incredibly smart. His show, Last Week Tonight on HBO does a great job to challenge traditional thinking.

Last week, he debunked Robert F. Kennedy’s campaign. I thought he did an excellent job of it, too. He explained why people like RFK. For the first five minutes or so, he did a pretty good job of advertising for his campaign. Then he mentioned RFK’s fringe conspiracy theories, like how he talked down on the Covid-19 vaccines or said that antidepressants are the only thing separating the U.S. from other pro-gun countries like Switzerland.

I’ve been watching Oliver’s comedy for years at this point and have always appreciated that he is transparent, unlike so many in the media. If there is one thing he is, though, it’s fair.

Over the last few weeks, I simply can’t help but think about an interaction I had on Reddit over the discussion on…