They were not funny

Hi, Lots of folks will agree with you, I think. But both hosts have long been considered very funny guys. What happened? Was it the political context that suddenly made them not funny? Thanks. Z

Let's look at it realistically.

First, you have The Daily Show, which is the current gold standard for "fake real news." Let's be honest, both shows mentioned were just "Hey, what if we did what Jon Stewart does, but from David Alan Grier's/D.L. Hughley's POV?"

They could have put two white comedians in there, and it still likely would not have succeeded because it's just a take-off of an already popular show. "Women's Murder Club," anyone?

Now, if you then want to look at it demographically. Blacks make up 13% of the US population. What percentage watch TV regularly? What percentage of them then watch CNN regularly? Finally, what percentage of them would watch this show? Apparently not many.

I think they are what they are... Two imitators that just didn't make it. To try to make it sound like a racial issue is hard to swallow. Could it just be that people still don't find David Alan Grier to be funny for more than 60 seconds, or not want to spend 30 minutes with him?

Hi John: I think race is involved, but I can't "prove" it. In terms of demographics, though, you do not need many people to have a "hit" show on cable. A million viewers is a big deal. Thanks. Z

David Alan Grier hasn't been funny for years, and this show of his wasn't funny, either. It was really pathetic and insulting to me as a black man, actually, to see that this was what was being put out there as representative of "chocolate." I like Comedy Central but they didn't try too hard here - it showed.
D.L. Hughley is an immensely talented man who shows flashes of brilliance, but I think they surrounded him with the wrong people and the wrong forum. He could host a show on his own, but trying to force "blackness" at us with a bunch of black guys isn't the way; why not just allow him to host a show with a variety of guests of all races, like any normal late night show? He's well read, doesn't come off like an imbecile (like David Alan Grier) and can interact with anyone in a serious or comical way. Having him sit around and just talk with four guys isn't something I was interested in watching more than a couple of times. What a waste of talent.

Hello David: Great point about forcing "blackness" on audience instead of letting Hughley simply do a show with a diverse cast, crew and topics. Thanks. Z

I never saw them, but based on the knowing Grier's humor, he's a bit of an acquired taste. And, the title "Chocolate News", it sounds like he was confining his audience to black people, so what kind of ratings were they expecting him to pull? Hughley is known as a more coarse comedian, so a CNN cable "news" show just doesn't seem to fit him very well. CNN just isn't where I think to go for humorous insight, whether it was African American themed or not.

But I also think that there is still some reluctance by whites to embrace racially thematic shows - not shows with minority actors but shows that are specifically about "Blackness" or a specific Black world view can raise the spectre of a double-standard because those in the majority don't view "their" shows as being about white people - they're just about life in general to them. ie) The Cosby show was universally received because the characters were not written as stereotypes of urban blacks as whites often see them. Whites envisioned the Huxtables like they were whites on any other sitcom, like Alex Keaton, and the Hogans, etc..

I just think those two "news" shows were either misfits to their venues, or the talent and writing just weren't all that compelling in a crowded world of TV internet and YouTube.

Hi Mike, Thanks. From the analysis of the wrong channels, to white attitudes, this is great stuff. Thanks. Z

You still need white people to watch, and while I love both DAG and D.L. Hughley -- who was one of the only people of any race to defend Don Imus in that manufactured Rutgers fiasco -- white people cannot sit through black people making jokes that they are not allowed to relate to. We are simply not allowed to find humor in blacks and their culture, and even in the privacy of our own home we've been conditioned enough to feel guilty to enjoy anything we shouldn't.

Eric Holder can call us a "nation of cowards" because of our reluctance to talk race, but whites have been effectively banned from saying or acting in any way that can give any appearance of being anti-black, and having anything other than an approved, P.C. opinion makes people risk their very livelihoods.

That being the case, and you'd have a hard time arguing that I can freely and openly discuss race with black people as a white man, how am I supposed to find enough in what I'm not supposed to be privvy to to keep watching?

Hello br: That is a brilliant point about white viewers watching shows that they feel they "are not allowed to relate to." I think it is also tough for the performer to pitch his or her comedy when he is or she is trying to speak to two or more audiences simultaneously. Thanks. Z

I've enjoyed David Alan Grier since the first season of In Living Colour, and I enjoyed Chocolate News, though it could have been funnier. I think it may have just needed more time to feel itself out style-wise. Comedy Central also canceled the Sarah Silverman Program, so it seems to be struggling to support new shows.

Hi JM: thanks. Another commentator says Silverman renewed for a 3rd season -- not cancelled. I'll check.Z

Chocolate News was hilarious! I just don't think it was promoted very well and not enough people watched it.

Hii OSheila, Thanks for the input. I heard from many readers who said the same thing -- they thought it funny -- when the show debuted. Now that it is declared a failure, I hear it not so much. Thanks for your honesty. Z

I saw 'Chocolate News' and I can pretty much guess why it failed. It just was not funny. Except for Barack Obama it never dealt with 'real' things going on in the news.

I did not see D.L. Hughley's show but from what I read about it, it sounded more like a show that should be on Comedy Central. Leave CNN to news reporting, not D.L. Hughley.

'Chocolate News' was just a poor man's version of 'The Daily Show.' I saw an episode and the only thing running through my mind is 'this is the stupidest thing ever.' The major difference between Jon Stewart's show and David Alan Grier's show? 'The Daily Show' is a fake newscast about real events, 'Chocolate News' is a fake newscast with fake events. It makes some of those tabloids you see at the Food Lion look like credible sources.

It's too bad Dave Chappelle's show is not around anymore. It was funny, involved current events, it pushed the envelope, and somehow, it reached a very wide audience. At least Dave Chapelle was twice the comic Grier wishes he could be.

Yes, on Chappelle....but that's another story....Z

I loved Chocolate News, with Chapelle Show being gone, it gave me the chance to see someone who I loved back in the day (In Living Color) like David Alan Grier actually step up to the plate to tell it like it was.

Hi D: Thanks. I think Grier is a brilliant comedian and astute social critic. Z

I thought Chocolate News was hilarious. And the Sarah Silverman Program has NOT been cancelled--- in fact, they announced it will be back for a 3rd season.

Hi Chris, Thanks so much for correcting that previous comment. Z

In response to brstevens. You make valid points. I will say that I disagree with you in part. You stated, "we are simply not allowed to find humor in blacks and their culture, and even in the privacy of our own home we've been conditioned enough to feel guilty to enjoy anything we shouldn't." You are allowed to find humor because you and I both can go to a DLH or DAG comedy show and laugh our butts off while they make fun of black, white and other stereotypes. I also believe that you should talk about race with any friends you might have of other races. My nieces are mixed; I've lived in poor neighborhoods in south Baltimore so I engaged with all races. We have much more in common than some people know. On the surface, we look different. And no, I dont think DAG's show would provoke good, racially dialogue, but I think DLH could have.

Chocolate News seem to steamline the show into a 'black only' forum with the jokes and even the topics focused primarily on African-Americans. The difference with The Daily Show was that Stewart poked fun at McCain and Obama and any other ethnic group that made news. Grier mainly stayed with Obama, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton type jokes. He needed to think outside the box and not be afraid to poke fun at white people. D.L Hugley's show was definitely better and I certainly related to his discussions. He had a broader range of topics and had some thought-provoking monlogues on his show. It's a shame to see D.L go!

You rarely see intelligent and well reasoned dialogue in public forums like this on any topic, much less one dealing with race. Good job by both you and all of the above posters. Whether the cancellations had anything to do with race or not, at least the willingness to discuss this in a reasonable manner tells me that at least we're still making progess with the issue.

I never really got into DL's show, but I think it will be the kind of show that could be successful one day later.

I am really sorry to hear about Chocolate News though. I mean I can see why some black people weren't too comfortable with it. The PSA's from the rapper weren't too flattering, but it was just so wrong that I couldn't help laughing after the initial "wow, did he just do/say that?" At the same time, his voting machine that wouldn't let minority voters select Obama was pretty brilliant. I definitely think it was under promoted though and you could just tell it was destined to disappear. Is Mencia gone too? It seems like all they're left with is a nerdy white kid.

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but, didn't both Grier and Hughley have short lived sitcoms on either the CW or WB. I am not too familiar with Hughley, but, I don't think Grier has been in anything successful since In Living Color in the early 1990's. There have been many successful "black" shows such as Julia, The Jeffersons, Good Times and What's Happening. Maybe the issue isn't race, but, perhaps Hughley and Grier were lacking in what made the aforementioned shows so successful (e.g. good writing, good acting, good storylines).

HI Chris: As your comment suggest, I think it is a complicated matter. I think both performers are smart and funny, but neither seemed to work in the format in which they were placed. And that is part of the reason I posed the post as a question. I do not know the answer, but I think it is interesting and possibly revealing to have this discussion. And by the way, it is really a smart and civil one, which is tremendously encouraging to me. And I am grateful to all the commentators who are making it such a strong discussion. Thanks. Z

I don't know one black person who thinks DL Hughley is still funny. He's become so much of a pundit lately, not to mention he wasn't really funny to begin with.

Grier is a bit of an anomaly but the reailty is Stewart/Colbert transcend race and already give us the news.

Why be redundant?

Although i did recently enjoy Grier hosting "Black to the Future" on VH1. VH1's talking heads formula with black pop culture = gold

Never saw the show with Grier, don't thnk I would have watched it anyway. I for one have never considered him funny, as for Hugley, sometimes he tries to hard to be funny and it comes off like that. As a black female, these two just don't move me as actors let alone real comedians.

Hi Calamity: thanks. Z

I enjoyed the opening monologues of chocolate news, but it totally turned when it started the skits - they just weren't funny. Grier was plenty funny doing the stand up, on point, newslike, opening. Would have liked to have seen more of that and less of the other, and I might have kept watching.

Hi Terri, I wonder how much time they were putting in on the skits -- or whether the problem was that there were not enough writers. Z

Neither show was funny. Each show used offensive jokes in order to bring in audiences, which is what a lot of good comedy shows do. The problem was though that they went too far with it. Another reason is that white America doesn't want these shows, they do not appeal to the regular comedy central audiences. Maybe if these shows were placed onto another channel they would have had higher ratings. It's not that tv stations shouldn't try to appeal to larger audiences, but the average American, no matter what color, often sticks to their channel of choice.

With regards to an earlier post(Chris), the shows mentioned other than Julia and Good Times(before John Amos was killed off on the show) were boarderline stereotypical one may argue. It seems that these are the shows that are allowed to get a chance to air to a wide audience as far as black comedies go. Well written shows such as "Roc" or "Everybody Hates Chris" are usually buried in a awful time slot. I find it interesting that people say that some shows are "too black" or that they are looking at a world that they cannot relate to, while quite a few blacks watch "Seinfeld", "Friends" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm", which are almost lily white. As for the Chocolate News, it had a few moments, but it always seemed like you were watching the JV team as compared to the Chappelle show. DL Hughgley seemed to digress on his CNN show because on Real Time with Bill Maher, he is very informed and funny but that never translated to his show. If you don't like the Tyler Perry type of humor right now, the choices of black comedy on TV are very, very limited. And that's another conversation altogether.

Hi Mack, Great point about limited choices -- as well as the groundbreaking shows like Roc. I fought tooth and nail for Roc, because I thought it deserved to find a bigger audience. But I can't say Fox did much to help it find that audience. And you are so right about the Norman Lear sitcoms from another era. Z

it's pretty easy to figure out. and you don't need a PHD. both guys are not funny. nobody thought they were funny before these new shows of theirs.

and any comment about DL Hughley's comment on his show comparing Republicans to Nazi's? I didn't figure anyone would care because the comment is against Republicans. And we all know by now the double standard hypocritical approach the media takes towards republicans.

When Rush calls Democrats socialists or wants Obama's policies to fail every democratic reporter cries and cries.

It's tough for me to get behind a show where I can't foresee the star staying in it long-term. The racial elements being discussed here aside, I drive past The Improv here in Houston to and from work daily, and saw DAG on the marquee just two week's ago. While I thought Hughley was a pretty good choice (poor setting), I just couldn't imagine Grier being in the tank for another TV gig, even if it was only taped twice weekly.
I also thought the end of the election would spell a lot of people watching a lot less news, regardless of being broadcast news or 'funny' news. I'm sure ratings for a lot of other news outlets have gone down as well.

I thought Chocolate News was very funny. I like many found it late into its run because like many shows this past Fall, it suffered in the ratings thanks to the incredible reality show like drama/comedy that was the Presidential Campaign. It was so emcompassing that barbershops I frequent were watching MSNBC and Fox News(seriously...) during the day and night. Simply incredible...Something I had not seen since the days of the OJ trial and Rodney King riots. I think any minority based show has to be measured a little differently because of the lack of majority demographic of its initial base target audience. Blacks has been forced to, and to our credit, have found the humor in shows like the Honeymooners,Jack Benny, Happy Days, Carol Burnett, Seinfeld, King of Queens and Monk. The majority has always been able to opt out of our shows regardless of the quality like Roc and Franks Place. Remember it was the black audience that helped save Fox and the WB until they could get their majority programming together and "puff" our shows (Martin, Sinbad, Jamie Foxx, Roc and In Living Color) were gone for various minor reasons. Remember the Jeffersons was still a highly rated show when its plugged was pulled w/o even a farewell show.

I'm sorry but how could Chocolate News NOT been cancelled? It wasn't funny, it was insulting, and very boring. This is what they're trying to sell as African-American humor? A middle-aged black guy dressing up as a drag queen and/or a porno star and/or a crackhead episode after episode after episode?

Seems to me like Comedy Central never had any intention of keeping this show on. They were just hoping to bank of the Obama fever that was sweeping the country.

Hughley did deliver not only respectable ratings for CNN, but also Monday news stories. Can we forget the "endorse somebody, dammit" moment for former Bush spokesman Scott McClellan?

Does anyone else remember the fact that the Michael Steele/Rush Limbaugh feud was started on the show a couple weekends ago, with a Steele interview?

This is one of those shows that CNN should have kept around. And it's not because it did deliver a significant number of viewers -- especially for a weekend. But, it also got the network a lot of name-dropping on other cable networks and broadcast shows. Throwing up a chyron that says "Courtesy CNN" when they show a clip from the Hughley show builds their brand -- whether the ratings are exactly where they want them to be for Hughley or not.

There is something more at play here. They stuck with Crossfire for longer. Why not Hughley?

Hi Matt, great points in defense of Hughley. Thanks. Z

I like how this acts like it is the death of Black Comedy. When Tyler Perry is still cranking out product for TBS

I liked aspects of both shows, and am a fan of both comedians. The fact that the shows were cancelled is in some ways the nature of the beast. If the audiences don't come, the shows must go...

But there has always been a larger issue at play with shows starring/fronted by African-Americans. Especially in the last fifteen years (since the end of THE COSBY SHOW), the broadcast and cable networks are reluctant to push such shows, and the relative few shows that make it on the air are instantly marginalized (via unyielding time slots, woeful promotion, etc.). In addition, the vast majority of African-American shows have been damned with the stigma of being used to launch new network ventures, only to be abandoned once the network is "on its feet" (even the CW, which is on shaky ground, felt the need to jettison their AA shows recently).
In a perfect world, all shows should be judged on their individual merits or lack of same. But this is an imperfect world, and it's maddening to see networks like ABC give so many of their mediocre single-camera "comedies" second and third chances, but refuse to pull the trigger on just ONE show of ours.

Nevermind Eric Holder's offensive and arrogant remarks, which are wrongheaded in so many ways, beginning with the fact that this "nation of cowards," in terms of race relations, just elected its first biracial president.

No, that doesn't mean that race-relations issues are solved. It's a work in progress, you know? But it does suggest that racism in America is FAR less prevalent and crippling than some observers would have us think.

Holder's solution is upside down, too. Talking about our differences only helps accentuate them, and serves to further divide the races.

Obama represented a turning of the page. Our goal as a nation should be to honor that singular achievement by NOT going Holder's way. Instead, we should encourage people to think and act in a post-racial manner, and NOT try to view every darn action through a racial lens.

As Bill Cosby and other black thinkers have suggested, continuing to live as victims and to look for someone to blame for every perceived injustice is really the road to nowhere, for blacks and whites alike.

That era is officially over, along with the deeply corrupt welfare system, which has largely served to keep minorities chained to their past.

It's time for African-American leaders to acknowledge that fact, and for journalists to stop obsessing over those perceived injustices.

Comedy Shows are cancelled all the time What's the buzz?
Can you say Jimmy Fallon? David Alan Grier can play a silly side kick in movies He can't play Lone Ranger when he is Tonto. He can't play Johnny Carson when he is Ed Mcmahon He can't play Yogi when he is Boo Boo Should Boo Boo host a Comedy Show Heck No.

I first met D.L. Hughley's at a comdey club in Long beach California He was the host He was funny as a matter of a fact Extremely funny His fotay was Handling hecklers There are only Four guys who do it better Guy Torry, (who surpassed his brother Joe) Robin Harris (deceased) Don Rickels and Buddy Hackett

Don Rickels had two short lived tv shows (1972) "The Don Rickles Show" and (1993) "Daddy Dearest"

Buddy Hackett also appeared in a short lived comedy shows (2000) "Action" This is much to do about nothing What is the "Dealio" They were not Funny. Funny is funny The color of funny is funny

I'm a white person. I watch The Daily Show almost every day. Jon Stewart is funny. I'm fairly conservative and Stewart is a one way liberal and I still love the show and agree with most of what he says / critiques. "Most" minority comedians, including Hughley and Grier, are one trick ponies. They are black so they can make jokes about being black. Asian comedians do stereotypical asian accents that would be "degrading" if a white comedian did it. Chapelle was also a one trick pony but at least he was hilariously funny. The idea that I'm "intolerent" or a "coward" because I don't want to here the same "black guy talking about being black" comedy over and over again is silly. I just dislike bad comedy. I liked Jeff Foxworthy the first time I heard him. The next twenty times he just reformulated the same Red Neck jokes. Guess what, his show got cancelled too. Not having a successful comedy show whose primary (only?) merit is it is a "diverse" perspective is a GOOD thing. It means most Americans don't really care about race....which is what we WANT.

Let's face it, the biggest joke is in the White House . . .

I have many problems with Taylor Perry as well, Larry. I'm just so completely fed up and sick with the two main African American stereotypes: 1) American American men are emasculated and turned into spineless hunks of quivering fat by their over domineering wives, and 2) Black men dressing up in drag.

Tylor Perry is somehow able to encompass both of these problems into everything he does.

I'm sorry to hear the news about "Chocolate news". I thought it was hilatious. But comedy is very subjective. I'm white and I enjoyed "Chocolate News" but I could see where others, including blakcs, could find it offensive. I'm curious about the demographics of the show and Comedy Central as a whole. Meanwhile, I read that Comedy Central is facing major budget cutbacks and that Sarah Silverman was offered a third season but with a reduced budget. They hadn't committed to taking the offer.

I never watched Hughley'sshow,because I'm not really a fan of his,but david Alan grier's "Chocolate News" was awful.I wasn't expecting it to be "In Living Color 2",but it was the most disappointing thing that I have seen on televison in years.If Hughley's show was half as bad,it deserved to get the axe also.

Funny, I think if The Chappelle Show was still it it would be doing monster ratings and killing it in it's jokes. What he had going for him. Chappelle did fall back on familiar territory, but his vision and comedic intelligence (along with his writers) also pushed the subject matter to another level. My friends and I still quote his skits all the time even though his show hasn't been on in four or five years.

I can't exactly point my finger on it what it was that made his jokes authentic as compared to DAG and Hughley. But I don't think either one of them could have pulled off a skit as brilliant as "Black Bush" (Chappelle's take on the Bush presidency if Bush was African-American).

Too bad Dave snapped and went crazy. We could use his voice these days.

See, they both "outlived their usefulness" because they were only there to add "the black male fool" balance to Obama's intellectual image. Don't get me wrong, I'm a black male who didn't vote for Obama (i voted for a Green Party candidate).

Now that the election is over, why are they needed?

Think about it. Both shows came on approximately a week or two before the election.

A black fool comedian as the "first" black with a show on CNN -- a serious "news" network? And David Alan Grier with the stereotypical, blax-ploitation (in the year 2008?) with chitlin jokes and wearing dressses?

Immediately, I smelled a rat.

i knew they weren't going to last because they weren't chosen for the right reasons.

i say bravo! i'm glad they're gone.

good riddance to two less black males who are willing to degrade blacks for a living who wind up being played for a fool, themselves.

good riddance

I have to disagree with the majority of comments on this blog. I thought Chocolate News was hilarous!!! I think that It was usu. very thoughtful in its humor and often says what I as a black man often cannot say in mixed company. For this very reason, however, I can see why this might not appeal to the masses. I know plenty of people, including myself, who will definitely miss this show.

I'm disappointed.... I loved that show.

Chocolate News was the highlight of my comedy viewing every week. i laughed out loud every episode. Comedy Central missed the boat on this one.

i thought both shows were good, not great, but that seems to be the nature of television in general. there are many shows that start off not exactly "great", but once they begin and the shows become more engaged, the writing, acting and casting fall into place. it amazes me that shows that utilize ethnic characters have such unrealistic expectations - i.e., they must be immediate hits - whereas, other shows with mainly white stars, are allowed more time to determine whether they are worthy of returning. how many other shows have we endured for more than one season that were not really good, and never evolved into anything worth watching, but they were given more time on the air. it seems to me, that the networks need to review their marketing strategy "before" airing new shows, and try to gain the new audience - especially when they've historically only catered to one specific group. i don't want to see just "black" shows, but great ethnic variety that represents the whole of america. if certain ethnic groups represent a smaller percentage of the of the population, then the viewing audience of that particular group will be smaller. however, they still deserve to view shows that have a cast that is familiar to their ethnic group. it's not just a lack of "black" shows - but hispanic, asian and many other groups that are constantly under-represented on television. in order to educate the "majority" population and help create an understanding, television stations need to be willing to keep shows going, and give them time to reach all audiences. most times, this takes more than one season. the question here again is - why are ethnic show not given that time? it's certainly not all about money, because there are way more shows with white casts that have not gained a great audience, but still were at least allowed to fail. maybe this forum will get to the execs who make the decision.