Is Pop Culture Out of Whack?

They've stopped the presses on the O.J. Simpson book, "If I Did It, Here's How It Happened," a what-if, first-person narrative about the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, which was also to become a Fox TV special. News Corp chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch buckled under pressure from the American public and pulled both projects.

Michael Richards, "Kramer" from the popular "Seinfeld" TV show, had a meltdown at a comedy club in L.A. last Friday and hurled back profanities at hecklers in the audience. He appeared on the "Late Show With David Letterman" last night and apologized, with Jerry Seinfeld himself sitting right beside Letterman in New York.

What's going on here? Is pop culture out of whack? Has the world gone tabloid?

Washington Post staff writer Paul Farhi will be online Tuesday, Nov. 21, at 1 p.m. ET to take your questions and comments about what is going on in the world of celebrity news and pop culture.

A transcript follows.

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Paul Farhi: Greetings, all, and thanks for stopping by. Well, has the whole world gone tabloid? Seems like it. But for all their lurid (and utterly despicable) qualities, the O.J. book/tv show and the Michael Richards racist tirade raise interesting issues worth talking about. That's what we're here for. Let's get right down on it....

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St. Mary's City, Md.: Paul, John Eggerton made an excellent observation in his blog in Broadcasting and Cable magazine. Eggerton said Richards "appeared to be so angry that he wanted to say the absolute most hurtful thing possible. He did, but the hurt was mostly self-inflicted." It's very possible that Richards is not really racist, but instead has issues about anger and about heckling. What do you think?

Paul Farhi: Disagree entirely. People say all kinds of stupid things at comedy clubs, it's true, but the comic intent is almost always pretty clear. It's not here. Richards IS angry. And he IS trying to be hurtful. But that's what racist words are all about--to inflict the maximum hurt possible through words. Does that make him a racist? Well, he certainly seemed like it in that tape.

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Laurel, Md.: Thanks for taking our questions. As a huge Seinfeld fan, I was shocked at Richards' racist, sickening outburst at the Laugh Factory in West L.A.

I did see his apology on Letterman and felt it was sincere, albeit a bit odd. What is your opinion of Richards' Letterman appearance? Do you think Richards' might now be so depressed he is even suicidal?

Paul Farhi: I'd never speculate about someone's mental state from a TV appearance. But, yes, it was kind of odd and rambling. Kramer-esque, don't you think? I don't know enough about Michael Richards to say this, but that may be his true personality. And I DO think he was sincerely sorry for what he said.

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Fort Washington, Md.: I'm trying to understand who in his/her right mind okay'd that O.J. mess. Why revisit what is a sore subject? It's almost like O.J. wanted to thumb his nose at the general public (those who thought he was guilty as well as those who thought he wasn't). I don't know that, that's an indication that pop culture out-of-whack though. I think in O.J.'s case it's one sick man who is dying to get back in the spotlight.

Will he still get paid for the book?

Paul Farhi: I doubt O.J. really wants any more fame. I think he was simply looking for a payday, as was Fox/News Corp. And, yes, who in their right minds thought this was okay? Well, you know, that line is constantly moving; I guess the Fox people thought it had moved in their direction. Glad to see it has not...And guilty little confession here: I would watch the O.J. special, even as I would deplore it. Wouldn't you?

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St. Paul, Minn.: What has Michael Richards been doing since Seinfeld? Don't most stand-up comics encounter hecklers from time to time -- sort [of] goes with the territory? What could have set him off and is his career -- such as it is -- over now?

Thanks.

Paul Farhi: Richards was in a short-lived, post-"Seinfeld" sitcom (on CBS, I think) called "The Michael Richards Show." That was around 2000. He's been doing stand-up, but not much TV that I can tell (the heckler was right about that). Generally, I think he spends his time spending all his "Seinfeld" loot.

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Washington, D.C.: Just to start -- I'd like to point out the brilliant song from the musical Avenue Q, "Everyone's a Little Bit Racist."

It's true, I think.

Paul Farhi: Depressing thought, that. But even if it were true, people who want to live in a civilized society learn to suppress (or even eliminate) their racist tendencies, just as they learn to suppress other aspects of human nature that not terribly becoming. It's the only way we'll ever survive.

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Will he still get paid for the book?: Paul,

He got paid up front.

Paul Farhi: But it's not clear he's gotten the entire $3.5 million. Book/TV deals are often quite complicated, based on royalties, ratings guarantees, etc. O.J. has been quoted as saying he's talking to his attorneys (how many times has he said that in the past 10-12 years?), which is a pretty good indication that there's a money dispute afoot.

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Dallas, Tex.: I am crushed by Michael Richards' racist remarks. He played a beloved sitcom character who was frenetic yet friendly and kind. I hope the Kramer character or the show is not tarnished by Richards' actions. I am at a loss to understand what brought his tirade on. Any ideas?

Paul Farhi: Frustration, I guess. One of the theories behind this is that Richards is not a polished professional stand-up. If he had been, he would have known how to handle a heckler...And ask yourself this: Will you be able to watch another "Seinfeld" re-run ever again without thinking just a little bit about this incident whenever Kramer appears? It makes the suspension of disbelief just a little bit harder, I think.

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Re: Watching O.J.: No, Paul. I wouldn't have watched any of the O.J. interview. I watch a lot of TV, but this was beyond the pale.

Paul Farhi: Good for you! I'd like to think I can hold two thoughts in my head without doing damage--that I can hate the whole spectacle while also seeing what it's all about...Of course, I could be wrong there.

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Annapolis, Md.: Paul, you asked if we would watch the O.J. interview. I wouldn't even though I watched as much of the trial as I could fit into my life. The reason: I don't think he would say anything we don't already know -- all teaser, no information.

Paul Farhi: Yes, I suspected as much, too! Another theory knocking around the office here is just that--that O.J. would reveal nothing, that it would all be hype and rehash. I mean, this is Fox, right?

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O.J.: It is a strange turn of events when Rupert Murdoch turns out to be the moral voice of reason and stops the project.

Paul Farhi: Well, let's review this "moral voice of reason."

1) Murdoch implicitly okays massive corporate synergy to promote and profit from a suspected double murderer.

2) Murdoch has second thoughts when affiliates, advertisers and public scream over this exploitation.

3) Murdoch cancels this abomination.

For this he's a hero?

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Bowie, Md.: Shouldn't this be two separate discussions? Michael Richards never killed anyone.

Paul Farhi: Well, let's see if we can find the connective tissue here. Celebrities behaving badly? Celebrities in the news for behaving badly? Celebrity behavior as proxy for our own sins (greed, racism, etc.)? Because both cases are fascinating reflections on our current mores and standards? Anyone else wanna take this one?

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Laurel, Md.: How does OJ get away with getting book royalties, NFL pension, etc., and not giving a dime to cover the costs of the huge civil suit that went against him? Any thoughts on how Bill O'Reilly keeps a straight face when claiming Fox News and Fox entertainment are not related at all? As Joe Scarborough pointed out last night on MSNBC, that's like saying NBC has no connection with MSNBC.

Paul Farhi: This is going to sound weird, but I've got to hand it to O'Reilly for at least being an equal-opportunity scold. If he's going to jump on Ludacris for offensive lyrics, he should be all over his corporation's obscenities. But O'Reilly should go the rest of the way. Hey, Bill, ever heard of "Temptation Island"? "Shocking Moments Caught on Tape"? "When Animals Attack"? etc. etc.

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Philly, Pa.: The O.J. interview was already taped, right? So all you voyeurs can probably look forward to leaked bootlegs on the Internets, right?

Paul Farhi: Yes. And those books, already printed in the thousands, are going to be hot commodities, too...

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Fairfax, Va.: Perhaps Mr. Richard could get somebody to help with media relations/PR -- you know, kinda spin it better. I know a soon-to-be-retired senator ...

Paul Farhi: How do you spin what's evident to anyone who can see? I'm glad he's not taking the I-was-drunk/stoned/molested route; he just stood up and said "Sorry. That was inexcusable" without embroidery or rationalization. Honesty would seem to be the best "spin" of all.

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Murdoch knew all along, please.: He just changed course when it became clear he miscalculated, and, probably, when it became clear he might lose money/goodwill.

Paul Farhi: Yes. Total calculation on his part, based on nothing more than the bottom line. As in everything he does.

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Potomac, Md.: In the late '70s, Elvis Costello used the n-word in reference to Ray Charles and James Brown, but that incident was so anomalous that it's become a bizarre footnote to everything else Costello has accomplished. Obviously, Michael Richards is now at a much later stage of his career than Costello was then, but I think as long as he never does anything else that reminds people of his ravings the other night, he'll be okay.

Paul Farhi: Well, the difference, of course, is that few people could see and hear Costello saying something racist the way you can see and hear Richards being racist. I am amazed at how fast all this blew up--the video was on the internet Monday morning. It was a national sensation by Monday afternoon. He was apologizing for it on national TV the same evening. Incredible.

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Alexandria, Va.: What I want to know is, why on earth the publishers reputedly paid the $3.5M to O.J.'s kids so they could subvert the judgment that the money should go to the Goldmans and Nicole's family?

Paul Farhi: Oh, just a guess: Because O.J. wouldn't take his reputation even lower (if that's possible)and cooperate in this thing if he knew the money was going straight to the Goldmans and Nicole's family.

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Atlanta, Ga.: In case you haven't noticed, popular culture has always been out-of-whack.

Paul Farhi: Some of it, yes. But the reason it's called "popular" culture is because it's in the mainstream.

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Anonymous: Point of fact, Richards is NOT a standup comedian by trade, and may not have known how to deal with hecklers. NOT excusing him, by the way ... I'm just sayin'.

Paul Farhi: Yep. He's a comic actor (anyone remember him on the old, old ABC show, "Fridays"?). Different than a stand-up comedian.

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New York, N.Y.: I've heard the books are going to be recalled and destroyed, but that many have already shipped. Given their street value, I say good luck trying to get 'em all back. This is going to be a huge eBay payday for somebody -- people were recently paying thousands for a new PlayStation, and I'm sure there are lots of folks who will shell out at least that for the book. Is it possible to control the profiteering?

Paul Farhi: No. It's a free market. By the way, we spotted one on the internet last night selling for $100. That will be a bargain in a few days, I think...

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Burbank, Calif.: For the record, O.J. was found not guilty by the criminal jury.

And all we can say is that Michael Richards has never been CAUGHT killing anyone.

Paul Farhi: Sure, these are unequal trespasses against decency. But both are transgressive, in their own ways.

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Baltimore, Md.: Anyone else waiting for Michael Richards to check himself into rehab? That seems to be the M.O. when a celebrity gets caught behaving badly.

Seriously, though, the apology was completely bizarre. He should've just issued a written statement and laid low for a while. I don't think he helped himself any last night.

Paul Farhi: I've heard very little criticism of his apology. His career was all but over as it was, but it seems REALLY over now. I think he will have to lay low for quite a while. And then he'll pop up in a cameo somewhere. It's the Pee Wee Herman/Robert Downey Jr. career-rehabilition program.

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Arlingon, Va.: Hooray for the Internet. Through that medium we were able to get all charged up about O.J. and create the firestorm that scuttled his broadcast. Would this have been possible without it? With the outrage nott coming 'til after?

Paul Farhi: Really? I think the internet probably played some role, but Fox got the message in many different ways. Newspapers, for one.

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If Fox wouldn't, someone else might ... : Any chance of O.J. taking the draft to another publisher, or better yet, some dot-com that's willing to charge a fee for it?

Paul Farhi: This is for lawyers to hash over--who owns the rights to exploit this material? I'm pretty sure News Corp. does, and they're entitled to trash the material, if they want to.

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Not Out-of-Whack: Actually, I'd argue the common thread between these two incidents is the demonstration that there are limits to what is acceptable/tolerable -- just as the Mel Gibson rant demonstrated. So not everything goes, and perhaps pop culture is not as lost a cause as one might imagine -- how's that for a tie-in?

'Course, one can argue it's not all about manners, but mostly about money -- but I'd say there's more to it than that.

Paul Farhi: That's perfect! This is how a diverse, complex society struggles to define what is acceptable. And there are limits, and there is still outrage, just as we've seen.

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Washington, D.C.: Is Pop Culture Out-of-Whack?

Not only out of whack but in denial. Our priorities have become so misplaced the we have become more or less de-sensitized to even the most outlandish, ridiculous and immoral actions and events. Much of reality TV, the "It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp" Oscar-winning song, ministers involved with prostitution and meth, are just a few other issues that come mind that make O.J.'s or Richards' antics seem not so unusual or alarming.

Paul Farhi: See, here's where it all gets quite debateable. I might agree with you that A and B and C are over the line, but I'd defend D, E and F. That's the whole thing about "a diverse, complex society." Many ideas about what's acceptable. And I'll take that debate any day over someone or some institution enforcing a rigid set of standards.

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Washington, D.C.: What will this do to publisher Judith Regan's reputation?

Paul Farhi: Did she HAVE a reputation before? I liked the blind quote about her in Lisa de Moraes' column last week: Someone called her "a sick genius." That about covers it.

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Fairfax, Va.: Paul,

You think Richards' comments were worse than what everyone's punishing the Greaseman for?

Paul Farhi: Yes. Richards made his comments with the intent to harm. Greaseman--wrongheadedly, I'll acknowledge--made his comments with the intent to amuse. That doesn't excuse Greaseman, because his "jokes" were offensive, but there IS a difference.

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Hollywood, Calif.: This is a fact: Michael Richards is not racist. When you view the tape, you see he was angry and that he was trying to cut down the hecklers by using the most hurtful words he could find. It also seemed like he was trying to be funny in a Chris Rock/Dave Chappelle way -- they often throw out insults at white people, by the way -- but it backfired horribly. And enough of the double standards. It's okay for Rock and Chappelle to insult white people, often using ignorant racial insults, but it's not okay for Michael Richards to use them in a tirade at a comedy club? The reality is that it's wrong for everybody, and that includes whites, blacks, Asians, Hispanics and everyone else. Everyone needs to stop using these words in their acts -- everyone.

Paul Farhi: Well, this goes to the previous comment. The intent of a remark is pretty important. If I say something inappropriate/hurtful but without real malice, that's one thing (I put Chappelle and Rock and Greaseman in this category). If I say something with the intent to hurt (Richards), that's quite another. And there's no question what Richards' intent was...

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Life is good...:... since I got rid of my TV.

Paul Farhi: Sorry, willful ignorance isn't a proper response. What, you don't want to know what passes for your culture any more?

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Omaha, Neb.: I have been really surprised at the number of racist scandals that have been surfacing. Drugs, sex, even latent bigotry wouldn't surprise me very much. But this overt racisim shocks even my cynical mind. What are your theories as to the ripple effect of these events? More sensitivity training for public officials?

Paul Farhi: I think the ripple effect is quite positive. This whole incident ultimately is. Our consciousness as a society is raised (once again) about what is tolerable, and what brings swift penalty. And saying anything racist in public is about as intolerable as we get these days. George Allen and Mel Gibson come to mind here...

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Columbia, Md.: While I wouldn't say that I had Michael Richards pegged as a racist, having watched the outtakes on the "Seinfeld" DVDs, I'm not at all surprised at his predisposition to get angry towards people he feels are interfering with his 'work.' When his co-stars would break and start laughing during a scene, Richards looked and sounded well on his way to a hissy fit.

Paul Farhi: Interesting. I know nothing of his personal behavior. Perhaps he has Bobby Knight-like symptons.

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Flustered, Mass.: I'll take on your connective tissue. O.J. is not a celebrity. Why do we automatically make everyone who is famous into a celebrity? He is(was) a good athlete and now he's a retired athlete. He made one or two stupid movies and that does not a celebrity make. Think of all the bit-part and character actors who made so many movies and we don't know their names or anything else about them. Can't we leave it at that with O.J.?

A previous poster said something to the effect that everyone was a little racist. When I was in college in the '70s I had a poster of the then-popular Archie Bunker character with the caption "There's a little bit of me in alla youz" I think it's true. You may not like it, but it's true.

Paul Farhi: I'm sure the Bunker thing is indeed true; human beings have always figured out remarkably creative ways to separate themselves from each other (cue up "You've Got to Be Taught," the anti-racism song from "South Pacific")....As for O.J. not being a celebrity, well, what can I say? He is, and was, one of the most famous people in America.

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Washington, DC: Someone touched on this -- regardless of anyone's personal feelings towards the man, O.J. was found INNOCENT. Why shouldn't he earn a living anyway he likes? All this hue and cry from FOX and others ... isn't this the same network that has no problem letting Ann Coulter spout on it's airwaves that 9/11 widows deserved it?

Paul Farhi: O.J. was found not guilty in the criminal trial, but legally responsible for Nicole and Ron Goldman's death in the civil suit (hence, the $33.5 million judgement against him). And while I find Coulter distasteful, I'm not sure I would put her in the same category as Michael Richards.

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Avenue Q: The point of "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist" is more along the lines of "if someone says something to you that offends you without meaning to be offensive, remember that we all have our own biases and cut them some slack."

Not even remotely what's going on here.

And I just don't buy the "that's not who I am" crap -- from him or Gibson. English is a rich and colorful language with a wide variety of insults; there was no reason he had to choose THAT one.

Paul Farhi: Suffice to say, we don't really ever know what's in someone's heart, but I wonder about this, too. When faced with a frustrating situation, do YOU resort to racial insults? I don't. So what kind of person does? I can only conclude that it's a) someone with terrible self-control; and b) deep-seated hatred in his/her heart.

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Re: Criticism of Apology: It took guts to apologize on national television without ducking behind the old addict excuse, but really, you didn't find his actual appearance odd? It was cringe-worthy. The audience in Letterman's studio clearly didn't know how to react. Seinfeld even had to admonish them not to laugh because it wasn't funny. A comedian going on a comedian's show to apologize wasn't the best route, in my opinion.

Paul Farhi: Well, he HAD to get out there with an apology, so it was as good a forum as any. And he was brought on to the show by Jerry Seinfeld, who had been booked earlier to plug the "Seinfeld" DVD...

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Beltsville, Md.: I wouldn't have watched the O.J. show. I just don't give a bleep. When O.J. reports showed up on the Today show this morning, I changed the channel.

Paul Farhi: One of your many rights as an American. But, frankly, I find this all quite interesting.

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Ottawa, Canada: Do you think all would be forgiven if Michael Richards checked into a clinic and claimed an alcohol/drug addiction a la Mel Gibson?

Paul Farhi: At this point, I think that would backfire on him, from a P.R. standpoint. I think people look on that sort of thing as a dodge, an excuse, a cover story. I DO feel sorry for people with addictions. But I'm not sure others do in cases like this.

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Silver Spring, Md.: This incident has probably RUINED Seinfeld for me and I am so sad about that, because it is one of my favorite shows of all time. Way to go Cosmo!

Paul Farhi: Yes. Again, I will watch it just a little differently from now on...

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Severna Park, Md.: I don't think your article fully captured how weird and uncomfortable the Michael Richards apology was last night. It was absolutely the wrong venue for such an appearance. On a late nite comedy chat show, the audience is never sure if they aren't part of some Andy Kaufman-style prank, as evidenced by the sporatic nervous laughter in last night's crowd.

Paul Farhi: Yes, the laughter was certainly inappropriate. But it was uncomfortable laughter, not I'm-in-on-the-bit laughter. People really do feel a little sickened by this, I think.

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Paul Farhi: Folks, I wish I could longer on this topic, but I have to get back to finding new celebrity outrages. We'll get back to happier fare (I think) on our regular chat, which comes 'round next Tuesday at 1 p.m. Let's try again then. In the meantime, have a happy Thanksgiving! Regards to all...Paul.

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