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Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

nytimes.com

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Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#141

Post by lelandfe »

pants2 wrote: post #22

This is the best birthday present I could have asked for. The Onion News Network has the funniest, most prescient videos online and I love going back to watch them. Even if the Onion comes back half as funny as they were it's going to be fabulous. Here are a few of my lesser-known favorites: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJdP1zK15bE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRgRz3nSG7o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUT8ec2…

New Live Poll Lets Pundits Pander To Viewers In Real Time https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFpK_r-jEXg

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#142

Post by sharkweek »

trimbo wrote: post #138
lapcat wrote: post #38

I think this is good news, because G/O Media websites are the worst. I was at UW-Madison when The Onion started. We had a wealth of student newspapers at the time, along with The Daily Cardinal and The Badger Herald. Scott Dikkers and Todd Hanson, writers for The Onion, also wrote great comic strips for the Cardinal (Jim's Journal and Badgers and Other Animals, respectively). Some favorite Onion headlines that I reme…

"Secondhand smoke linked to secondhand coolness" "Schaumburg Man Dimly Aware Of Shadowy, Non-Schaumburg World Out There" "Clinton Injected With Highly Unstable Experimental Growth Serum" "Beer! It kicks ass!" Lastly, the 9/11 issue is one of their greatest achievements. They struck the perfect balance/tone, avoiding "too soon": https://www.theonion.com/issue-37-34-the-september-11th-issu...

“CIA Realizes It's Been Using Black Highlighters All These Years”

https://www.theonion.com/cia-realizes-its-been-using-black-h...

They also had one that they didn’t run making a joke right after 9/11 to the effect of…

“America Stronger Than Ever, Say Quadragon Officials."

Also the routine “No Way To Prevent This” headline after every mass shooting only continues to gain potency.

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#144

Post by defrost »

Daz1 wrote: post #132
defrost wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It would have been a vastly different story if only Cosgrove kept her mouth shut about access to the new all-weather Sedgwick County Park municipal pool. Pool politics have torn America apart. Here in Australia we have to make do with The Shovel https://theshovel.com.au/2024/04/24/rest-of-world-offers-tru...

[flagged]

It would seem not.

I did a quick household poll and, sadly, not one found your comment funny regardless of political affiliation, gender, or species :/

Even the dog yawned.

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#145

Post by chrisweekly »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #66
lubujackson wrote: post #57

I'm old enough to remember when it was a physical paper you'd get for free in Harvard Square... wish I kept some of them. I particularly enjoyed the old "Point/Counterpoints" such as: https://www.theonion.com/u-s-out-of-my-uterus-vs-we-must-dep... https://www.theonion.com/americas-homeless-want-a-hand-up-no... https://www.theonion.com/my-computer-totally-hates-me-vs-god... Also, shout out to the "Oh! Mumford" comic s…

I don't think I'm the target audience. I don't really get it. I spent years homeless. I try to write about meaningful ways to help the homeless while preserving their agency. I try to write about systemic issues I feel contribute to the problem. I don't find that second link funny or relatable or anything that makes sense to me.

Tangent: congrats on no longer being homeless! Your comment piqued my curiosity so I checked out your profile, and wow! is it great, full of interesting links etc. Glad you're here on HN.

P.S. Yeah, the onion is pretty hit-or-miss, tho the ratio is pretty good IMHO. YMMV but one of my all-time favorites was about Harry Potter being a sinister secret recruiting vehicle for satan worship -- and I learned about it from a friend whose parents were among the huge number of christianists who thought it was legit journalism and forwarded it in one of the biggest ~early-internet-days chainmail events ever.

https://www.theonion.com/harry-potter-books-spark-rise-in-sa...

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#146

Post by nilram »

pants2 wrote: post #22

This is the best birthday present I could have asked for. The Onion News Network has the funniest, most prescient videos online and I love going back to watch them. Even if the Onion comes back half as funny as they were it's going to be fabulous. Here are a few of my lesser-known favorites: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJdP1zK15bE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRgRz3nSG7o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUT8ec2…

Experts Agree, Giant Bioengineered Crabs Pose No Threat

https://youtu.be/-Uq9pp586AE?si=NxdI4vwYZQr817QI

Reporters having a panel discussion on teevee. I stopped the video and read each of the supporting print stories that flashed by and they were perfect, too.

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#147

Post by ghostpepper »

Since everyone is just posting their favourite headlines:

Report: Average Male 4,000% Less Effective In Fights Than They Imagine

What makes the onion writing truly great is how they discipline themselves to stick to a single bit for a given article. The entire punchline is in the headline, and the rest of the article is about as straight-laced as you could imagine, as if it was written by a real reporter in a world where the absurd thing was not unusual at all. It's a sort of written version of a deadpan delivery.

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#148

Post by jazzyjackson »

sharkweek wrote: post #142
trimbo wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Secondhand smoke linked to secondhand coolness" "Schaumburg Man Dimly Aware Of Shadowy, Non-Schaumburg World Out There" "Clinton Injected With Highly Unstable Experimental Growth Serum" "Beer! It kicks ass!" Lastly, the 9/11 issue is one of their greatest achievements. They struck the perfect balance/tone, avoiding "too soon": https://www.theonion.com/issue-37-34-the-september-11th-issu...

“CIA Realizes It's Been Using Black Highlighters All These Years” https://www.theonion.com/cia-realizes-its-been-using-black-h... They also had one that they didn’t run making a joke right after 9/11 to the effect of… “America Stronger Than Ever, Say Quadragon Officials." Also the routine “No Way To Prevent This” headline after every mass shooting only continues to gain potency.

"After Obama Victory, Shrieking White-Hot Sphere Of Pure Rage Early GOP Front-Runner For 2016"

https://www.theonion.com/after-obama-victory-shrieking-white...

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#149

Post by ht_th »

bitsinthesky wrote: post #103
pabs3 wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, or send them to archive.org for scanning and publishing on the web.

And these fullpage scans provide value above what theonion.com already provides?

Besides, who knows how long theonion.com will stay up. Or keeps giving access to all old articles?

After all, they've just been bought. Usually this results in changes, despite new owner's loud promises that nothing will change.

Re: Jeff Lawson buys The Onion

#150

Post by saagarjha »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #66
lubujackson wrote: post #57

I'm old enough to remember when it was a physical paper you'd get for free in Harvard Square... wish I kept some of them. I particularly enjoyed the old "Point/Counterpoints" such as: https://www.theonion.com/u-s-out-of-my-uterus-vs-we-must-dep... https://www.theonion.com/americas-homeless-want-a-hand-up-no... https://www.theonion.com/my-computer-totally-hates-me-vs-god... Also, shout out to the "Oh! Mumford" comic s…

I don't think I'm the target audience. I don't really get it. I spent years homeless. I try to write about meaningful ways to help the homeless while preserving their agency. I try to write about systemic issues I feel contribute to the problem. I don't find that second link funny or relatable or anything that makes sense to me.

Well, The Onion is not there to write about meaningful ways to help the homeless. Their job is to satirize the dumb views that people push.
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