Satirical news outlet 'The Onion' spoofs sportscasts
If you happen to confuse Wednesday’s Canadian debut of the Onion SportsDome with real sports highlights, then the creators of the new comedy show have done their job.
It’s the latest project from the satirical news outlet The Onion and aims to entertain, satirize and confuse.
“What we’re trying to accomplish is what The Onion is always trying to accomplish, which is to misinform people as much as possible, deceive them and trick them into thinking they’re watching real news,” says Jack Kukoda, co-executive producer and head writer of the show that’s scheduled to run 10 episodes on the Comedy Network (Wednesdays, 10 p.m.).
The show is a bang-on takeoff on ESPN’s SportsCenter and will strike a chord with Canadians because TSN’s SportsCentre and its counterparts on The Score andRogers Sportsnet look so much like the American version.
The overheated, overly serious delivery peppered with catchphrases are only slightly exaggerated versions of what sports fans see every night on honest-to-goodness sports shows. The stories? Not so much.
On the other hand, a report on NHL commissioner Gary Bettman staging a fake kidnapping to bring much-needed publicity to “his strange ice sport” looks quite real, as does another detailing NBA rule changes inspired by LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade (“dribbling will be optional if you’re planning to do a really sweet dunk.”)
It’s hilarious at times, tasteless at others.
And a rapid-fire segment entitled “Who Would You Kill?” couldn’t have come at a worse time considering the events of the past week.
Kukoda says that although it isn’t always in good taste, the beauty of the show is that it has no limits.
http://www.thestar.com/sports/article/920080--satirical-news-outlet-the-onion-spoofs-sportscasts
If you happen to confuse Wednesday’s Canadian debut of the Onion SportsDome with real sports highlights, then the creators of the new comedy show have done their job.
It’s the latest project from the satirical news outlet The Onion and aims to entertain, satirize and confuse.
“What we’re trying to accomplish is what The Onion is always trying to accomplish, which is to misinform people as much as possible, deceive them and trick them into thinking they’re watching real news,” says Jack Kukoda, co-executive producer and head writer of the show that’s scheduled to run 10 episodes on the Comedy Network (Wednesdays, 10 p.m.).
The show is a bang-on takeoff on ESPN’s SportsCenter and will strike a chord with Canadians because TSN’s SportsCentre and its counterparts on The Score andRogers Sportsnet look so much like the American version.
The overheated, overly serious delivery peppered with catchphrases are only slightly exaggerated versions of what sports fans see every night on honest-to-goodness sports shows. The stories? Not so much.
On the other hand, a report on NHL commissioner Gary Bettman staging a fake kidnapping to bring much-needed publicity to “his strange ice sport” looks quite real, as does another detailing NBA rule changes inspired by LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade (“dribbling will be optional if you’re planning to do a really sweet dunk.”)
It’s hilarious at times, tasteless at others.
And a rapid-fire segment entitled “Who Would You Kill?” couldn’t have come at a worse time considering the events of the past week.
Kukoda says that although it isn’t always in good taste, the beauty of the show is that it has no limits.
http://www.thestar.com/sports/article/920080--satirical-news-outlet-the-onion-spoofs-sportscasts