Adam Carolla One-On-One With OutKick On Sports, Comedy, And Media in Sensitive Culture

Soft, agitated losers have successfully changed American culture by weaponizing entertainment to streamline public messaging. And comedy, sports, and the media are among their most useful tools. It's rare to see an individual involved in one of these three industries push back or refuse to comply with the aggressive demands.

Enter comedian and podcast pioneer, Adam Carolla. 

Carolla spoke with OutKick about the changing landscape of entertainment, particularly comedy. Last week, Carolla also debuted a new comedy series with the Daily Wire, called Truth Yeller. The first episode is brave, unique, and vintage Carolla. 

Buckle up for this interview: 

Burack: Has the culture -- which rewards outages and punishes laughter -- changed the way you write comedy? Comedy has never been under more of an attack.

Carolla: Not at all for me. I don't really sit down and write jokes. I sort of travel through life and experience things. When I see things that seem interesting or odd to me, I try to figure out a way to convert them into a joke. 

And then there’s the vetting process. I never really think about what people will think or how (jokes) will be perceived. I don’t really, well, do any of that. So I'm a pretty pure soul when it comes to comedy.

Burack: Has there ever been a time when the country has needed comedy more in your career than now? Humor and laughter are hardly common. That’s ominous.

Carolla: Oh, that’s a good question. A really good one. I guess it depends who you ask.

Comedy is a great way to make a point. Everyone needs to laugh. But while it’s a good time to laugh, maybe it’s an even better time to make a good point.  

So that's what I do. Although, I'm not that political. But in a way, I guess you can be political by not being politically correct.

Burack: Is that what led you to team up with the Daily Wire?

Carolla: I've always been a fan of what they were doing over there at the Daily Wire. As a comedian who speaks his mind -- whether it’s on COVID or politics or whatever it is -- I just say what I'm thinking. There's no good fit for me in Hollywood these days in terms of a platform to release a special. 

So it seemed like the Daily Wire was a much better platform for someone like me, especially in today's climate.

Burack: How would the Daily Wire compare to Netflix as a fit for this special?

Carolla: Well, I don't think many of those other outlets or platforms would have me with what’s happening right now. So there’s that. 

Burack: What industry has been affected most by woke scum: comedy, sports, or media?

Carolla: In a weird way, sports. 

With media news, there's news from this side of the aisle and news from that side of the aisle. Everyone's got a leaning or a bent. That's to be expected. Although it's been greatly affected by this culture. Comedians have always, well, some have been political. They've had their different takes on things.

However, sports is supposed to be this place where if you were at Thanksgiving, and you had some in-laws over who you disagree with politically, you still gather around the TV and agree to cheer for the Lions or the Cowboys or whomever. 

The fact that sports have been this politicized, a time when sports are supposed to be a meritocracy, is surprising. Historically there's ben Muhammad Ali and, you know, Kareem Abdul Jabbar that have been political. But now, you have entities. Meaning, ESPN is as political as CNN now.

Burack: Yes. ESPN is now more reckless than CNN. Here's why:

At least CNN has to give some news before racializing a story. Meanwhile, ESPN skips reported facts and speaks to an audience less informed on divisive topics.

For example, ESPN’s Jalen Rose said the cops "murdered" Jacob Blake last week. That was the third time ESPN lied on air about Jacob Blake and the police.

Carolla: Yes. I mean, at least when CNN gets the story wrong, they're doing it on purpose. At ESPN and in sports, it’s just a bunch of ex-jocks talking out of their ass.

That said, these people in sports probably get all their facts from CNN -- that’s why they are wrong. But, yeah, you make a good point.