Ofcom chief calls to regulate Netflix over Jimmy Carr Gypsy joke

Ofcom chief calls to regulate Netflix over Jimmy Carr Gypsy joke: Pressure piles on US streaming giant as 16,000 sign petition calling for comic’s show to be removed while theatres are urged to CANCEL his upcoming comedy gigs

Dame Melanie Dawes said she ‘would welcome any chance’ to regulate Netflix
She said she understands why people found Jimmy Carr’s joke ‘very offensive’
But she said there isn’t much she can do while Netflix is under Dutch regulator
It comes as theatres were yesterday urged to boycott the ‘Terribly Funny Tour’

The head of Ofcom has said there would be ‘real value’ in the media watchdog regulating Netflix after Jimmy Carr made a joke about the Holocaust.

Dame Melanie Dawes said she ‘would welcome any chance to work on that’ after the comedian was slammed for mocking murdered Gypsies.

She said she understands why people found it ‘very offensive’ but added there was not much she could do while the streaming service was under Dutch regulators.

It comes as theatres were urged to boycott Carr’s Terribly Funny Tour, with attention turned on the Grove Theatre in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, tonight.

Meanwhile a petition, labelled ‘The Genocide of Roma is Not a Laughing Matter’, had been signed by more than 15,000 people.

Gypsy leaders also invited the stand up performer to Auschwitz to remember the genocide later this year.

The comedian and TV host sparked outrage with a joke about the Holocaust in his recent one-hour Netflix special, His Dark Material.

In a widely-shared clip from the show, Carr joked about the horror of the Second World War systematic killings and ‘six million Jewish lives being lost’.

He then made a disparaging remark about the deaths of thousands of Gypsies who were also killed by the Nazis.

The Health Secretary also urged people to send streaming service Netflix a ‘very strong message’ by ‘not watching or listening’ to the stand-up star (pictured)

Meanwhile a petition, labelled ‘The Genocide of Roma is Not a Laughing Matter’ , had been signed by more than 15,000 people

Jimmy Carr’s Terribly Funny Tour… where is he performing this month?

February 8: Dunstable
February 10: Southend
February 11: Liverpool
February 12: Cheltenham
February 13: London
February 16: Cambridge
February 19: London
February 20: Southampton
February 25: Rhyl
February 26: Leicester
February 27: Bromley

Chief Executive of Ofcom Dame Melanie told Channel 4 News: ‘I can certainly see that there’ll be real value in [regulating Netflix]. Yes. And so we would welcome any chance to work on that.’

She added: ‘I can really understand why a lot of people found that very offensive and as you say, we don’t regulate Netflix at the moment, they’re underneath the Dutch regulator.

‘And I think that is a concern because it means that for viewers, it’s really confusing that they’ve got different standards applied, for example, to Channel 4 News than they have to YouTube and other services, including Netflix, that come streamed on to our TVs.’

Downing Street on Monday called Carr’s comments ‘deeply disturbing’ but said it was a matter for Netflix whether the show should remain on its streaming service.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries previously suggested new laws via the Media Bill could hold to account streaming sites for airing jokes such as those made by Carr.

Ms Dorries also warned over the weekend that she was putting social media giants such as Facebook on notice with her Online Safety Bill.

She said Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg could end up in jail if the social media platform does not comply with new online safety laws.

Responding to these comments, Dame Melanie said: ‘Fear isn’t always what really makes a difference.

‘I’d like to talk to Mark Zuckerberg, I haven’t met him. It’d be good to hear from him about what he thinks about these issues.

‘But you know, we’ll have to see what sort of penalties the Government introduces in the Bill.

‘I want to make them accountable, really for the first time, and to increase transparency across the industry.

‘So that the public have got a much better sense of what’s going on and how things are getting better.’

Dame Melanie Dawes said she ‘would welcome any chance to work on’ regulating Netflix after the comedian was slammed for mocking murdered Gypsies

Downing Street says Jimmy Carr’s Holocaust joke is ‘deeply disturbing’ but matter for Netflix

Downing Street has said Jimmy Carr’s joke about the Holocaust was ‘deeply disturbing’ but it is a matter for Netflix whether the comedian’s show should remain on its streaming service. The PM’s spokesman said: ‘Those comments are deeply disturbing and it’s unacceptable to make light of genocide.’

The Government is ‘toughening measures for social media and streaming platforms who don’t tackle harmful content’. Asked whether Netflix should pull the show, the spokesman said: ‘That will be a matter for them. We are clear that mocking the atrocities of the Holocaust is unacceptable.’ The Government was focused on ‘making sure that streaming services are more accountable’, he added.

Carr sparked outrage with the comment, which was aired as a preview to his new Netflix show and tour.

The stand-up comedian, also known for his roles on shows like 8 Out Of 10 Cats, made a disparaging remark about the deaths of thousands of Gypsies in the war.

He told a laughing audience: ‘But they never mention the thousands of Gypsies that were killed by the Nazis.

‘No one ever wants to talk about that, because no one ever wants to talk about the positives.’

Theatres set to host Carr’s tour also saw the heat intensify last night from Traveller campaign groups.

The Grove Theatre in Dubstable, Bedfordshire, which is set to host him tonight, was under pressure to shelve the performance.

The Luton Roma Trust called for the venue to ensure the ‘gross racial slur’ would not be repeated.

It said: ‘We appreciate that comedy is subjective but in our view when punchlines are indistinguishable from the genuinely held views of fascists and neo-Nazis, a line has very clearly been crossed.’

It also called for Carr to apologise and for Netflix to strip the segment out of the comedy special.

Local campaign groups are weighing up plans for a protest at theatres set to hosting the comedian.

Petition that tells Carr genocide ‘is not a laughing matter’ signed by more than 15,000

A petition, labelled ‘The Genocide of Roma is Not a Laughing Matter’, had been signed by more than 15,000 people.

The petition states: ‘In Netflix comedy special ‘His Dark Material’, Jimmy Carr ‘jokes’ that the Romani and Sinti genocide is ignored when people discuss the Holocaust because people don’t want to ‘focus on the positives’. This is nothing short of a celebration of genocide.

‘We appreciate that comedy is subjective but in our view when punchlines are indistinguishable from the genuinely-held views of fascists and Neo-Nazis, a line has very clearly been crossed.

‘We acknowledge that Jimmy Carr highlighted the widespread ignorance that exists with regard to non-Jewish victims of the holocaust, but it was nevertheless incredibly crass for him to claim his ‘joke’ therefore had an ‘educational quality’.

‘If this was the case he would have used his considerable platform to raise awareness of Roma Holocaust Memorial Day to his 6.7m followers. To our knowledge, that has never happened. That speaks volumes.

‘There is no legitimate basis for this ‘joke’, and no positive to its inclusion which outweighs the profoundly negative impact it produces.’

Sherrie Smith, from Gypsies and Travellers Essex, told the Times: ‘We should be looking at Channel 4, all the theatres that endorse Jimmy Carr and everybody who he works next to. We need to look at why he did this.’

Gypsy leaders called on Carr to join them at Auschwitz when they visit to remember the Holocaust on August 2, the date in 1944 when 4,000 Roma were killed.

Spokesman for the UK’s Roma Billy Welch said if the comedian and presenter went he may ‘appreciate the hurt and fear he has stirred up’.

He told the Mirror: ‘His so-called joke was so offensive because there are many still living who witnessed the brutality of what happened, and many more who lost families in barbarous murders.’

Meanwhile a petition, labelled ‘The Genocide of Roma is Not a Laughing Matter’, had been signed by more than 15,000 people.

‘We appreciate that comedy is subjective but in our view when punchlines are indistinguishable from the genuinely-held views of fascists and Neo-Nazis, a line has very clearly been crossed.

‘There is no legitimate basis for this ‘joke’, and no positive to its inclusion which outweighs the profoundly negative impact it produces.’

It is estimated between 200,000 and 500,000 Roma and Sinti people were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust.

Boris Johnson’s spokesman also said it was ‘unacceptable to make light of genocide’ and suggested the Government could push for a crack down on platforms.

He said in a statement: ‘These comments are deeply disturbing and it is unacceptable to make light of genocide.

‘Broadly we are looking at toughening measures for social media and streaming platforms who don’t tackle harmful content on their platforms and that is what we are moving forward for.

‘Obviously we are looking at regulatory changes for those streaming companies.’

Asked if Netflix should take down the Carr show, he added: ‘That will be a matter for them, we are clear that mocking the atrocities of the holocaust is unacceptable.

‘What we are focused on is making sure that the streaming services are more accountable and moving forward with our legislation.’

Sajid Javid also waded into the row – describing the comedian’s joke as ‘horrid’ and urged people to send streaming service Netflix a ‘very strong message’.

He said: ‘I think we all have a right to react to that, and one of the best ways anyone can react to that is show these platforms what they think about Jimmy Carr by not watching or listening to him, and that will send him a very strong message.’

Meanwhile, comedian David Baddiel, a close friend of Carr, also criticised him over the joke, describing it as ‘mean-spirited’ and ‘cruel’.

He said: ‘You can obviously tell a Holocaust joke that is cruel and inhumane and mean-spirited and racist.

‘Or you can tell one that targets the oppressors, or draws attention to the fundamental evil of it, or shines and light on the humanity of the victims.

‘It’s not the subject matter of the joke that counts, it’s the specifics of the individual joke. Clearly, Jimmy Carr’s was the former.’

Jewish comedian David Baddiel (pictured left) slammed Carr for joking about the Holocaust on stage. My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding star Paddy Doherty (pictured right) has called for police to probe Carr’s joke about gypsies killed in the Holocaust

Elsewhere, Irish traveller and bare-knuckle boxer Paddy Doherty said the ‘disgusting’ joke was an insult to the 1.5million gypsies exterminated in death camps.

He told the Sunday Mirror: ‘He should be investigated by the police.

‘That wasn’t a joke. He’s talking about mass murder being a positive – would he be allowed to say this about black people killed by the Ku Klux Klan?

‘There’s a level you don’t go to. More than a million of my people were killed.’

The joke was condemned Labour MPs including Labour’s Nadia Whittome and David Lammy who described it as ‘despicable’.

Carr sparked outrage from various Traveller charities and anti-hate groups after a clip was shared on social media.

In a tweet referencing the joke, The Traveller Movement – a charity supporting the traveller community in the UK, said: ‘This is truly disturbing and goes way beyond humour.’

It added: ‘We need all your support in calling this out #StopTravellerHate @StopFundingHate.’

The charity have now launched a petition to Netflix calling for the ‘removal of the segments of His Dark Material which celebrates the Romani genocide’.

Olivia Marks-Woldman OBE, Chief Executive of Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, added: ‘We are absolutely appalled at Jimmy Carr’s comment about persecution suffered by Roma and Sinti people under Nazi oppression, and horrified that gales of laughter followed his remarks.

‘Hundreds of thousands of Roma and Sinti people suffered prejudice, slave labour, sterilisation and mass murder simply because of their identity – these are not experiences for mockery.

‘The widespread ignorance of this recent history needs to be addressed and we urge everyone to learn more about the past and the experiences of Roma people today.

‘Roma and Sinti people still face dreadful prejudice as this incident shows. Please show your support by learning more, challenging hateful comments like these, and following accounts such as Roma Support Group, The Traveller Movement, and Friends, Families and Travellers.’

Carr issued a ‘trigger warning’ to the audience at the beginning of the show, admitting his performance contained ‘terrible things’.

Speaking during a recent gig in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear, he told his audience ‘the joke that ends my career is already out there’.

A woman in the audience heckled Carr by saying, ‘Are we going to talk about the Holocaust?’ the Mirror reported.

Carr replied: ‘We are going to talk about cancel culture, the whole thing. We are going to talk about f***ing everything people. Relax.’

He later said: ‘We are speaking my friends in the last chance saloon. What I am saying on stage this evening is barely acceptable now.

‘In ten years f***ing forget about it. You are going to be able to tell your grandchildren about seeing this show tonight.’

Carr and Netflix have been contacted for comment.

What a joke! Jimmy Carr’s crass attempt to challenge cancel culture with his Holocaust ‘gag’ will actually only strengthen it, writes CHRISTOPHER HART

Comedian Jimmy Carr has always displayed a distinct taste for the tasteless in his stand-up routines and on his hit Channel 4 panel show, 8 Out Of 10 Cats.

His deadpan humour is challenging to say the least, and not something that appeals to everyone.

But it was during his recent outing on Netflix, in a comedy special entitled His Dark Material, that Carr — deliberately — pushed the boundaries of his brand too far for many with a joke about the Holocaust and a disparaging remark about the thousands of Gypsies killed by the Nazis.

He even introduced the joke in an arrogant fashion by saying ‘it could be a career ender’.

Comedian Jimmy Carr has always displayed a distinct taste for the tasteless in his stand-up routines and on his hit Channel 4 panel show, 8 Out Of 10 Cats

Fellow celebrities have queued up to criticise him, including his friend and fellow comedian David Baddiel and the author Sir Philip Pullman.

The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust said his comments were ‘hateful’.

Boris Johnson’s spokesman has weighed in, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries described Carr’s comment as ‘abhorrent’, and Health Secretary Sajid Javid is urging people to send Netflix a ‘very strong message’ by ‘not watching or listening’ to Carr.

Others have gone further, demanding that viewers cancel their subscriptions.

Fellow celebrities have queued up to criticise him, including his friend and fellow comedian David Baddiel (pictured) and the author Sir Philip Pullman

The Traveller Movement, a charity supporting the traveller community in the UK, said the joke in question was ‘truly disturbing and goes way beyond humour’.

It has also launched a petition demanding that the streaming service edit the segment of the show to remove the offending item. Last night, it had attracted more than 13,000 signatures and counting.

I do not want to defend Carr. He’s a clever man, an experienced stand-up and TV professional. He knew exactly what he was doing, and why, in initiating outrage.

On stage in Whitley Bay at the weekend, after he was heckled about the Holocaust issue, he left the audience in no doubt that he had wanted to take on ‘cancel culture’.

Carr said: ‘When people talk about the Holocaust, they talk about the tragedy and horror of six million Jewish lives being lost to the Nazi war machine. But they never mention the thousands of Gypsies that were killed by the Nazis. No one ever talks about that because no one wants to talk about the positives.’ Pictured: Survivors of Auschwitz

According to reports, he told them: ‘What I am saying on stage this evening is barely acceptable now. In ten years, forget about it.

‘You are going to be able to tell your grandchildren about seeing this show tonight. You will say: ‘I saw a man and he stood on a stage and he made light of serious issues. We used to call them jokes and people would laugh.’ ‘

He has a point, but I would argue that what Carr has done is to actively promote cancel culture, to fan the flames feeding it.

Taste aside, the joke that has caused the furore wasn’t funny to with start with. It barely deserves repeating, but for the broader points I want to make it is necessary to do so.

Like I said, not funny.

But does it matter if a joke is funny or not, or in such appallingly bad taste that it will offend many reasonable people?

Doesn’t a comedian have the freedom to tell whatever jokes he or she wants?

And is it really, as one campaign group claimed, ‘a celebration of genocide’? No it isn’t. This is an absurd exaggeration.

Many of those who identify broadly as ‘conservative’ feel deep in their bones that freedom of speech and expression are far more important than the right of any individual or group not to have their feelings hurt.

But nowadays, the massed forces of Correctness and Woke — the most censorious and intolerant forces of our time — have some powerful arguments on their side, however much we may dislike that fact.

They might argue in this instance, for example, that Carr was deliberately targeting an ethnic minority, the Roma, who have been persecuted, marginalised and finally murdered by the thousands, and within living memory, thanks to the vile ideology of ‘racial purity’ propounded by the Nazis.

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding star Paddy Doherty has called for police to probe Carr’s joke about gypsies killed in the Holocaust

And given that this is the case, no one should have the right to make jokes about something so terrible as genocide. In the sort of phraseology favoured by the Woke, Jimmy Carr’s facile quip risks ‘legitimising violence against ethnic minorities’.

Loyalists to the principle of free speech might regard this as nonsense. A joke is just a joke, whether you find it funny or not, and it places no one in danger of physical harm. Simple.

But the truth is rarely simple, and freedom of speech flourishes best when it comes with responsibility. Jimmy Carr’s joke was irresponsible; a calculated way of provoking and annoying the forces of censorship. But it has backfired.

Carr has actually given those who want to censor us even more ammunition.

He’s like a naughty boy who has deliberately stirred up a hornet’s nest — to the delight of the morally indignant and perpetually outraged — and while he may well get stung himself, so too will many others in his wake.

Television bosses will, as a result of his joke, become yet more jittery and anxious, forever checking their Twitter feeds and social media to see if their stars or programmes have caused any offence.

The genuinely funny and imaginatively outrageous will have a harder time getting heard as a result, and our cultural experience will be the poorer for it.

Free speech has never been entirely free — and, indeed, a society where absolute free speech was practised would hardly be a society at all, but chaos.

Nor is the instinct that drives the Censorious Woke, determined to silence anyone who disagrees with them or sees things differently, an entirely new development. Before Political Correctness, there was Mary Whitehouse and Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells.

Meanwhile, the BBC has been banning comedians since before many of us were born. Back in the 1950s, it banned the music-hall comedian Max Miller and his song Let’s Have A Ride On Your Bicycle, due to its ‘outrageous’ lyrics:

After the ride I began to perspire

It wasn’t the ride, I’d been pumping her tyre

Innocent days. Nowadays, in order to provoke a storm — and the cynic might say attract attention to a new show — saucy innuendo won’t do.

A comedian like Jimmy Carr has to make jokes about one of the most atrocious episodes in human history, the Holocaust, and the sufferings of the Roma.

Arguably even worse was Carr’s subsequent back-pedalling, when he tried to make out that his quip might be ‘educational’, raising awareness that many Roma were killed by the Nazis as well.

But none of this can come as a surprise for Netflix (market value $175 billion). With Carr, they can’t pretend they didn’t know what they might get. In the past, he has freely admitted, ‘I do a lot of jokes about rape’, and previous gags about amputee soldiers have disgusted many.

In his defence, Carr has protested that many servicemen loved his performances, and the black humour was typically ‘squaddie’. From what I know of soldiers’ sense of humour, I think he’s probably right. After you’ve been through a tour of duty in Helmand, you’re unlikely to get upset about a mere joke.

But by exploiting the Holocaust for comedy material and then almost begging for attention by prefacing his show with the warning (or boast?) that this will surely get him cancelled for ever, Carr may well find that it will be the outcome which, in his vanity, he thought he could avoid.

In wiser moments, the comedian has reflected on how the times we live in remind him of hysterical episodes of book-burning through history. Quite so.

So why did he give such a gift to the true enemies of free speech?

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