Obama Joke: Power and Danger of Words

You may be thinking this post is about Obama’s Nancy Reagan reference during his first press conference. When asked if he had talked with former Presidents as part of preparing to occupy the Oval Office next year, Obama responded that he had talked with all living former Presidents. When that brought an unintended laugh from the press corps, Obama tried a joke: “I didn’t want to get into a Nancy Reagan thing about doing any seances.” When that offhanded joke began to receive media attention, Obama called Mrs. Reagan and apologized. That’s not what this post is primarily about.

Rather it’s about what Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi first said about Obama (apparently half jokingly) after his election. According to the New York Times, Berlusconi called him “young, handsome and suntanned.” To Berlusconi’s critics in Italy, this remark was the final straw. Berlusconi has a well-documented history of gaffes. An Italian journalist remarked that while the world was inspired by Obama’s triumph over centuries of intolerance, Berlusconi contributed “a miserable, vulgar and racist remark.” (Perhaps this journalist should review what’s been said about Obama in this country.)

Admittedly, I’m no expert on Berlusconi or Italian politics. Moreover, if you’ve read this blog much at all, you know I’ve often warned about the danger of inappropriate language in the workplace. But is this what we’ve come to? Has politically correct speech cut such a wide swath that all words are dangerous?

When Dan Quayle was Vice President, the media scrutinized anything he ever said, hoping to find another gaffe. Sarah Palin’s recent candidacy for the same office suffered the same fate. It’s likely that Joe Biden, who was elected to the same office, will be trailed every day by gaffe seekers, given his propensity to talk too much and to inevitably stumble into gaffe-land. Apparently, that’s where Prime Minister Berlusconi finds himself in Italy.

I’ve never thought of “suntanned” as a racist word. Maybe someone needs to come up with a list, so we’ll all be on even footing when we say something about someone who’s different from us. I was pretty sure that when the painstakingly well-spoken Obama made the Reagan remark, he immediately regretted it, although it was just a joke and not mean-spirited at all. It’s easy to see why someone in the public eye whose every remark is so closely scrutinized could conclude it’s better to say as little as possible.

HR continues to be the language police in every workplace. Employment lawyers will continue to look for illegal language and will sometimes strain to make an innocent statement into something nefarious. That’s the world in which we live. While I appreciate the power of words and have learned over the years how dangerous they can be, it would seem to behoove all of us to realize that innocent mistakes are made when people talk, jokes are needed to brighten a presently dreary world, and gaffes aren’t defined as illegal messages but social blunders.

1. 

   John Phillips says:

   November 13, 2008 at 9:48 am

   Frank, Frank, Frank,

   That’s pretty good. Or pretty bad. Depending on one’s point of view. I like it, though, since I think you should say what you think.

   John