joke

CES Video: Is Microsoft Chet a Live Version of Microsoft Bob?

Kara Swisher in News on January 4, 2011 at 8:58 am PT

Maybe it’s just me, but is this video from Microsoft, featuring “Chet”–the software giant’s “creative presentation consultant” for the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week–freaky or not? It’s a Zen-style joke, of course, but what is the sound of one hand clapping?

Viral Video: Keith Olbermann's Non-Apologetic Apology

Kara Swisher in News on November 10, 2010 at 12:40 am PT

MSNBC cable television host Keith Olbermann was back on the air last night after a short suspension and chatting up a storm–as usual, almost entirely about himself. This time it was supposedly to apologize for handing over some dough in support of a trio of Democratic candidates, which is against NBC ethical guidelines for its news folk. It turned into more of a pat on the back.

Liveblogging the Unveiling of the SFund at Facebook (With Guest Stars: Kleiner, Amazon and Zynga)

Kara Swisher in News on October 21, 2010 at 10:44 am PT

BoomTown had to park a badillion miles away from Facebook’s suburban HQ in Palo Alto, and hoofed it there for a press event that unveiled the sFund. What’s that? A $250 million fund for social start-ups. Party on.

Chinese Schools Tied to Attacks on Google? Where’d You Read That, Mad Magazine? [UPDATED]

John Paczkowski in News on February 22, 2010 at 4:56 am PT

Claims that two schools in China were the source of cyberattacks against Google and other U.S. companies have become the butt of a state-run media joke in the country. First came vehement denials from Shanghai Jiaotong University and Lanxiang Vocational School, which dismissed the stories as unfounded. Now, Chinese “netizens” are reportedly mocking the claims.

Twitter Buzz Over Iran's Gmail Ban

Sarmad Ali, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on February 11, 2010 at 12:53 am PT

As soon as news of Iran’s ban on Gmail broke, Twitter was awash with outrage about Iranian censorship, but also with jokes about whether Google’s new update service had prompted the decision.

Viral Video: The Conan Debacle's Final Score (Game Goes to Letterman!)

Kara Swisher in News on February 8, 2010 at 12:15 am PT

The snake finally ate its own tail in the long-running NBC debacle over its mishandling of the network’s late-night switcheroo, with a Super Bowl promotion for David Letterman’s “Late Show” on CBS (CBS) last night. Starring Letterman, daytime talk show queen Oprah Winfrey and–big reveal–Jay Leno, it was a touchdown for Dave.

Memo to Apple: You Might Want to Dispatch an iPad Team to Stanford U ASAP!

Kara Swisher in News on January 29, 2010 at 2:22 am PT

Here’s a video that the intrepid All Things Digital intern, Drake Martinet, did on the campus of Stanford University–located in the heart of Silicon Valley–right after Apple launched its new iPad tablet computer earlier this week. His mission: To find out if the students at the famous institution of higher learning–presumably one of the big consumer targets for Apple–were going to go out and get an iPad asap.

Memo to Geek Dudes (and Dudettes): The Inevitable Maxi Pad Jokes About the iPad Are Lame (And Steve Jobs Doesn't Care Anyway)

Kara Swisher in News on January 27, 2010 at 3:22 pm PT

Well, that didn’t take long–even as Apple CEO Steve Jobs was launching the new iPad tablet computer today at an event in San Francisco, legions of geeky dudes let fly with the feminine-protection jokes. It is the name, iPad, that Apple chose for its newest device that sent them deep into wink-wink-nudge-nudge territory about how it sounded like a Maxi Pad and would hurt the brand. Steve Jobs begs to disagree.

Viral Video: Top 10 Reasons the NBC Late-Night Disaster Is Great for Letterman

Kara Swisher in News on January 13, 2010 at 12:02 am PT

The mess that NBC has created around its late-night talk shows continues to benefit comic online videos. While Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien have been using their fight for joke fodder over at NBC, I think the best stuff has been coming from David Letterman of “The Late Show.” Yay.