David Spade Has Complicated Feelings About Freedom of Speech

“The freedom of speech thing is so murky and muddy,” mused David Spade on a recent Fly on the Wall podcast. 

Comedians usually come out in full defense of the First Amendment, like Spade’s partner, Dana Carvey. “We’re all for freedom of speech,” he insisted, although he doesn’t always agree with what others have to say. “The Ku Klux Klan could walk down streets and say whatever they wanted — when I was a little kid, it was like, ‘Oh, you have to allow speech you really don’t like for freedom of speech.’”

The Klan can’t do that anymore, Spade pointed out, thanks to that murky, muddy concept called hate speech. “And then who decides what’s hate speech? Is it someone that you disagree with? That’s hate to me. It’s not hate to you.” 

To be clear, Spade wasn’t advocating for hate speech from the Klan or anyone else. He was simply explaining that there are complicated “layers” to free speech. Charles Rocket got fired from Saturday Night Live for saying “fuck” on live television, for example. The government didn’t fire Rocket, but NBC knew the FCC was about to come a-calling.

“When I go on talk shows, I don’t say whatever I want,” Spade said. “It’s just so woven into your everyday. What is free speech?” 

Jimmy Kimmel is the latest example of the complexities, a comedian who faced pressure from the FCC, network affiliates and advertisers. “You’re answering to so many people,” Spade said. “And if they don’t agree with you … everyone has a boss, and sometimes they say, ‘I don’t like what you’re saying.’”

Firing (or suspending) someone because of what employers deem to be inappropriate speech isn’t a violation of the First Amendment, of course. But Spade’s point is speaking freely has consequences — for everyone, not just comedians.  

Both Spade and Carvey were baffled by FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s public threats about dealing with Kimmel “the easy way or the hard way.” 

“This guy’s on podcasts,” said Spade. “I’m like, what? Why am I seeing this guy talk? Am I crazy? He steps in shit when he talks.” 

“I wish the FCC chairman hadn’t said that,” Carvey said. He noted that even conservatives like Ted Cruz warned Carr to tap the brakes before turning the subject to The Dana Carvey Show. “I like to bring things back to me,” he admitted. 

At least this example was relevant to the discussion. After Carvey’s 1996 sketch show came out of the gates with Bill Clinton breastfeeding puppies from his multiple teats, many pushed back on the aggressive comedy. “We immediately started losing advertisers. We immediately started losing affiliates,” Carvey said. “And so we lasted eight episodes.” 

It’s always a good idea to fact-check Dana Carvey, even on the subject of Dana Carvey. His show lasted even fewer episodes than he remembered — seven, not eight — and there’s no record of affiliates dropping the show. But the edgy sketches did lose him advertisers. Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, not companies known for their discriminating taste, bailed out because they did not “feel comfortable” with the show’s humor. Cancellation soon followed.

Despite Spade’s complicated feelings about free speech and comedy, “I would go out on a limb and say, it’s still a great country overall,” he said. “I’d rather be here than in other countries.”

Careful, warned Carvey, that opinion is going to light up Twitter. “Fuck you, man!”