Jeff Dunham

The comedic equivalent of a T-shirt with one of the World Trade Center towers shoved up Osama Bin Laden’s rectum, Jeff Dunham emerged as one of America’s top comedians not only for his novel choice of medium (he’s a ventriloquist) but also for his Christian, conservative values. He’s the Sarah Palin of the comedy world, channeling the anger of red-blooded Americans who feel under attack by cashiers who now say “happy holidays” instead of “merry Christmas.” Unable to ignore the remarkable ratings of Dunham’s regular comedy specials for the channel, Comedy Central gave the ventriloquist his own program last fall, “The Jeff Dunham Show,” which brought the station some of its highest ratings and most scathing reviews. Perhaps understanding the damage to their brandand how irreconcilable Dunham’s image is with the more youth- (and left-) skewing satire of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbertin December Comedy Central opted not to renew Dunham’s show for a second season.