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                                                                                     PEOPLE & ARTS Tuesday 13 February 2018
            Oliver relishes being


            able to do show


            without restrictions




            By DAVID BAUDER              hour  extra  sleep  I'll  have,'"
            NEW  YORK  (AP)  —  HBO's  he said.
            John Oliver so relished be-  The  show  constantly  has
            ing able to trash AT&T's cell  to weigh how much of the
            phone service that he can't  day-to-day  actions  of  the
            imagine  doing  "Last  Week  Trump  administration  to
            Tonight"  under  corporate  address, both because he
            restrictions.                doesn't want to change its
            His  network's  corporate  formula,  and  since  many
            parent,  Time  Warner,  is  topics  are  picked  clean
            waiting  to  see  whether  by  daily  topical  comedy
            a  proposed  takeover  by  shows.  News,  and  the  hu-
            AT&T will be approved. Oli-  mor pulled out of it, moves
            ver's show, which begins its  so  fast  that  programs  like
            fifth season on Sunday, has  the "Late Show" had to go
            been able to operate with  live  after  Trump's  State  of
            freedom  in  part  because  the Union address because
            HBO's business depends on  the jokes would seem stale
            subscribers  instead  of  ad-  24 hours later, he said.
            vertiser,  and  he's  become  But  there  are  some  topics   In this Nov. 7, 2017 file photo, comedian John Oliver performs at the 11th Annual Stand Up for
                                                                      Heroes benefit in New York.
            quite accustomed to it.      —  like  when  Trump  com-                                                                         Associated Press
            "We  were  drawing  a  line  mented upon the demon-
            in the sand," Oliver said on  strations  in  Charlotteville,
            Monday,  referring  to  an  Virginia  —  where  not  talk-
            episode  last  season  that  ing  about  it  would  be  like
            discussed corporate merg-    an  editorial  decision  in  it-
            ers,  including  Time  War-  self, he said.
            ner's. "I don't anticipate the  Despite starting its fifth sea-
            ground underneath us shift-  son, Oliver said the show still
            ing and if it does, that is go-  feels new. He’s contracted
            ing to be a problem. We'll  to  do  two  more  and  an
            go down screaming."          HBO executive sitting near
            He  said  he  realizes  that  him at a news conference
            "Last Week Tonight" is lucky  indicated   the   network
            to have the ability to do the  would like more.
            lengthy, journalism-style ex-  “I  still  feel  there  is  a  lot  of
            plorations of issues and the  room to get better,” Oliver
            jokes it gets to do along the  said. “I don’t feel like we’re
            way.                         at cruising altitude yet.”
            "Being  able  to  point  out  Oliver  attracted  attention
            that  this  product  is  (lousy)  during the show’s hiatus for
            and that tastes terrible, it's  being  on  a  panel  discus-
            really  great  to  have  that  sion with Dustin Hoffman in
            kind  of  freedom,"  he  said.  December that sparked an
            "It's addictive."            uncomfortable  discussion
            Besides some topical jokes,  about  women  who  had
            the  show's  centerpiece  is  made  sexual  misconduct
            one lengthy exploration of  allegations  against  him.
            an issue each week. Oliver  Hoffman should have been
            tackles  topics  that  would  expecting  that  he  would
            seem  television-unfriendly,  be questioned about it, Oli-
            like net neutrality or health  ver said.
            care financing, and teach-   “The  first  person  that  he
            ing an audience while hav-   talked  to  (publicly)  was
            ing some laughs along the  going  to  have  to  ask  him
            way.                         questions  about  it,”  Oliver
            He's reluctant to talk about  said.  “Unfortunately,  that
            any  topics  that  the  show  was me.”
            will  cover  during  a  new  The  discussion  continued
            season,  both  to  preserve  largely  because  his  an-
            the element of surprise and  swers  “were  pretty  bad,”
            because  they  probably  Oliver  said.  “I  wanted  to
            wouldn't sound appetizing.   try and get him to a point
            "If we say to people, 'look,  of self-reflection and to try
            we're  going  to  talk  about  and  get  something  out  of
            Sinclair Broadcasting,' you'll  the  conversation,  but  that
            think  'good,  that's  a  half-  didn’t happen,” he said.q
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