Stephen Colbert jests about 'weird' Mormons; Bill Maher's Mormon opinion 'absurd'

When it comes to comedy, the line between satire and misinformation can be a thin one.

For example, during an episode of "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central last week, host/writer/producer Stephen Colbert stayed squarely on the side of satire with his view of Mitt Romney's Mormonism, which led to a couple of jokes on the LDS Church's "I'm a Mormon" advertising campaign and a suggestion that God needs a similar campaign to bolster His sagging approval rating in a recent poll of Americans.

Irreverent? Perhaps. But good-natured. And funny.

Referring to the much-reported alleged Obama campaign strategy to lob personal attacks at Republican presidential front-runner Romney and his "weird" faith, Colbert said: "So Obama is going to use 'weird' as code for 'Mormon.' You know, I am really starting to respect that urban, rhythmic, socialist, Kenyan, secret Muslim.'"

Part of Colbert's schtick is his dark, perfectly combed hair with a neat part.

"Look at his hair!" Colbert continued during his bit on Romney, as a photo of the candidate's head was placed on the screen very close to the show host's head. "Dark, perfectly combed with a neat part. Nice hair, weirdo!"

"The weirdest thing about him is that weird religion of his," Colbert said, tongue firmly planted in his cheek. "Mormons believe Joseph Smith received golden plates from an angel on a hill, when everyone knows that Moses got stone tablets from a burning bush on a mountain."

Colbert also talked about the LDS Church's "I'm a Mormon" advertising campaign, and even showed a few clips from "I'm a Mormon" videos showing LDS members who surf, climb rocks and design and ride motorcycles. The campaign, he quipped, "makes Mormons irresistibly cool." And then he suggested that his own Catholic Church launch a similar ad campaign and offered up a sample video of a guy named Jason who was skateboarding, playing a frenzied electric guitar, falconing and exchanging a high-five with a tiger — simultaneously. The spoof ad ended with the super-imposed words: "In your face, Mormons!"

Yes, to some it might seem a little confrontational. Presented with Colbert's over-the-top comedic style, however, one gets the clear sense that it is all in fun.

Not so with Bill Maher, who was taken to task recently by Noel Sheppard at Newsbusters.org for his claim on MSNBC's "The Ed Show" that Mormonism is closer to Islam than it is to Christianity.