What happens when a joke cuts too deep and lingers beyond the punchline? ESPN analyst Ryan Clark and comedian Andrew Schultz find the answer to this question quite complicated. Tensions, previously thought resolved, have resurfaced due to the backlash from a contentious joke talking about Black women. After a recent attempt to hash things out, Clark has once again brought the debate back into the spotlight. Comedians vs. society – the war wages on.

The controversy began last summer. When Andrew Schulz made a remark on his Flagrant podcast about what he called the “Black girlfriend effect.” The joke implied that men with Black girlfriends grow beards to cushion slaps and cut their hair shorter due to stress. While Schulz intended this as humor, many, including Ryan Clark, found it offensive for perpetuating harmful stereotypes about Black women.

Cut to 2nd April, 2025. Schulz appeared on The Pivot Podcast to address the backlash directly. During their conversation, Schulz admitted, “The joke wasn’t funny enough for how much it hurt people”, acknowledging that its impact outweighed his comedic intentions. He elaborated, “It doesn’t really matter what your intention was. It matters how you make someone feel – I didn’t care to hurt Black women. I just wanted to make a joke. It hurt them.” Clark, however, isn’t satisfied. After their candid exchange on the podcast, Clark reignited the debate by taking to X to clarify where he stands.

As per the X post, Clark admitted, “Andrew’s words didn’t feel like a joke to me, & he felt my response painted him as ignorant… ‘ignorant’ is something he won’t accept. He knows Black women are capable of immense beauty, & he didn’t want to be positioned as someone who was unaware of that.” On the podcast, he emphasized how jokes like these can breed negative stereotypes when left unaddressed. “To people who may see that… they’ll go, ‘Well Andrew Schulz made this joke about Black women and there were two Black men sitting across from him; this must be true,’” he explained.

Critics like Clark argue that intent doesn’t negate impact. For Clark, defending Black women isn’t about limiting comedy. It’s all about challenging narratives that reinforce harmful stereotypes. It’s about knowing the impact words can have on society as a whole. As he explained in his tweet: “What I know is that we all have to be aware of the impact of our words on whether in jest or not. More importantly, be willing to have the uncomfortable conversations that may follow.”

Andrew Schulz on a tightrope of comedy

Andrew Schulz walks a fine line between edgy and offensive. He has built his career on pushing boundaries in comedy. He is famous for his bold, unreserved comedic approach to race and culture. During his appearance on The Pivot Podcast, Schulz defended his comedic approach and acknowledged its potential pitfalls. “I hope people maybe learn more about me and see that I don’t have bad intentions for people,” Schulz said during the discussion. “I make fun of everybody because if I don’t make fun of one group, then it becomes uncomfortable… Then it starts to become racist or sexist or whatever.”

Schulz also addressed the bigger debates. What comedians can and cannot joke about in today’s cultural climate, “I hope and aspire to make jokes so that everybody laughs… but I don’t think it’s fair to limit what we can joke about.” He argued that comedy should remain an open space for exploring all experiences, not just those personally lived by the comedian. However, nowadays, it’s a double-edged sword, without a doubt.

Clark’s decision to speak out reflects an increasing demand for accountability from public figures with influential platforms. In this era, social media amplifies support and criticism at light speed. Meanwhile, Schulz argues comedians deserve freedom to experiment without facing prejudiced accusations for jokes that flop. As Schulz puts it, “Unfortunately, people’s feelings are gonna be hurt – if anybody came up to me like, ‘Hey, that thing you said really hurt my feelings,’ I’d be like, ‘Dude, I’m sorry.’ But if they said, ‘Don’t you ever make jokes about that again,’ I’d go, ‘I can’t let you control what I make jokes about.’”

For now, the debate between Clark and Schulz remains unresolved. It has sparked larger conversations about the power of comedy and its potential pitfalls. Whether they ever find common ground remains uncertain. One thing’s clear though: their exchange has become bigger than their platforms now.