{
  "id": 6850146,
  "title": "Bill Maher Walks Comedy Tightrope With Pair of 9/11 Jokes on 25th Anniversary",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/bill-maher-walks-comedy-tightrope-with-pair-of-9-11-jokes-on-25th",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-12T03:16:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TheWrap",
    "slug": "thewrap",
    "url": "https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/tv-shows/bill-maher-september-11-jokes-trump-real-time-hbo/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Bill Maher delivered a monologue on \"Real Time\" on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, joking about President Donald Trump's absence from the official Ground Zero ceremony in New York while attending a Pentagon observance ceremony where he claimed Canada was the culprit. The audience reacted with laughter to the unexpected punchline, and Maher continued to mock Trump's trade war with Canada. The monologue also touched on Trump's promise to give Americans $5,000 during the midterm elections, which Maher viewed as a \"scatter-shot approach\" to addressing the country's economic issues.",
  "summary": "Still, the \"Real Time\" host's opening digs against President Trump's D.C. ceremony land with his studio audience The post Bill Maher Walks Comedy Tightrope With Pair of 9/11 Jokes on 25th Anniversary appeared first on TheWrap .",
  "key_points": [
    "Maher joked about Trump's absence from Ground Zero ceremony",
    "Audience laughed at punchline mocking Trump's Canada claim",
    "Maher criticized Trump's $5,000 promise as scatter-shot approach"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Bill Maher's 9/11 jokes highlight his ability to tackle sensitive topics while skewering Trump's policies, walking a fine line between humor and irreverence on a somber anniversary.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}