Crossballs, or The Debate Show, is a short-lived tv show that aired on Comedy Central. The show was meant to parody political debate shows, specifically CNN's Crossfire and MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews. Each episode involves comedians posing as experts on a specific topic. In the case of this clip, the comedians are the host, the "stoner" sitting all the way on the left, and the anti-marijuana hippy. These comedians then debate two real commentators on the topic, such as the legalization of marijuana. These real commentators have no idea that the show is fake. The comedy not only comes from the comedians poking fun at their stance on the topic, but also from the real commentators who get frustrated with the actors. If the real commentator has a weird or nonsensical point of view, it is made to look even more ridiculous by the comedian who is trying to back him up. Although the main point of the show is comedy, there is still some real debating involved.
"Drugs." Crossballs. Host Chris Tallman. Comedy Central. 8 July 2004.
