Every year we report on the comedy that becomes news, but there’s also plenty of news that becomes comedy. The stories that late night talk shows write monologue jokes about– the stories that become source material for comics on stage, the stories that fed thousands of twitter jokes, the stories that become parody videos, SNL sketches, and fodder for weekend update. These 12 stories dominated social media for days, spawned memes,  even a few Halloween costumes, and were talked about endlessly on talking head television.

In 2014 we looked back at the Fappening, Donald Sterling, and Rob Ford. In 2015, we obsessed on a liar (Brian Williams), a slaughtered animal (Cecil), and the Kardashians (Cait and Khloe). In 2016 it was more of the same, but this time a different liar (Lochte), a different slaughtered beast (Harambe), and a different Kardashian and her husband (Kimye). In 2017, Trump dominated the news but it was also the year of April the Giraffe, the Bro Romper and Tiki Torches.  In 2018, nothing was bigger than the false alarm that left Hawaiians believing they were about to be nuked. And in 2019, you voted for Jussie Smollet as the #1 story that became fodder for jokes, but we also talked endlessly about Theranos, bagel boss and Jeffrey Epstein.

This year, the biggest stories of the year went on for months. Covid, Trump, the Election, Black Lives Matter and all the substories that spawned from those four topics were clearly the stories of 2020. But if you try very hard and remember, there were a few others.

Also don’t forget to vote on the best of everything in comedy this year– books, albums, specials, stand up of the year and more! And read all of our 2020 year in comedy coverage here.

JANUARY

Space Force Logo Unveiled

Our vote for the nuttiest story of January 2020 goes to Trump’s team unveiling their logo for the new “Space Force” division of the armed forces. On January 24th Trump tweeted “After consultation with our Great Military Leaders, designers and others, I am pleased to present the new logo for the United States Space Force, the Sixth Branch of our Magnificent Military!” Twitter blew up when virtually everyone on the planet pointed out that Trumps team basically ripped of Star Fleet’s logo from the tv series Star Trek. Even Sulu jumped in to make fun of our new space commander in chief, tweeting, “Is nothing sacred?”

Honorable mentions: Mr. Peanut got killed off. Karens go mainstream. Chet Hanks speaks Patois. Nation Debates Airline Etiquette After a Reclining Seat Smashes a Laptop

FEBRUARY

Harvey Weinstein Guilty

Harvey Weinstein was found guilty and was sentenced to prison. The news was so big it even made it to our early 2020 gossip column “Did You Hear: With Kashmere” who said, “It goes to show that there could be 100 people in a room, and they all have to accuse a man of sexual assault for him to maybe go to prison for five years.” In honor of the news, Kashmere created the WINE-TIME-JAIL-TIME cocktail. Get a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, mix it with some frozen cranberries, ice and a liight pour of seltzer and you are good to go. It’s not a true celebration until the entire bottle is gone, FYI.

Honorable Mention: Tony Romo signs for $17 million per year to talk about sports.

MARCH

Gal Gadot’s Imagine Video Backlash

This was a difficult choice, because Tiger King was just about the biggest news besides a global pandemic, but we chose Gal Gadot’s huge viral misfire for our top meme and joke generating news story of March 2020. No one missed the mark more than Gal, and even though there were tons of other celebrities in the video she helped put together, no one ate more shit than her. Congrats on everyone else in it dodging this bullet.

Honorable Mentions: The Flip the Switch Challenge Takes Off, America Hoards Toilet Paper, Tiger King Becomes Huge Star But Is Locked Up

APRIL

The Last Dance

Let’s take a look back at April – the pandemic is in full swing, no one knew what was going on still and we’ve all watched and talked about the Tiger King already. And then ESPN gives us 5 weeks of pure nostalgia porn in the form of The Last Dance. The most talked about 30 For 30 in years, it gave us all comfort knowing that the story of Jordan’s come back was going to have a happy ending. Plus, we got about a half dozen new Jordan memes out of it. Thanks for getting us through April, MJ.

Honorable Mentions: Dr Drew Says Covid is Like the Flu Supercut, Tom Brady to Tampa Bay

MAY

Elon Musk 

Elon Musk has had a rollercoaster of a 2020, much like all of us. But he also dominated the news. It began in May when he and Grimes announced the birth and name of their child, X Æ A-12 . Can anyone pronounce it? No. It is legal in the state of California to be named this? Also no. But it did keep Elon in the headlines and his fans loved it and his haters were fueled by it. Elon kept it going for the rest of the year by becoming the second richest man in the world and sending humans to the ISS on a SpaceX rocket. Doug and Bob? Forgetttaboutit!  Did we mention he sent a car up into space creating one of the most memorable images of the year? And he’s ending his year by moving to Texas as a big fuck you to California. He’ll be producing a Joe Rogan comedy special in no time.

Honorable Mentions: Murder Hornets

JUNE

The Rise of QAnon in the Mainstream

QAnon for the longest time was kept to the farther reaches of the internet – your 4chan’s, 8Chan’s, etc. But as the election crept closer everyone began talking about the ridiculous cult of Q. Elected officials began dropping references to it, Trump said he was a fan of the movement and none of it made sense. And JFK Jr. was supposed to all be part of it as well. It’s now a punchline but there were and still are people who are totally invested in the writing’s of Q and his insane theories. Let’s try to keep it as a punchline.

JULY

Jada Pinkett Reveals Affair On Her Podcast With Will Smith

Jada Pinkett Smith dropped a podcast that blew everyone’s minds – she revealed to Will Smith, on the podcast, the details of an affair she had with a younger musician. Or as she put it, an “entanglement”. And thanks to this “entanglement” her podcast got a shit load of hits and everyone was talking about it and you couldn’t scroll down your Instagram feed without seeing some sort of feed or reference to it. It was a wonderful distraction to a weary pandemic filled summer.

Honorable Mentions: Redskins Become The Washington Football Team, Ghislaine Maxwell Arrested, Kanye Runs for President, The Trial Of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard

AUGUST

Jerry Falwell Jr. Cuck Scandal

Jerry Falwell Jr., a major Trump supporter and the President of Liberty University had a major scandal blow up in his face that had him step down from his position. A man who was apparently in a relationship with Falwell’s wife and a business partner of both of theirs came out and revealed all the details we never knew we wanted to know. Apparently this friend of theirs slept with Falwell’s wife while he watched and then more men came forward with similar stories. Including a classmate of Falwell’s son. This was the story that kept on giving as one layer was peeled back after another. Thanks, Jerry, for being a hypocrite.

Honorable Mention: The Rise of Only Fans

SEPTEMBER

California Wakes Up to Orange Skies

The west coast fires were a terrifying site to behold. All along the west coast, the skies of major cities had turned orange – as if they were photos from alien planets. But it was the result of the massive fires destroying millions of acres of land, homes and vineyards. These pictures were totally dystopian and fit right in to a year where one thing happened after another.

OCTOBER

Rick Moranis Punched in Face

Rick Moranis is a beloved actor who hasn’t been in the headlines for years other than someone asking where is Rick Moranis today? That all changed in October when Rick was attacked on the street of New York City by a homeless man. Rick turned out just fine and the man was arrested but it reminded everyone how much they love him and his work. There are few actors that could get punched in the face on the street and get universal concern sent their way.

NOVEMBER

Giuliani

Rudy Giuliani had a helluva end of the year. First he gets put into a compromising position in the new Borat film. Then he booked a landscaping business to make a major election speech in front of. Oh, he also looked like a complete maniac when his hair dye started streaming down his head on live TV. And don’t forget him losing one lawsuit after another all over the country, ending with a positive Covid diagnosis. Rudy, you’ve ended 2020 strong, we didn’t think you had it in you.

DECEMBER

Melissa Carrone Testifies

Melissa Carrone was Rudy Giuliani’s star witness in Michigan and she sure put on a show for everyone. She was so good, and sounded so crazy, she got an SNL skit out of it.

Honorable Mention: Everyone Freaks Out About An Obelsisk, Staten Island Bar Refuses to Shut Down, Guiliani Farted

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