"I will not be misquoted!"
About this Quote
“I will not be misquoted!” is funny because it’s a tantrum dressed up as a principle. Todd Barry, a comedian whose whole brand leans dry and controlled, turns a public-figure cliché into a miniature power struggle: the speaker wants the authority of being “on record,” but also wants the magical ability to control how reality is reported back. It’s the fragility of that demand that lands the joke. Everyone has seen celebrities and politicians try to litigate their own words after the fact; Barry compresses that impulse into one tight, petty ultimatum.
The intent is less moral than managerial. He’s not defending truth so much as defending image. The line implies an adversary - the interviewer, the audience, the internet - a whole ecosystem waiting to twist what you say. That paranoia is culturally earned. In an age of clips, captions, and bad-faith framing, “misquote” doesn’t just mean inaccurate; it means unflattering, out of context, weaponized. Barry’s choice of “will not” gives the line mock gravitas, like he’s issuing a presidential veto over the basic mechanics of language.
Subtext: he knows he can’t win. The laughter comes from the delusion of control, the idea that you can preempt the chaos of interpretation by sheer stubbornness. It’s also a sly meta-jab at comedy itself: jokes are constantly “misquoted” when stripped of timing, tone, and intent. Barry turns that professional hazard into a crisp, defensive slogan - one that’s doomed the moment it’s repeated.
The intent is less moral than managerial. He’s not defending truth so much as defending image. The line implies an adversary - the interviewer, the audience, the internet - a whole ecosystem waiting to twist what you say. That paranoia is culturally earned. In an age of clips, captions, and bad-faith framing, “misquote” doesn’t just mean inaccurate; it means unflattering, out of context, weaponized. Barry’s choice of “will not” gives the line mock gravitas, like he’s issuing a presidential veto over the basic mechanics of language.
Subtext: he knows he can’t win. The laughter comes from the delusion of control, the idea that you can preempt the chaos of interpretation by sheer stubbornness. It’s also a sly meta-jab at comedy itself: jokes are constantly “misquoted” when stripped of timing, tone, and intent. Barry turns that professional hazard into a crisp, defensive slogan - one that’s doomed the moment it’s repeated.
Quote Details
| Topic | Witty One-Liners |
|---|
More Quotes by Todd
Add to List
