Why the Internet Needs to STFU About Punching Down

By Michael Kelman Portney

Here's the thing about the phrase "punching down" – it's become intellectual shorthand for "shut up, I don't like what you're saying, and I need a self-righteous framework to make you stop."

Let me tell you what happened to me recently. I wrote a satirical piece called "Inside the Mind of the Jewish-American Male: A Psy-Ops Field Manual." As a Jewish man exploring Jewish-American male identity through satire, I thought I was on pretty solid ground. You know, participating in the grand tradition of Jewish self-reflection that stretches from Philip Roth to Larry David.

But no. Some keyboard warrior decided I was – and I'm quoting here – "punching down at a minority by seemingly trying to mock Jewish men for being Jewish."

Me. A Jew. Punching down at... Jews.

Let that sink in.

The Absurdity of the Framework

This whole "punching down" framework requires someone to decide who's up and who's down in a twisted social hierarchy. And let me tell you, that's a hell of a lot more problematic than the comedy it tries to police.

When you accuse someone of "punching down," you're implicitly saying:

1. Group X is beneath Group Y in some social hierarchy

2. You know exactly where everyone stands in this hierarchy

3. You get to decide who has permission to say what about whom

Congratulations, you've just appointed yourself the Supreme Court Justice of Comedy. Your robe is in the mail.

Internal Cultural Commentary Isn't "Punching" at All

There's a profound difference between mocking a group you don't belong to and engaging in self-reflective cultural commentary. When Mel Brooks makes "Blazing Saddles," he's not punching down at Jewish people. When Dave Chappelle talks about Black Americans, he's not punching down at Black Americans.

And when I, a Jewish man, write a satirical piece about Jewish-American male psychology? I'm participating in a dialogue with my own cultural experience.

But here's where the internet's obsession with "punching down" gets truly insidious. By telling minority creators they can't even critique or satirize their own communities, you're essentially saying:

"Stay in your victimhood box. Don't you dare show complexity or internal criticism."

That's not progressive. That's patronizing as hell.

Who's Really Beneath Whom?

If I'm Jewish and writing about Jewish experiences, and you accuse me of "punching down," what you're really saying is:

1. You consider Jewish people to be in a "down" position

2. You somehow believe you have authority over how I discuss my own identity

3. You think your position in this imaginary hierarchy gives you the right to police my speech

So if I'm supposedly "punching down" at my own community, then maybe you should get out from underneath me. Because that positioning says more about your worldview than it does about my writing.

The Real Problem with "Punching Down" Discourse

The fundamental problem with internet discourse around "punching down" is that it flattens all complex cultural commentary into a simplistic binary: either you're punching up (good) or punching down (bad).

But great satire has never worked that way. Great satire is messy. It's complicated. It punches in all directions – sideways, diagonally, and sometimes even inward.

When we reduce all cultural commentary to this simplistic "up/down" framework, we lose nuance. We lose complexity. And most importantly, we lose the ability to laugh at ourselves – which may be the most human thing we can do.

So What's the Alternative?

Instead of asking "is this punching up or down?" maybe we should be asking:

- Is this thoughtful?

- Is this informed by genuine knowledge of the subject?

- Does this reveal something true, even if uncomfortable?

- Does the creator have any actual relationship to what they're discussing?

But those questions require actual critical thinking, and it's so much easier to just scream "YOU'RE PUNCHING DOWN!" in all caps on Reddit.

In Conclusion

So to the internet discourse police who've appointed themselves the arbiters of who can say what about whom – kindly STFU about punching down.

And if you still think I'm punching down at my own community, well... you should probably get out from underneath me.

*Michael Kelman Portney is a writer, satirist, and Jewish person who is so, so tired of explaining this shit.*