Matt Friend is taking his political impressions to this weekend with a new late-night comedy special tied to the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner. America Laughs with Matt Friend airs Friday, Apr. 24, at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT and will also stream on Sling Orange.
The special mixes comedy with politics, putting Friend in the host’s chair during one of Washington’s most watched media-and-power weekends. Sling Orange includes, and the service is pitching the special to cord-cutters with a One-Day Pass starting at $4.99 for 24 hours, a Three-Day Pass starting at $9.99 for 72 hours and a Seven-Day Pass for $14.99 for one week.
Friend said he wanted to bring “that bipartisan energy to Washington with for this special,” adding that “we are in an increasingly divided country and world.” He also said he aims to “poke fun at everyone and allow room for all to laugh in a Johnny Carson spirit.”
The special marks Friend’s first TV special with, a step that widens the lane for a comic best known for standup and impressions. In March, he also hosted Snapchat’s inaugural Snappys Awards Show, adding another high-profile live appearance to a schedule that has kept him moving from digital stages to television.
The setup matters because this is not just another comedy hour dropped into late April. It is part of the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner weekend, when Washington’s press corps, politicians and entertainers collide under one tent, and is using Friend to reach viewers who may want the event without a cable package. For those viewers, Sling’s Orange plan has become the easy route in, with included and a short-term pass available for the night.
That leaves the special with a built-in contradiction that may be the point: a comic promising to mock both sides in a divided political moment, on a network and streaming service built to carry the show to as many homes as possible. If Friend can make the jokes land across the aisle, the bigger test is whether Washington can still laugh at itself without retreating into its own corners.
For readers looking to watch, Sling TV’s offer for a Three Months of Blue and Orange for $50 is another option for accessing the channel lineup carrying and related programming.
