Late night hosts have fun imagining Biden and Putin's Zoom fails on their high-stakes Ukraine chat
"President Biden held a video meeting with Vladimir Putin to warn him not to invade Ukraine," Trevor Noah said on Tuesday's Daily Show. "And a video chat is a tough way for both of these guys to do diplomacy, I mean especially because even when he's in person, Biden talks like he's got a bad connection." He acted that out, joking that Putin could just reset the White House servers to improve connectivity.

The Late Show wrapped some classic Zoom fails into its re-enactment of the Biden-Putin chat.
Hey, "the world may be standing at the precipice of war between two nuclear-armed powers," so a de-escalatory chat about Ukraine between Putin and Biden "makes sense," Stephen Colbert deadpanned on The Late Show. "The only way to resolve a delicate situation that requires crystal-clear communication is two old men on a Zoom."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"Now, if you're worried these rising tensions with Russia will lead to World War III with Russia, don't be ridiculous," Colbert said. "It's gonna be World War III with China. We got a preview yesterday" with the diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing. And if that's not enough "gloom and doom," he said, a giant black box in Australia will soon record humanity's self-inflicted demise to climate catastrophe.
"Speaking of catastrophes," Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) is quitting Congress to be CEO of former President Donald Trump's social media company, despite any relevant experience — except "milking things with leathery skin," Colbert said. "Now, usually when when the former president appoints someone who is grossly incompetent to an important position, he has a good reason: They're related to him. That means the only reason Nunes got this gig is because Jared, Don Jr., and Eric all turned it down."

The Biden-Putin call lasted two hours, "and like most two-hour meetings over Zoom, Putin was like, 'This could have been email,'" Jimmy Fallon joked at The Tonight Show. "On the bright side, it was the first time Putin could see Biden on camera — when Biden actually knew he was on camera."
Meanwhile, "China's moon rover spotted a mysterious cube-shaped object on the moon's surface, and everyone on the internet is trying to figure out what it is," Fallon said. "If there's anyone who knows the truth, it's random people on the internet — yeah, the same internet that couldn't figure out the color of a dress."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
How to do the 75 Hard trend the soft way
The Week Recommends The 75 Soft Challenge might be more your speed if you're trying to hit a soft reset
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Rep. Sylvester Turner dies, weeks after joining House
Speed Read The former Houston mayor and longtime state legislator left behind a final message for Trump: 'Don't mess with Medicaid'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Serbian protesters set off smoke bombs in parliament
THE EXPLAINER Ongoing anti-corruption protests erupted into full view this week as Serbian protesters threw the country's legislature into chaos
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Arab leaders embrace Egypt's Gaza rebuilding plan
Speed Read The $53 billion proposal would rebuild Gaza without displacing Palestinian residents
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Germany's conservatives win power amid far-right gains
Speed Read The party led by Friedrich Merz won the country's national election; the primary voter issues were the economy and immigration
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Russia frees US teacher Marc Fogel in murky 'exchange'
Speed Read He was detained in Moscow for carrying medically prescribed marijuana
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Hamas pauses Gaza hostage release, upending ceasefire
Speed Read Hamas postponed the next scheduled hostage release 'until further notice,' accusing Israel of breaking the terms of their ceasefire deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Baltic States unplug from Russian grid, join EU's
Speed Read Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are disconnecting from the Soviet-era electricity grid to join the EU's network
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
At least 11 killed in Sweden adult ed school shooting
Speed Read The worst mass shooting in Swedish history took place in Orebro
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff Published