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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/29984
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

The difference between funny and offensive is execution.

People are offended by comedy when the comedy is so bad that you can not tell if it's comedy or just being plain mean.

The best example I know for getting gross humor from offensive to funny is South Park. They make jokes about nazis, shit, pretty much every major religion, farts, pedophilia, shit, killing children, piss, all kinds of minorities, vomit and shit... and it is hilarious! How do they pull this off?

- They don't half-ass it. The offensiveness is so over the top that it becomes a satire of offensiveness itself. You can not possibly take it seriously.
- Hidden under that juvenile mask is actually smart satire of relevant real-world topics. They actually have something to say beyond "Look how edgy and daring we are!". That substance prevents the audience from being ashamed of enjoying the more juvenile parts.
- They are equal opportunity insulters. They make sure all sides get insulted equally. For each insult which is offending to you, they also insult someone who really annoys you. That makes it hard to be angry at them.

But the hardest of them all:

- They are actually writing good comedy!

Writing good comedy is an art which is extremely difficult to master. But how to be funny and not just stupid is an art which is far too complicated to describe in the scope of this answer.

Original score: 2