Conviction of right-wing comedian sparks freedom of speech debate

Danilo Gentili is a self-proclaimed politically incorrect comedian. The 39-year-old rose to stardom a decade ago as a reporter on “At All Costs,” a weekly show mixing humor with journalism. There, he mastered the art of making politicians look silly and uncomfortable.

Upon leaving the show, Mr. Gentili embarked on his own projects and became notorious for trying (often too hard) to push the envelope of offensive comedy further and further. But his political incorrectness was quickly replaced by rudeness, prejudice, sexism, and, in some cases, blatant racism.

Some of Mr. Gentili’s jokes include making fun of the Holocaust, offering bananas to a black man, and calling a black senator “the lady who pours the coffee,” among others. Whenever he was at the receiving end of criticism, the comedian often instructed his legion of followers (17 million on Twitter) to bash his critics on social media.

One of...