I firmly believe all puns are uncalled for in America (except by dads, who call for as many puns as possible). But sometimes we get the humor we deserve, not the humor we ask for.
I "get" the freedom of speech thing, there isn't any law against it, but I dislike it because the topic of encryption and privacy are things I consider important. Neil could have just as easily joked that Turing would still be around if he had been a bit more discreet about his "tastes." And I would be equally offended.
So when you have people who have put their liberty and their life on the line for something they believe in, I think it is important for us to treat what they did with respect and not make jokes about it.
> things I consider important
I am glad to see that you realize that virtually everything falls under the category of "important" to one person or another. Jokes are jokes and frankly I think nothing should be off limits. Freedom, ironically, is the absolute core of this argument and what Edward Snowden fought for personallly.
But what do you mean by "nothing should be off limits"? Are you saying that no joke or form of speech should be beyond criticism, no matter the venue? I don't think anyone has a right to someone else's platform to make any sort of speech they like. Even though I found the treason joke within my limits of taste for an Oscar's broadcast, I respect the prerogative of the original poster to voice criticism. That's part of free speech too, although interestingly some are trying to silence that person with downvotes.
However, in the context of the Oscars, its humor will be lost on a large performance of the Audience.
In the context of the narrative of the evening, the result of the joke is that a lot of viewers will be able to dismiss CITIZENFOUR without watching.
But it was a good joke.
To your other point, on a private platform people certainly have the right to deem what is acceptable communication. I agree with that, certainly. In really no case is a form of speech 'beyond criticism'.
That opening joke was actually "Tonight we celebrate Hollywood's best and whitest OOPS I MEAN brightest". Actually kind of a funny and relevant joke given the current state of race in Hollywood. Chris Rock's recent interview is a good read along those lines:
http://www.vulture.com/2014/11/chris-rock-frank-rich-in-conv...
Honestly, I use to feel the same way as you but.... I've begun to realize that jokes about serious matters is actually one form of communication to spread awareness about an issue, relief some social-stresses and it also serves as social-indicator. Like, if someone were to ask me "When could we consider the problem of racism mostly solved?" My answer would be, "When you stop seeing racist jokes/comments in youtube comments of any vid with minorities in it and when Louis CK's racist jokes don't make the audience laugh anymore." The jokes are not the cause of the problem, they're the indicator that the problem still exists. btw, same thing for gangsta-rap music. People say it causes problems in the African american community; I say gangsta-rap music is so popular because a lot of African americans can relate to it. Every black person in USA, including myself, can talk about instances of racism endured and/or the struggles in low-income areas of America. When that's no longer the case, they'll stop buying it then it'll stop being made.
That said, there's definitely a time & a place for those kinds of jokes and it requires some tact to understand where & when it's appropriate.