I absolutely don't think it's a laughing matter. I made a joke in the interview with the reporter as a kind of icebreaker (which clearly didn't seem to go well).

But as I also explained after doing that, "I’m pretty sure, went into what I thought was a more serious and thoughtful discussion, at least from my perspective."

I don't think making a joke about something is the same as someone then thinking an entire matter isn't serious. But I can appreciate you disagree.