Politics Is a Joke!

How TV Comedians Are Remaking Political Life

Jody C Baumgartner author S Robert Lichter author Jonathan S Morris author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Inc

Published:1st Jul '14

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

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Politics Is a Joke! cover

Does late night political humor matter? Are late-night comedians merely entertaining, or do they have the power to influence the way we think about politics and politicians? Politics Is a Joke! situates late night comedy in the historical context of political humor and demonstrates how the public turn to this venue for political information, and are in turn affected by it.

Using exclusive data collected by the Center for Media and Public Affairs, the authors conduct a detailed and exhaustive analysis of political jokes on late night TV shows dating back to 1992 in order to pinpoint the main targets and themes of late-night comedy. Politics Is a Joke! uses a wide range of examples, from jokes about politicians' physical appearance and sex scandals to jokes about Congress and even the news media, to assess and understand the impact of political humor on political institutions, politicians and their policies and behavior.

Engagingly written with analysis of jokes from comedians like Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, Politics is a Joke! is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the crucial role late night comedy plays in our political universe - and anyone who enjoys a good laugh.

"Politics Is a Joke! is an outstanding contribution to explaining and evaluating the expanding role of humor in American political culture, politics, and government. It is an exceptional piece of scholarship in service to the classroom in its clear and cogent quantitative and qualitative analysis of late night political humor and its impact on mass audiences." --Michael Fitzgerald, University of Tennessee "Politics Is a Joke! does an excellent job of determining how political humor influences public perception of presidents and other political figures. The authors provide a thorough analysis of late night talk shows that hold sway with the public, including those of Comedy Central, often to the extent of influencing the outcome of a presidential election. Readers will find the work of these authors intriguing." --Terri Jett, Butler University "This book is informative, entertaining, and timely. Highly recommended." --Choice "Should be required reading for political strategists whose candidates' images are both shaped and reflected by TV humor... Astutely analyzed ... its insights will find their ways into the mainstream media." --Kirkus

ISBN: 9780813347172

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 385g

272 pages