In an age when Jon Stewart frequently tops lists of most-trusted newscasters, the films of Michael Moore become a dominant topic of political campaign analysis, and activists adopt ironic, fake ...personas to attract attention -- the satiric register has attained renewed and urgent prominence in political discourse. Amber Day focuses on the parodist news show, the satiric documentary, and ironic activism to examine the techniques of performance across media, highlighting their shared objective of bypassing standard media outlets and the highly choreographed nature of current political debate.
This article argues that Hannah Gadsby’s 2018 Netflix stand-up special Nanette bundles a critique of the comedy industry and of gendered violence through genre transformations that expand the public ...sphere for survivor testimony. Though Gadsby was not the first to broach these topics in a public forum, she did so at a moment when audiences were primed to be newly receptive. While there was predictably some backlash from audience members who maintained that the special should not be considered comedy, there was also a fierce outpouring of enthusiasm. Nanette became a text with which one could publicly identify (or dis-identify), particularly around the framing of sexual violence and trauma, reminding us that we need popular cultural touchstones through which to shift the conversation. It may also be symptomatic of a widening of the range of perspectives and subject positions with which mainstream audiences are willing to sympathize.
Tipped off ahead of time about the Chevron company’s pending ad campaign designed to respond to consumer worries about the conduct of oil companies, the activist group The Yes Men produced its own ...copycat ads and fake press releases on Chevron’s behalf which spoke much more bluntly about the company’s misdeeds. Designed to be mistaken for the real, the dummy campaign was indeed picked up by the press, generating a series of reportage, retractions, and discussion. The Yes Men succeeded in temporarily ‘throwing their voice’ into the body of the Chevron corporation, using a savvy form of ventriloquism as a means of directing the public conversation. While it is reductive and inaccurate to speak of new media as inherently democratizing, it is essential to examine instances in which it is used strategically as such a force. In this case, Chevron, like most advertisers, was the first ventriloquist, seeking to speak through the bodies of seemingly satisfied consumers. However, the Yes Men successfully turned the tables by poaching on Chevron’s powerful public voice, seizing the multinational’s megaphone and encouraging others to join the conversation, providing a glimpse of a tactic tailored to capitalize on the democratic potential of new media.
This collection examines contemporary artist and activist-inspired utopian projects and DIY communities of interest. Throwing into relief the immense difficulty of thinking beyond the current system ...of consumer capitalism, coupled with the powerful desire to do just that, this anthology explores what our ideals and desires tell us about ourselves.
Although the outpouring of discussion about sexual violence following the allegations against film producer Harvey Weinstein caught many by surprise, the topic has been brewing as a cultural ...battleground for decades, particularly in the world of comedy. Today there are more high-profile female performers than ever before, bringing new perspectives to mainstream audiences and a heightened interest in exposing rape culture. Concurrently, rape culture has become a flash point for conservatives, leading to vitriolic online attacks. Just as rape jokes are constitutive of rape culture, we contend that satire that addresses dimensions of that culture is vital to challenging it. This article examines the works of Samantha Bee, Amy Schumer, and Lena Weissbrot: three satirists who are participating in the cultural battle over sexual violence. As we note, however, these three performers do not always evince an understanding of the centuries-old relationship between rape culture and racism. Through critical contextual analysis, we explore their work, with particular attention to lacunae within mainstream feminism.
Though Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" has become one of the most iconic of fake news programs, it is remarkably unfocused on either satiric critique or parody of particular news conventions. ...Instead, the segment has been shaped by a series of hosts who made a name for themselves by developing distinctive comic personalities. In contrast to more politically invested contemporary programs, the genre of fake news on Saturday Night Live has been largely emptied to serve the needs of the larger show, maintaining its status as just topical, hip, and unthreatening enough to attract celebrities and politicians, as well as a mass audience.
The political satirists Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are largely celebrated for their nightly television programs, which use humor to offer useful political information, provide important forums ...for deliberation and debate, and serve as sites for alternative interpretations of political reality. Yet, when the two satirists more directly intervene in the field of politics -- which they increasingly do -- they are often met by a chorus of criticism that suggests they have improperly crossed normative boundaries. This article explores Stewart and Colbert's 'out of the box' political performances, which include, among others, the 2010 Rally to Restore Sanity, Colbert's testimony before Congress in the same year, and his on-going efforts to run an actual Super PAC that raises and spends money to influence (and critique) the political process. Examining these and other examples of non-traditional, and clearly border-crossing political satire, we consider the ways in which such multi-modal performances-in and off the television screen-work together to provide information, critique, and commentary, as well as a significant form of moral voice and ethical imperative. In turn, we examine the responses from the political and journalistic establishment, which more often than not, constitutes a form of boundary maintenance that seeks to delegitimize such alternative modes of political engagement. Finally, we discuss the significance of the developing relationship between television entertainment and political performance for our understanding of contemporary political practice. Adapted from the source document.
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