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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
In The Culture Of Truthiness: Comic Criticism And The Performative Politics Of Stephen Colbert, Justine Schuchard Holcomb
In The Culture Of Truthiness: Comic Criticism And The Performative Politics Of Stephen Colbert, Justine Schuchard Holcomb
Communication Theses
I analyze comedian Stephen Colbert's performances as the bloviating "fake" pundit, "Stephen Colbert." Colbert's work reflects the progression of personality-driven media and performance-driven society. His frequent shifts and blending of characters – from actor and entertainer to pundit and politician – call attention to the similarly character-driven nature of "real" figures in politics and media. Using Kenneth Burke's theory of tragic and comic frames of acceptance, I analyze three sets of Colbert's performances – hosting The Colbert Report, speaking at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, and running for president – as well as the conventional situations and discourses he …
Racial Satire And Chappelle's Show, Katharine P. Zakos
Racial Satire And Chappelle's Show, Katharine P. Zakos
Communication Theses
This thesis examines Chappelle's Show’s use of racial satire to challenge dominant stereotypes and the effectiveness of that satire as a tool to achieve perspective by incongruity. I use a variation of D’Acci’s circuit of media study model to examine the institutional challenges and limitations on the show due to the context in which it was created, produced, and distributed; to interrogate the strategies employed by the show’s writers/creators to overcome these challenges through the performance of race; and to analyze the audience’s understanding of the use of racial satire through a reception study of the show’s audience. I argue …