News Comedy
Recently, I have started to contemplate how the use of comedy in news casting influences our interpretation of the news. Shows like Last Week Tonight and The Daily Show are perfect examples. They present the news to us through jokes and comedy tactics, which is far more entertaining than usual casting. These individuals are not inherently ignorant about the news, and are most likely well aware of the seriousness of situations. But, this entertainment aspect may effect our own emotions to these actual events happening in the world around us.
I have definitely found myself laughing at jokes about Trump's border wall or conflicts with other countries, which, now that I think about it, are matters that should be taken a bit more seriously. These are conflicts concerning racist ideologies and dangerous conflicts. I am not going to lie, I love these shows a lot. But, if these are your only constant source of news, it may make issues seem less pressing or serious than they are, because they are presented in a comedic way. I believe this makes it easier for us to disregard the news and pressing situations, because these shows are a source of entertainment to us.
I remember how everyone made Trump out as a joke in the 2016 election (for the record, he is one). Consequently, we didn't take that election serious enough, and our light attitude towards it caused him to be able to slip into office. I know that isn't the whole story, and that there are many more factors that contributed. We thought it was so crazy someone we had so many funny thoughts towards could actually become president. But, if we had seen him as a real threat and a serious problem, I believe things would have worked out differently. When we make issues into jokes, it almost takes away the reality from it; it makes it seem that these things aren't truly happening as we speak.
I feel that this use of comedy when talking about politics and social issues on TV bleeds into our own conversations around us. I hear jokes about currents political events or notorious historical events that usually are very negative (for example the Holocaust) all the time.There are millions of memes about politics as well, and we love to make jokes out of everything.
I am Arab, and I have made my fair share of terrorist jokes. In the moment it seems funny, and the word "terrorist" seems to lose its true meaning. The joke removes itself from the thousands of people killed in attacks all around the world, and diminishes the current hardships faced by people today. Even though it is "just a joke," our emotions to the situations shift, becoming lighter and less serious.
I think we should be careful when joking about the news, and be cautious about the extent to which we allow these jokes to influence our ideas towards a situation. It is easy to forget the seriousness of a situation when we are laughing about it. Let us remember to put ourselves in the shoes of those experiencing events in the news, and wonder if you would want some teenagers in America laughing about the bomb that just killed your whole family.
I have definitely found myself laughing at jokes about Trump's border wall or conflicts with other countries, which, now that I think about it, are matters that should be taken a bit more seriously. These are conflicts concerning racist ideologies and dangerous conflicts. I am not going to lie, I love these shows a lot. But, if these are your only constant source of news, it may make issues seem less pressing or serious than they are, because they are presented in a comedic way. I believe this makes it easier for us to disregard the news and pressing situations, because these shows are a source of entertainment to us. I remember how everyone made Trump out as a joke in the 2016 election (for the record, he is one). Consequently, we didn't take that election serious enough, and our light attitude towards it caused him to be able to slip into office. I know that isn't the whole story, and that there are many more factors that contributed. We thought it was so crazy someone we had so many funny thoughts towards could actually become president. But, if we had seen him as a real threat and a serious problem, I believe things would have worked out differently. When we make issues into jokes, it almost takes away the reality from it; it makes it seem that these things aren't truly happening as we speak.
I feel that this use of comedy when talking about politics and social issues on TV bleeds into our own conversations around us. I hear jokes about currents political events or notorious historical events that usually are very negative (for example the Holocaust) all the time.There are millions of memes about politics as well, and we love to make jokes out of everything. I am Arab, and I have made my fair share of terrorist jokes. In the moment it seems funny, and the word "terrorist" seems to lose its true meaning. The joke removes itself from the thousands of people killed in attacks all around the world, and diminishes the current hardships faced by people today. Even though it is "just a joke," our emotions to the situations shift, becoming lighter and less serious.
I think we should be careful when joking about the news, and be cautious about the extent to which we allow these jokes to influence our ideas towards a situation. It is easy to forget the seriousness of a situation when we are laughing about it. Let us remember to put ourselves in the shoes of those experiencing events in the news, and wonder if you would want some teenagers in America laughing about the bomb that just killed your whole family.
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