Analysis Of The Article ' Appropriation Of Mainstream News ' How Saturday Night Live Changed The Political Discussion ``

In the study, each source was ranked based on the political leanings of its audience. As a result, it ranked sources such as Buzzfeed more liberal than average while it ranked sources such as the Rush Limbaugh Show more conservative than average. However, none of the sources earned a perfectly neutral ranking (Wormald). The correlation between news sources and their audience’s political leanings becomes interesting when compared to the type of content each news source produces. Rush Limbaugh, for example, is infamous for his conservative rhetoric, whereas Buzzfeed is known for its lighthearted quizzes and comical representation of liberal politics. This reveals something about our perception of truth: biased sources allow individuals to ‘select’ the truth. When conflicting information is pushed to the side, it becomes nonexistent. Subsequently, the sum of partial truths interpreted by an individual becomes a whole truth in their mind, especially when partial truths are reinforced by mainstream media sources such as Buzzfeed or the Rush Limbaugh Show. This is harmful because, as Lewis implied, the entire truth is lost in this process and mutual understanding becomes harder to

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart was an award winning program that delivered top headline news in a more realistic way. On April 28, 2015, Jon Stewart performed an episode on the protests in Baltimore. Stewart sarcastically informed his viewers of the riots in Baltimore and the government actions that followed.

With social media at the people’s disposal, users are able to share their thoughts and to keep up to date with current events. Its no surprise to find issues trending on social media every now and then; this year’s election was no exception. Politics are without a doubt a greatly debated topic. Millions of post and articles taking sides flew all across social media; some were true while others were not. A supposed satire letter written by author C.S. Lewis became popular throughout social media during the campaigns. Letter is as followed:

America is a culture that enjoys having some time away from the reality of political issues within society. Comedic entertainment has found ways to also inform its audience about important political statements that is used to “refer to any act or nonverbal form of communication that is intended to influence a decision to be made for or by a political party”( Wikipedia), or ideas through a comedic point of view. Comical news is what brings our attention with ease because listening to straight political debates can lead a person to not want to sit and become informed on latest political topics. The culture that society has developed into became accustomed to finding it better to have a laugh about serious news because through humor an audience

Journalists play an important part in the democratic process. Traditionally, the roles of the news media are to provide a forum for debate, represent opposing perspectives on the day’s issues and hold public officials accountable while serving their constituents. However, in recent decades, media has given way to biased forms of news— partisan media. In Matthew Levendusky’s “How Partisan Media Polarize America,” he explores if these partisan media influences viewers. The book’s second chapter, “What Do Partisan Media Actually Say?” concludes that partisan media promotes a larger agenda separately to Democrats and Republicans, attack the opposing side while denouncing compromise, and usually side with their candidate of choice during

Final Paper Rough Draft Auston Collins Ever since their inception in the early 1930’s, television programs have revolutionized the United States in countless ways. From informing millions about current news to allowing sports fans to watch their team playing across the country, television has truly been one of the most revolutionary inventions of the past century. More recently, television programs have begun to comment and take a position on current events. In particular, satire has been very common, as it uses wit and irony to critique certain aspects of society.

In the video, “Drunk History: Rosa Parks”, “Drunk History: Adams & Jefferson”, and “Some Bullsh*t Happening Somewhere”, Comedy Central and The Onion both utilize a very creative style of rhetoric in order to stimulate the viewer’s consciousness of our nation’s history and our present-day media. Each illustration graphically and colorfully paints a picture of how important it is to appropriately convey facts and be concise in the reporting of those facts, while also delivering a grippingly comedic message to the relevant viewer. This analysis will unpack the importance of why this particular type of rhetoric works.

In Adele Lowitz’s memoir, Adele Lowitz: the Lawyer with a Choice she perfectly outlines the consternation of someone in the high position that she once held just a few years ago. Adele served at the head lawyer on one of the most publicised, overt and important and funny law cases in American history. This case which was entitled “SNL vs. the President” was fought between the executive producer of the popular TV show Saturday Night Live and the President of the United States over a joke made on air that was particularly offensive to the leader of the free world. Although it may seem like a non important case in American history, it was actually a turning point in the ability of the media and the power that the government holds. Adele was a powerful lawyer before the case. She graduated at the top of her law school class and was immediately hired by one of the biggest law firms in America. Her younger brother of three years on the other hand was a comedian. He had become an incredibly famous comedian, taking over the Late Night Show For Jimmy Kimmel. Luckily for Adele, her brother had never been on Saturday night

With the use of satire, Stewart critiques current events and political issues that he sees flaws in. Through the use of these news clips, Stewart provides a vital oversight of the media. He holds politicians and the media responsible for the words and actions they put out to the audience and pin points their hypocrisy and foolishness. Stewart specifically critiques major news networks and their scrutiny like Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN. We see him taunt and embarrass government officials like Aaron Shock for their arrogant decisions and foolish actions.

The national media is instrumental in allowing the electorate to develop opinions about contemporary issues. The media is incredibly influential and its power can be wielded for the benefit of all, or it can become a detriment to society. Some media outlets seek to sensationalize the news, sacrificing informing voters in favor of the bottom line. It is through people and organizations who seek to provide the most accurate and impartial view of an event that popular sovereignty gains much of its power. A commitment to informing the public, even when the information conflicts with a writer’s social and political philosophy, can be a difficult one to maintain. Yet, reporters uphold it everyday. This can be seen in the news site CNN (Cable News Network), which is known for having a liberal bias. Despite said bias, it does not shy away from portraying Hillary Clinton, a democrat, as a flawed candidate in an effort to be unbiased. Such a commitment is essential to creating a political and social dialogue in our nation, and as the saying goes, “when dialogue fails, democracy fails.”

Two narratives that Waisanen portrays within his article are two video clips from Onion News Network in which he uses to elaborate and discuss further his main idea. The first narrative that Waisanen portrays is about “… the presidential race heats up, a new survey finds that again, this year, the number one issue among voters, bullshit” (512). He further describes how the news is being illustrated with a news anchor that speaks in a schematized tone similar to the news anchor on public news that is usually broadcasted. The reason why Waisanen uses this narrative is to support his point of the Onion News Network who mocks and deprives the practices of what the “real” news normally portrays and broadcasts. Moreover, another narrative that Waisanen portrays is another video clip from Onion News Network about a morning show similar to Good Morning America where two news anchors discuss about a dog mascot known as “Liberty” who is on a mission to “ …psyched up troops suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)” (513). Primarily the news is to “lament the death of the American army mascot” (513). However, Waisanen uses this video clip as an example to show how the Onion News Network videos illustrate and broadcast videos to viewers that may somewhat have some truth; for instance, the unfortunate battle that soldiers go through with PTSD, but at the same time they never portray or say the real or “whole picture” (523) of what is being broadcasted. In addition, Waisanen

Another television show that parody contemporary both culture and politics is Saturday Night Live, SNL for short. The episodes starts off by introducing the celebrity that is hosting for the night. The first episode premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, and is still running strong. One segment that seems to be the most influence amongst the audience is whenever the cast of SNL does a political skit. The most famous skit from SNL is the impersonation of Sarah Palin. SNL political parody skits usually shape the way the audience perceive the campaign.

Often media broadcasters tend to lean to this side, therefore giving them the image of being liberally bias. Chris Mathews and Keith Oberman from MSNBC are two examples of broadcasters that have been accused of delivering their news with a liberal twist to it. Journalists tend to vote on the liberal side of situations, but still say that while they are on the job they only tell the news in the fairest way and the way that will be least offensive as well as respectful to who it will be presented. In many cases however, this report can come out with an oddly left sided tone (thatliberalmedia.com). Since 1991 when Katie Couric became co-host of NBC’s Today Show, she has used her powerful spot in the media to praise significant liberal figures such as Hillary Clinton and Jimmy Carter. At the same time however, Couric has never been shy about complaining about “right winged conservatives”

According to the book Celebrity Politics, approximately 10 percent of Americans get national political news from nightly entertainment shows such as the Tonight Show. For Americans under 30, the number is nearly five times as many (Orman and West 100). Citizens are looking to be entertained rather than simply educated by the nightly news. As David Schultz aptly put it, “ The new media cover politics, but only politics as it entertains, in part, because the audience the new media attract is a less politically interested audience than traditional news audiences” (20). The fact is that this American audience is less interested in hard news and more interested in

Today, comedy news shows are becoming progressively more popular, and in so, becoming a new source of information – which may, or may not, be a positive consequence. Most comedians twist the truth in order to connect to people and make them laugh. The article “A Serious Business: What Can Comedy Do?” suggests some comedians “use logic to make painful things make sense” (O’Hara 108). Satirical comedy acts as a relief mechanism in that it comforts people that may be wary about a certain subject, especially in the realm of politics. Similarly, Peter McGraw and Joel Warner discuss how comedy can act as a coping mechanism. The authors conclude that “activists all over the world have been using comedy as a form of political protest” (McGraw & Warner 147). Iain Ellis writes about how political satirists do more than just deliver jokes, they use satire “to expose, ridicule, and–implicitly–call for action and change” (Ellis 152). Ellis contends that comedy can make a difference by its constant presence in our daily lives. Socrates, Plato, and even shows like South Park believe that humor is a way to persuade others. One of the most effective expressions of humor to affect social change has been the inclusion of satire. Although humor often provides people a welcome escape from the burdens of their daily lives, the satirical comedy deconstructs social issues in various ways as a means to persuade the