Mid Sweden University

miun.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Moral Transgressors vs. Moral Entrepreneurs: The Curious Case of Comedy Accountability in an Era of Social Platform Dependence
Mid Sweden University, Faculty of Science, Technology and Media, Department of Media and Communication Science.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-3015-7423
2021 (English)In: Journal of Media Ethics: Exploring Questions of Media Morality, ISSN 2373-6992, E-ISSN 2373-700X, Vol. 36, no 4, p. 220-234Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Comedy can hold political actors accountable, for instance through satire. But what kind of moral negotiation concerns comedians? Utilizing an understanding of accountability as a dynamic of interaction between media actors and the values of their audience, this study explores the concept of comedy accountability, combining qualitative interviews with case study analysis. Five ethical values central to comedy accountability are proposed: truth-telling, freedom of speech, order and cohesion, human dignity and equality, and nonmaleficence. Results show the values to be highly present both in media commentary and in the claims of comedians, with an emphasis on freedom of speech and nonmaleficence for defenders of controversial comedy, and an emphasis on human dignity and equality and nonmaleficence for protesters of controversial comedy. The negotiation of these values happens predominantly within the market frame of accountability, with defenders also using legal-regulatory and professional responsibility arguments while protesters use public responsibility arguments.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2021. Vol. 36, no 4, p. 220-234
National Category
Philosophy, Ethics and Religion
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:miun:diva-42928DOI: 10.1080/23736992.2021.1967158ISI: 000686804500001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85113732237OAI: oai:DiVA.org:miun-42928DiVA, id: diva2:1590338
Available from: 2021-09-02 Created: 2021-09-02 Last updated: 2021-10-21Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. Jester, journalist, or just jerk? The roles of political comedians in societal debate
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Jester, journalist, or just jerk? The roles of political comedians in societal debate
2021 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Where does the political comedian fit on the spectrum of societal debate? Comedy has gained legitimacy in academia in recent decades as a non-serious communication form worth taking seriously. But in the personalized, high-choice hybrid media landscape, what roles do comedians inhabit? This dissertation explores this topic via five studies detailed in articles produced for publication in scientific journals. The articles employ frameworks such as humor functions, role conceptions, media framing, boundary work, non-deliberative media discourse, and moral theory, and utilize qualitative content analysis, quantitative content analysis, and qualitative interviews, to investigate empirical examples collected from Swedish and Finnish contexts. The dissertation also includes an introductory chapter that summarizes and discusses the results of the five studies and presents the empirical and theoretical contributions of the dissertation. 

Several roles of political comedians are introduced, based on political intent and their tendency to challenge norms, where the main ones have been established as Unifier, Advocate, Entertainer, Explainer, Provocateur, Questioner, and Eye-opener. The roles should be seen as role performance elements that are somewhat fluid and contextual. In addition, three role clusters, or broad comedic dispositions, are discussed. The first is the jester-type comedian, represented by the Entertainer, the Unifier, and the Advocate. These comedians are practitioners of a more benign, light-hearted form of political comedy, and they focus on creating mirth and social bonding. 

The genre of journalistic news satire is defined and explored as the second role cluster, and the genre is represented by the Unifier, who aims to connect people in laughter, the Explainer, who wants to explain complex news issues from a specific point of view, and the Questioner, who audits power and challenges groupthink. Finally, the third role cluster is personified by the troublemaker or jerk, who either enjoys being a Provocateur simply for provocation itself, takes on the role of persistent Questioner, or, if the political intent is stronger, embodies the Eye-opener, aspiring to influence the audience to see things differently.

Contexts, implications, and limitations are discussed.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sundsvall: Mid Sweden University, 2021. p. 34
Series
Mid Sweden University doctoral thesis, ISSN 1652-893X ; 350
Keywords
Political comedy, satire, role conceptions, framing, humor studies, entertainment
National Category
Media and Communications
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:miun:diva-43001 (URN)978-91-89341-22-7 (ISBN)
Public defence
2021-10-08, C312, Holmgatan 10, Sundsvall, 10:00 (English)
Opponent
Supervisors
Available from: 2021-09-13 Created: 2021-09-10 Last updated: 2025-02-07Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

No full text in DiVA

Other links

Publisher's full textScopus

Authority records

Ödmark, Sara

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Ödmark, Sara
By organisation
Department of Media and Communication Science
In the same journal
Journal of Media Ethics: Exploring Questions of Media Morality
Philosophy, Ethics and Religion

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar

doi
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

doi
urn-nbn
Total: 399 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf