Page 161 - A Handbook Genre Studies in Mass Media

CHAPTER 6

Remember, the Medici made their money investing in the bubonic plague.
A lot of people did. Until the boil burst.”
Ironically, this parody of broadcast news has become a credible news
source among young people. According to a 2004 Pew Research Center
study, 21 percent of people under thirty say that their principal source
of news about the presidential campaign came from satirical sources
30
like The Daily Show. This reliance on these satiric news programs for
information is an indictment of the U.S. news media.
Political satire genre has become so influential in Canada that news
parody programs such as The Royal Canadian Air Farce often attract
a larger audience than actual newscasts. Indeed, this genre has become
so influential that during the 2006 Canadian federal election campaign,
the political parties made an arrangement with Canada’s main television
networks that prohibited showing film clips of the candidates’ debates
on news parody programs. Roger Abbott, a writer and performer on Air
Farce comments, “It speaks for the parties’ great respect for the power
of satirical shows that they would demand this.” 31
However, it must be noted that the manifest function of news parodies
is not information but entertainment. Consequently, “anchors” like Jon
Stewart or Stephen Colbert do not hesitate to distort the news if it will
get a laugh.
In a strange turnabout, mainstream news outlets have begun incorpo-
rating news parody segments into their programming. During the 2004
Democratic and Republican political conventions, CNN host Larry
King’s coverage included segments featuring humorist Mo Rocca, play-
ing the role of a wisecracking on-air correspondent. Rocca said that he
considered his satirical bits to be a public service: “Television newscasts
are so calcified and rigid, any departure from that is exhilarating. And
five minutes of good satire is a lot more useful than an hour on J. Lo’s
baby shower.” 32

Allegories

An allegory is a story that is set in a distant time and place but parallels
contemporary events. In countries with repressive governments that re-
strict freedom of expression, allegories provide an indirect way to discuss
current events and issues. For instance, a popular Iranian television comic
soap opera, Barareh Nights, is set about seventy years ago in the little
village of Barareh but deals with contemporary issues such as corrupt

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