Politics Is a Joke!

S. Robert Lichter is professor of communication at George Mason University, where he also directs the centre for Media and Public Affairs and the Statistical Assessment Service (STATS). His most recent books are The Nightly News Nightmare (3rd ed.) and The Global President (with Stephen Farnsworth and Roland Schatz).Jody C Baumgartner is associate professor of political science at East Carolina University. His latest books include Conventional Wisdom and American Elections (with Peter Francia) and Laughing Matters: humour and American Politics in the Media Age (co-edited with Jonathan Morris). Jonathan S. Morris is associate professor of political science at East Carolina University. Morris is co-editor of Laughing Matters: humour and American Politics in the Media Age (with Jody Baumgartner).

"Politics Is a Joke! is an outstanding contribution to explaining and evaluating the expanding role of humor in American political culture, politics, and government. It is an exceptional piece of scholarship in service to the classroom in its clear and cogent quantitative and qualitative analysis of late night political humor and its impact on mass audiences." --Michael Fitzgerald, University of Tennessee "Politics Is a Joke! does an excellent job of determining how political humor influences public perception of presidents and other political figures. The authors provide a thorough analysis of late night talk shows that hold sway with the public, including those of Comedy Central, often to the extent of influencing the outcome of a presidential election. Readers will find the work of these authors intriguing." --Terri Jett, Butler University "This book is informative, entertaining, and timely. Highly recommended." --Choice "Should be required reading for political strategists whose candidates' images are both shaped and reflected by TV humor... Astutely analyzed ... its insights will find their ways into the mainstream media." --Kirkus

• Preface Chapter 1. Introduction: Politics Is a Funny Business Chapter 2. The Rise of Late-Night Comedy Chapter 3. A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The White House Chapter 4. Pols Behaving Badly Chapter 5. What's So Funny? Chapter 6. Laughing Matters? Chapter 7. If You Can't Beat Them, Join Them Chapter 8. Political Humor - Prospect and Retrospect Bibliography Index