Race, Representation, and Satire

by Tawfiq O. Abdullah (Contribution by), Meshari Thamer Alotaibi (Contribution by), Manuel G. Avilés-Santiago (Contribution by), Reham Bohamad (Contribution by), Christopher P. Campbell (Contribution by)

Overview

Race, Representation, and Satire examines the role of humor, sarcasm, and parody in providing audiences with insight into race and racism in contemporary media through an analysis of representations of race and ethnicity in texts, online content, television shows, and comedy routines. Contributors argue that while many minoritized groups continue to be targeted by stereotypes and myths that have lingered for centuries, satire and comedy can be powerful tools for reversing harmful narratives and generating accurate, authentic, and inclusive representations. Scholars of media studies, popular culture, rhetoric, and race will find this book particularly useful.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781666919271
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/06/2023
Pages:	262
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

Chrisotpher P. Campbell is a former professor at The University of Southern Mississippi with expertise in race and media, media economics, journalism, and cultural criticism.

Table of Contents

Part I: Satire as Opposition

Chapter 1: Atonement: What Reparations and Racial Justice Look Like on Atlanta

Chapter 2: #ColoradoBorderWall: Mimetic Discourse as Emancipation

Chapter 3: Reservation Dogs, Visual Sovereignty, Performative Indigeneity, and the Cultural Imperative of Native American-Produced Media

Chapter 4: “Voldemort under My Headscarf”: The Oppositional Muslim Gaze of We are Lady Parts

Chapter 5: Class is in Session: Abbott Elementary’s “Step Class” and the Oppositional Gaze as Counter-Hegemonic Practice

Chapter 6: Squid Game: South Korea’s View of Itself and the West

Chapter 7: Alternative Media and Representation: An Outsider’s Construction of Race on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

Part II: Satire, Challenges and Missed Opportunities

Chapter 8: Just Jokes? Dave Chappelle’s The Closer and the Intersectional Challenges of Satire

Chapter 9: Latin History for Morons: Comedic Revisions and Race in the Work of John Leguizamo

Chapter 10: Guess Who’s Muslim: Using Satire to Show What “Islam Truly Is”

Chapter 11: The Case of Kim’s Convenience: Cause for Celebration or a Cautionary Tale?

Chapter 12: Missed Opportunities: Discursively Dismantling the Hyper-Wokeness of the Sitcom Community

Chapter 13: “Polo, Small but Tough”: Arab and Muslim Representations in a Volkswagen “Commercial”

Editorial Reviews

Race, Representation, and Satire explores ways satire, indeed humor more broadly, is used to communicate complex ideas about race. This collection of essays is fun to read, but in the process of enjoying the humor readers will learn important lessons along the way. From the comedic delivery of news to viral memes to stand-up routines, this book shows that some of the best critiques of racism are performed with a wink and a smile.

Kent A. Ono

The essays in Race, Representation, and Satire, compiled by editor Campbell, deftly examine the nuances of comedy's pursuit of the truth, especially when creators with firsthand knowledge of the harm suffered by various racial groups wield satire. Each essay investigates racial representations within creative works; the writers convey how those works are successful (for instance, Reham Bohamad’s essay on the depiction of Muslim women in the British sitcom We Are Lady Parts) or fall short (Campbell on Dave Chapelle’s recent stand-up work). With a rich assortment of cited scholarly works set against a diverse array of modern media, Race, Representation, and Satire is a valuable contribution to the body of media studies. In her thoughtful critique of an episode of the series Atlanta, Keli Dailey asks, “But who is this punchline serving?” (p. 15), a question whose saliency is effectively echoed throughout each chapter. Recommended. Advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professionals.

Choice Reviews