| HB-50140-11 | Research Programs: Awards for Faculty | Barry Steven Levitt | Laughing at "Lo Politico": Mass Media Political Humor in Contemporary Latin America | 1/1/2011 - 12/31/2011 | $50,400.00 | Barry | Steven | Levitt | | | | Florida International University Board of Trustees | Miami | FL | 33199-2516 | USA | 2010 | Latin American Studies | Awards for Faculty | Research Programs | 50400 | 0 | 50400 | 0 |
What's so funny about politics? And why might political humor differ across time and place? This project examines contemporary political humor in seven Latin American societies. Drawing on a multidisciplinary cache of humor theory, I first ask what, exactly, makes different pieces funny and demonstrate that "what's funny" is itself a political issue. I explain why different modes of political humor are delivered through particular mass media, highlighting the dynamic cultural shifts that new communications technologies are driving in the region. And I examine whether the prevalence of different modes of political humor is shaped by national-level political regimes and laws. The project will produce a publicly-accessible online database of Latin American political humor, two journal articles (which will undergird a book project), and an undergraduate course syllabus, helping to advance the NEH's Bridging Cultures initiative. |