Humor and Democracy: Humor and Politics Meeting – February 24, 2015
For this session, we discussed episodes of the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation and the BBC sitcom Yes, Prime Minister, with supplemental readings from The Onion. The conversation revolved around the limitations of democratic decisions-making identified in the different pieces. While Parks and Rec and the Onion articles mock the incompetence, ignorance or intolerance of the American electorate, Yes, Minister generally ridicules the corruption of bureaucrats and the weakness of elected officials.
The list of episodes for the meeting was:
- Parks and RecreationSeason 5, Episode 1 (“Ms. Knope Goes to Washington”)
- Parks and RecreationSeason 5, Episode 2 (“Soda Tax”)
- Parks and RecreationSeason 5, Episode 3 (“How a Bill Becomes a Law”)
- Yes, Minister Season 2, Episode 1(“The Compassionate Society”)
- Yes, Minister Season 3, Episode 3 (“The Skeleton in the Cupboard”)
- Yes, Prime MinisterSeason 2, Episode 5 (“Power to the People”)
And the articles from the Onion that we assigned were:
http://www.theonion.com/articles/us-currency-finally-achieves-universal-suffrage,35702/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/the-onions-guide-to-voting,37364/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/american-people-ruled-unfit-to-govern,748/
http://www.theonion.com/articles/republicans-call-for-privatization-of-next-electio,1250/
