Racism is one of the social evils that have been fought in the American society for many years (Amarasingam, 2011). Journalists have come out with ways of presenting fake news, especially through comedy shows in order to bring to light some of the injustices that have not been reported adequately by the mainstream newsrooms (Goodnow, 2011).
One such fake news that is politically instigated is Jon Stewart from Comedy Central’s The Daily Show. The comedy discusses how a murder suspect went without any punishment for the crime of murder although it was clear that he killed someone.
This show tries to bring out the fact that mainstream news are sometimes unable to capture the truth about some issues they report on, especially those that are sensitive in national cohesion. In this show, Jon Stewart is anchoring news on this murder issue.
Jon Stewart selects some episodes as reported by the mainstream news, and makes the audience understand how some of the most important aspects of news are always ignored by the media. The show offers a critique of authority by challenging the decision that was made by the jury.
Although the show is very humorous, it presents a serious political communication. It talks about a case where justice is tampered with because of the racial conflict that has affected this country for a very long time. It is a fact that Michael Dunn killed Jordan Davis (Stewart, 2014).
Although he claimed that the boy had a gun, the claim could not be confirmed because no gun was found on the teenager. This is brought out more clearly in the comedy show than it was brought out in the mainstream news.
According to Gournelos and Greene (2011) some comedy shows uses satire to interrogate power. For instance, Michael Dunn claimed that he had trouble with his ear, and the loud music affected him.
The show questions how he was able to withstand the blast of ten gunshots fired by him even when it was clear that the boys were trying to escape.
It is ironical that he was able to withstand the sound. With the help of a satire, the show also emphasizes on the glaring lie made by Michael that the boys attacked him.
Michael claimed that he was attacked by the teenagers. However, even after the teenagers had taken off in their car, he continued shooting at them. This was not an act of self-defense, but a malicious attempt to kill the teenagers, especially after it was confirmed that the teenagers had no gun.
The comedy show also uses parody in order to bring out humor in the case. Michael stated that he had a problem with the left ear. When asked which ear was affected by the loud music, he pointed at the right ear. This is hilarious because it would be expected that the ear with the problem would be hurt.
The decision that was finally made by the jury in itself is also a mockery of justice, and this comedy show presents it effectively using parody. Even after the evidence that the murder was malicious, Michael was not convicted of this crime.
Instead, he was sent to jail for trying to kill the other teenagers who survived the wrath of shootings. The comedy show brings out the injustice at the court of law in an authoritative but hilarious manner.
References
Amarasingam, A. (2011). The Stewart/Colbert Effect: Essays on the Real Impacts of Fake News. Jefferson: McFarland & Co., Publishers.
Goodnow, T. (2011). The Daily Show and Rhetoric: Arguments, Issues, and Strategies. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Pub. Group.
Gournelos, T., & Greene, V. (2011). A decade of dark humor: How comedy, irony, and satire shaped post-9/11 America. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Stewart, J. (Director). (2012). From Comedy Central’s the Daily Show Discusses Michael Dunn and Jordan Davis (Motion Picture). The United States: Law Offices of John M. Phillips.