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Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture #6
The Daily Show and Philosophy: Moments of Zen in the Art of Fake News
An entertaining and insightful examination of the Emmy-award winning American satirical news show, broadcast on Comedy Central in the US, and (in an edited edition) on More4 in the UK and CNN International around the world. Includes discussion of both The Daily Show and its spin-off show, The Colbert Report.
Showcases philosophers at their best, discussing truth, knowledge, reality and the American Way. Highlights the razor sharp critical skills of Jon Stewart and his colleagues. Faces tough and surprisingly funny questions about politics, religion, and power head on.
280 pages, Paperback
Published October 2, 2007
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342 people want to read
About the author
Jason Holt
31 books6 followersJason Holt is a Canadian poet who lives in Nova Scotia and teaches at Acadia University. He received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Western University in 1998. His book The Nature of Consciousness was shortlisted for the 2005 CPA Book Prize. His interests include the history, poetry, and the philosophy of Sport—a topic he teaches at Acadia in the Kinesiology department.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
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July 27, 2011While I enjoyed this book, it was far from a perfect read.
One of ongoing series of pop culture philosophy books, suffers from the same problem as its bretheren, While it is an engaging read at times, some of the contributors make but the barest of links between the subject and the philosophy they are linking to it. For laywomen like me (and laymen too) this means that they are too many articles that are a slog to read rather enlightening,
Some of the authors have also made the mistake of not altering their writing style to fit a mass audience, making this work, at times, seem like a scholarly journal. Finally, the editor has forgotten that while academic journals and essay collections frequently have more than one article avout a specific subject, those written for the rest of us avoid it like the plague. Doing it means that the reader gets bogged down in repetition, which leads to boredome and disengagement.
One of ongoing series of pop culture philosophy books, suffers from the same problem as its bretheren, While it is an engaging read at times, some of the contributors make but the barest of links between the subject and the philosophy they are linking to it. For laywomen like me (and laymen too) this means that they are too many articles that are a slog to read rather enlightening,
Some of the authors have also made the mistake of not altering their writing style to fit a mass audience, making this work, at times, seem like a scholarly journal. Finally, the editor has forgotten that while academic journals and essay collections frequently have more than one article avout a specific subject, those written for the rest of us avoid it like the plague. Doing it means that the reader gets bogged down in repetition, which leads to boredome and disengagement.
October 31, 2007
This is a perfect book for hardcore fans of The Daily Show who have spent way too much time thinking very seriously about it, because, clearly, so have the authors. The book is even divided into sections that correspond with those of the show (headlines, interview, moment of zen, etc), though the essays do not really seem related to their given section. It's still a cute idea though! There are some slower chapters, but most are funny and interesting, and definitely written by "it-getters". Some chapters are devoted to Stephen Colbert and America (The Book) rather than The Daily Show itself. The chapters comparing Jon Stewart to Socrates made me curious to read some Plato, so I guess the book succeeded in its goal of sparking my interest in Philosophy through pop culture :)
July 6, 2013
This book brought up some wonderful points that I will utilize in how I choose to debate with others. It also gave me a greater appreciation for the Daily Show and Colbert Report than I had before this. I will admit my opinion of both those shows is very high.
Overall I enjoyed this book but some of the essays got very dry. Many were interesting but the author choose at time to describe the concepts in the same way they would in an academic proof. I did not need to be beat over the head with many of the concepts such as truthiness. Loved much of the thoughts but I think the first half of this book was better for me than the second half. It is worth a one time read and does convey the basics of many philosophers.
Overall I enjoyed this book but some of the essays got very dry. Many were interesting but the author choose at time to describe the concepts in the same way they would in an academic proof. I did not need to be beat over the head with many of the concepts such as truthiness. Loved much of the thoughts but I think the first half of this book was better for me than the second half. It is worth a one time read and does convey the basics of many philosophers.
November 1, 2022
Essays about The Daily Show and how it fits into pop culture, especially relating to its influence on media, its viewers' awareness, philosophy of current events, and religion.
This book is pretty interesting, although it does get repetitive at times. Do all the authors need to cite the same studies? Do all of the essays in one section really need to rehash the same ideas?
For hardcore fans of The Daily Show, or people who like to study pop culture, I'd recommend buying this book. For those who are merely curious about the book or are casual fans of TDS, I'd check it out from the library or buy it used.
This book is pretty interesting, although it does get repetitive at times. Do all the authors need to cite the same studies? Do all of the essays in one section really need to rehash the same ideas?
For hardcore fans of The Daily Show, or people who like to study pop culture, I'd recommend buying this book. For those who are merely curious about the book or are casual fans of TDS, I'd check it out from the library or buy it used.
April 21, 2009
Like many collections of essays, this book was pretty hit or miss. A few of the essays came off as incredibly shallow discussion and argument, ultimately reading more as either a fan drooling over the show, or a hater talking about how terrible the show is. It's also the nature of this sort of book that it got fairly repetitive. Essays overlapped, and even the ones that didn't overlap tended to cite the same quote/incident on the show as examples for whatever they were discussing.
That said, the book definitely contains some interesting discussion of concepts belonging to the world of philosophy, education, humor, and politics, and was generally both enjoyable and informative.
That said, the book definitely contains some interesting discussion of concepts belonging to the world of philosophy, education, humor, and politics, and was generally both enjoyable and informative.
July 17, 2010
Note to self: do not buy or allow anyone to buy for me, books that analyze television shows. Ugh. I just can't get into these. It's a whole lot of self-important blah blah blah. I think they are mainly just promotional tools for the show. Which is stupid, because the target audience is people who ALREADY watch the show.
January 26, 2013
There have only been a few concrete studies done on the effect of the Daily Show on people; they've been cited again and again in these articles, which, overall, all repeat each other. And the authors are coming across as totally kiss-ass. (I love Jon, too, but SEVERAL OF THE ESSAYS compared him to Socrates. Sigh.)
August 28, 2017
So The Daily Show with Jon Stewart is philosophy? Ehm... OK. I guess since most of the arguments in this book is what *I* would call Common Sense or even Obvious, I guess I'm a philosofer. I can't say I really learned anything new, but I got to relive some nice Daily Show (and Colbert Report) moments. I guess that count for something :)
June 1, 2008
The first time one of the essayists compared Stewart to Socrates, I laughed. Then, when the basis for such a comparison was developed, I began to realize how firmly rooted the show is in the grand philosophical tradition. This one was a real eye-opener.
March 2, 2011
A solid edited collection on The Daily Show. It was published before Obama's election and like many of the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop culture series it appears too 'try hard.' But such an important programme has a solid monograph here, and I hope many more will be written.
January 7, 2019
An interesting set of essays examining philosophical ideas as reflected in The Daily Show and the Colbert report - which comment on media, politics and the U.S. (My only complaint would be that since there are 19 authors, there is a bit of overlap and the overlapping essays are grouped together.)
March 10, 2008
It was okay. At times it was pretty repetitive (Jon is Socrates, we get it) and I think they could have taken out one of the two essays on Stephen Colbert's truthiness.
March 1, 2008
A great look at the impact of "The Daily Show" on mass media and vice versa.A true moment of zen!
May 19, 2008
made up of research papers people have written about different aspects of the show. A lot of them compare him to Socrates.
August 11, 2008
HILARIOUS....I am a major fan of the show so I had to read this book...recommend it to any Daily Show fan...or anyone who laughs at the worped world of American media.
October 2, 2009
Several chapters were redundant, but the philosophy academics who authored the chapters of the book overall wrote good pieces.
July 7, 2012
How the author(s) turn something hilariously funny (but not without depth) into this is completely beyond me.
January 20, 2013
A little outdated, but a great way to use Daily Show (paired with these essays) in a rhetoric/writing class.
January 21, 2013
Perfect! That's all you need to know.
February 11, 2016
This book is an excellent exploration of the particular aspects of the media environment that The Daily Show fills.
July 24, 2020
Pre-Trump, so it seems a little naive by today's standards. But it's still an excellent and educational read. A serious compilation of essays on philosophy, the news and the differences between truth, lies and "bullshit" (their word).
February 15, 2025
This book discusses philosophy of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report with a focus on fake news and how we know the difference. This is the best of the pop philosophy books that I've read, considering the Blackwell Philosophy series and the Pop Culture series.
It compares the two shows as satirical programs and Fox News, how they present information and what the viewers can get out of them. The book goes into how the two shows use humor and satire as entertainment to shape public opinion and its affect on our culture.
It compares the two shows as satirical programs and Fox News, how they present information and what the viewers can get out of them. The book goes into how the two shows use humor and satire as entertainment to shape public opinion and its affect on our culture.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews