Colbert Study: Conservatives Don't Know He's Joking

Colbert Study: Conservatives Don't Know He's Joking

www.huffingtonpost.com

Last week, Stephen Colbert revisited a segment he had done on Florida Representative Bill Posey, who sponsored a bill that "would require future presidential candidates to provide a copy of their original birth certificate," in order to put insane rumors of President Barack Obama's birthplace to bed.

Colbert thought a similar measure should be taken to end the whisperings that Posey was a human-alligator hybrid. Posey, in response to Colbert, said, "I expected there would be some civil debate about it, but it wasn't civil...There is no reason to say that I'm the illegitimate grandson of an alligator." And one wondered, "Does Posey not realize that Colbert is not speaking in earnest? His reaction seems uniquely stupid!"

Stupid, yes. But apparently it's not unique at all, according to a study from The Ohio State University, which proves, with math and stuff, that lots of conservatives seem to not understand the intrinsic, underlying joke of The Colbert Report:

(visit the link for the full news article)


Related News Links:
hij.sagepub.com

[edit on 28-4-2009 by grover]

Go ahead accuse me of conservative bashing... I can take it but given some of the things the conservatives have posted on here about us liberals they don't have grounds to complain...

... what goes around comes around.

the abstract goes on to say that:

Using data from an experiment (N = 332), we found that individual-level political ideology significantly predicted perceptions of Colbert's political ideology. Additionally, there was no significant difference between the groups in thinking Colbert was funny, but conservatives were more likely to report that Colbert only pretends to be joking and genuinely meant what he said while liberals were more likely to report that Colbert used satire and was not serious when offering political statements.

hij.sagepub.com...

This really doesn't surprise me since a significant number of conservatives also consider mush loosebowels a valid news source.

Really now...

What was that quote from John Stewart Mills?

While it is not true that all conservatives are stupid... it is true that most stupid people are conservative.

Perhaps they just studied the stupid ones.


www.huffingtonpost.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 28-4-2009 by grover]

I have found on several occasions, people who think that Colbert is a conservative. They site him as being the conservative equivalent of Jon Stewart. I've always been surprised that they didn't get the joke, it seems really obvious to me that he's making fun of the right. Abettedly, he does so with a measure of respect, at least in respect to his handling of his guests.

LOL. Something I noticed a long time ago. How the hell else did he get invited to speak at that white house press dinner for Bush? I still can’t watch the whole video. It’s too painful to watch. And apparently no one in his administration saw it coming.
Actually, the ones who do get it, seem to have left the party. I used to have trouble watching him simply because it was also a bit painful to watch. But he is simply too good. I mean really, really good.
I had this debate with a guy on one of those “intellectual” forums that tried to slam Stewart and Colbert. The guy just couldn’t accept that Republicans churn out so much more comedic fodder. I refuse to call them conservative. Theres nothing conservative about them.

Why on earth is this posted on abovetopsecret.com? I don't think i'm the only one who thinks this website is getting way too political. I'm not saying there isn't room for politics in relevent topics, but your title Colbert Study: Conservatives Don't Know He's Joking is baiting a conservative v.s. liberal arguement (that is why fight club pub was created). This quote seals your intentions

Perhaps they just studied the stupid ones

This isn't constructive.
The last thing we need right now is to be further divided

Peace
-E-

Edit to add I'm a Libertarian, so don't say this is conservative rhetoric.

[edit on 28-4-2009 by MysterE]

reply to post by grover


... you read my mind.

How does the saying go... "Great minds think alike"?

Last night i added news of this study to my The Mind & Heart of a Conservative thread...

Google Video Link

My own experience reconfirms this finding. Conservatives generally take themselves way too seriously and seem incapable of comprehending satire.

I think this is in large part due to their black and white way of seeing the world.

reply to post by MysterE


While I agree with your intent, I’m not sure there is one thread here that doesn’t get injected with peoples political ideologies. Look at the avatars. People quite proudly wear their politics on their sleeves. And those are usually quite strong views against Obama, implying he is a fascist, a communist or a nazi. And while I can agree that calling someone stupid can be a little extreme, all I can say is, stupid is as stupid does.

reply to post by MysterE


When you have individuals in your community who are held up as authorities on how we should run our lives and given power to adversely impact our lives and prove to be mentally ill... do you just whistle and walk away or do you take every opportunity to point out the idiocy? I vote for the later. As far as this being divisive, this is not the intent. The intent is to deny ignorance so we can evolve as a society. This in itself is constructive.

For the record; i consider myself an Independent... if that means anything to anyone. What it means to me is to be loyal only to principle/truth... not party. The only reason i mention this... is to save the breathe of those who are eager to pull me into a silly head game over donkeys versus elephants... when the facts on the ground show that they are both working for the same set of masters... unfortunately we don't make the landlord list.

[edit on 28-4-2009 by The All Seeing I]

and prove to be mentally ill...

Is this a colbert style joke, or are you seriously saying that our ELECTED officials are mentally ill. Don't forget it is the people who put these "mentally ill" politicians in office.

Peace
-E-



[edit on 28-4-2009 by MysterE]

Originally posted by Grimstad
reply to post by MysterE

 

While I agree with your intent, I’m not sure there is one thread here that doesn’t get injected with peoples political ideologies. Look at the avatars. People quite proudly wear their politics on their sleeves. And those are usually quite strong views against Obama, implying he is a fascist, a communist or a nazi. And while I can agree that calling someone stupid can be a little extreme, all I can say is, stupid is as stupid does.

I agree that the name calling against Obama goes too far. I am guilty of this as well. However, the posts are generally related to a topic that has some relevence to abovetopsecret.com and not purely political.

Peace
-E-

Hey people

I'm very conservative and the Colbert Report is my most favorite show on earth!!!!

I love it and I always laugh

Thx

Originally posted by MysterE

and prove to be mentally ill...

Is this a colbert style joke, or are you seriously saying that our ELECTED officials are mentally ill. Don't forget it is the people who put these "mentally ill" politicians in office.

actually i'm dead serious and yes you have drawn the right conclusion.

Thomas Frank did an excellent job of mapping this phenomenon in his book
What's the Matter with Kansas? - How Conservatives Won the Heart of America

As for this thread being appropriate for breaking "alternative" vs "political" news (BPN)... correct me if i'm wrong but until the PBN submission page is fixed we have BAN to use?

[edit on 28-4-2009 by The All Seeing I]

reply to post by The All Seeing I


It is unfortunate that you think this man is "mentally ill"

Posey moved to Florida in 1956, as his father took a job in engineering with NASA. In 1969, he graduated from Brevard Community College with an Associate of Arts degree. He obtained his own work at NASA, but was laid off at the end of the Apollo Space Program. From 1974-1976, Bill Posey worked on the Rockledge Planning Commission. In 1976, he was elected as a member of the City Council, and from 1986 to 1992, he was a member of the Brevard County Business and Industrial Development Commission.

Professionally, Posey founded his own real estate company in the 1970s, and he eventually grew it into a major[clarification needed] realty corporation. He later became director of the state Association of Realtors. While serving in local politics, he also became a researcher on government accountability and transparency. Posey authored Activity Based Total Accountability, which outlines his suggestions for improving American politics.

All he said was

"I expected there would be some civil debate about it, but it wasn't civil...There is no reason to say that I'm the illegitimate grandson of an alligator."

Wiki

He didn't say "Hey wait, my grandmother was a human being not a reptile" All he did was hope for "civil debate". Does that make a man "mentally ill"?

I guess NASA always hires the "mentally ill"

Peace
-E-

While I appreciate the humorous nature of the Colbert show which often relies on the left-right, conservative vs liberal paradigm ,

I would like to remind you fellow ATSers to not forget that this current paradigm is being manipulated to bury important issues while debating useless ones.

Elevate above left vs right friends.

Grover, many many people take themselves and stuff around them way to seriously.

For those may I suggest:

Vaxaloon - For Truman Show delusion.

Makes you believe you’re in a different Jim Carey movie. It comes in six different strengths - Ace Ventura, The Mask, Me, Myself, Irene, and for extreme cases, The Number 23, which causes hallucinations so powerful that patients believe The Number 23 made money.

Side Effects may include:

Rectal frosting
Arby’s Mouth
Tennis Scrotum

Prescott Pharmaceuticals - "We sincerely apologize about that whole zombie thing."*

reply to post by vegno


You are a voice of reason vegno

Peace
-E-

reply to post by Grimstad

The article in question goes on to say that:

a lot of conservatives are going to pissed when they realize that Stephen Colbert's performance at the 2006 White House Correspondents' Dinner was not, in fact, an awkward and ineffective attempt to praise President George W. Bush, but actually a bitter and satiric criticism of his incompetence!

I post this btw more for its humor than anything else but the actual abstract does suggest that conservatives (or some anyway... my addition) lack a sense of irony.

I really think however is that many conservatives, especially of the right wing variety, lack the ability to put themselves in another's shoes... and more specifically someone they do not know, shoes...

A general sense of empathy in other words.

Originally posted by ModernAcademia
Hey people

I'm very conservative and the Colbert Report is my most favorite show on earth!!!!

I love it and I always laugh

Thx

thats funny, because out of every post ive ever see you made, i thought you were the most left communist on this site, and im not "joking"

Yep i love the way he uses his show to plant seeds of info, for his audience. This covers his butt. His version of sarcasm, is good, and at times he is really funny.

reply to post by MysterE


"Mentally ill"... as in "mentally challenged" ...when it is obvious that someone is joking... why assume the worst and take it literally?

With regard to the OP i find the study interesting, Posey on the other hand i find the least interesting... but since you brought his background up, lets take a look at his record. I think he's on the ball with seeking financial accountability/transparency in congress, but on the darkside he has the typical neo-con stance on national security which entails raising the budget for FBI/CIA&Co and building a mexican boarder fence, and on education he thinks "Leave No Child Behind" is on target. In my book this guy is more of a liability then an asset.