In this first episode, I sit down with Dr. Liz Jackson, Assistant professor of Education at the University of Hong Kong and the author of Muslims and Islam in US Education: Reconsidering Multiculturalism. Professor Jackson has recently presented work about Last Week Tonight with John Oliver that explores the use of humor in moral education.
Dr. Jackson points out both the potential benefits and the potential downfalls of using humor in moral education. We also discuss the ‘John Oliver Effect’ and question whether changes in the world can be ascribed directly to the comedian or indirectly through the dialogue he may produce. She is critical of Last Week Tonight, arguing that in this case, humor may serve to alleviate the viewer from complicity in social ills and responsibility for social change, instead of inspiring them to action. We discuss the issues arising from ignorance, leaping to action, self-righteousness, and seeing oneself as better than others.
This is my first podcast production and I’m still working at getting some of the kinks out so please forgive some rough edits and some poor audio quality.
Learn More:
- Liz Jackson - Null and Nuller? Laughing About Injustice, from Jon Stewart to John Oliver
- Cris Mayo - Being In On the Joke: Pedagogy, Race and Humor
- Megan Boler - Digital Media and Democracy
- Peggy McIntosh - White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack
- Stuart Hall - Encoding/Decoding