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The Colbert Report and Its Nation As Critical and Productive Commodities

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The Colbert Report and Its Nation As Critical and Productive Commodities The Colbert Report and Its Nation as Critical and Productive Commodities Critical Cultural Discourse and Political Economy Analysis of Satire and Fan Culture to Review Dallas Smythe Research Master in Media Studies Dissertation Name: Pauline Le E-mail addresses: [email protected] [email protected] Student number: 6075665 Supervisor: Jan Teurlings Second reader: Markus Stauff Third reader: Jaap Kooijman Master: Research Master in Media Studies Department: Graduate School of Humanities University: University of Amsterdam Word Count: 19.014 Date: August 14th, 2014 Abstract In “Communications: Blindspot of Western Marxism” (1977), political economist Dallas Smythe laid out the theoretical framework for the North American tradition/field of the political economy of media and communications. Being interested in the media industry as a capitalist system within a capitalist society, he convincingly argued that the content of media are ‘free lunch’ and that media audiences are produced as audience commodities for advertisers to buy and sell. His work is still being cited and revised today. This current study expands and problematises Smythe's two main claims about media content and media audiences by looking into The Colbert Report (Comedy Central, 2005-present) as a political satire in the context of the culture war and the 24- hour news media culture, and as a television program with a dedicated fan following. In engaging with Smythe's theory, the paradoxes of the genre of satire and fan culture within capitalist society come to the fore. On the one hand, satire and fans desire to be critical and/or productive; on the other hand, they are part of a capitalist television industry undermining that desire. This study exemplifies how this paradox presents itself in the relation between the program content, producer and fan of satire. It extends political economy analysis and television studies by examining satire and the on-screen fan practices: political activism, fan charity and fanvidding. In solving this paradox, this thesis proposes that The Colbert Report and Its Nation are critical and productive commodities. That is, both the show and the fans are required to be commodified in order to be critical and productive within and outside of the capitalist system. This study demonstrates how they reinforce and critique the political economic logic of American cable television as they function as sites of struggle between critique, productivity and commodity. Keywords: political economy of television, Dallas Smythe, free lunch, audience commodity, audience labour, The Colbert Report, satire, critique, culture war, fan productivity 2 Acknowledgments Starting with Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993-2009), American late-night comedy television programs have been a hobby horse of mine since I was fifteen. My academic trajectory at the University of Amsterdam (Media en cultuur and the Research Master in Media Studies) has thought me many things. The fact that I managed to apply the acquired knowledge and skills to write about one of my favourite late night shows, The Colbert Report (2005-present), as topic of both my bachelor and now my master thesis is beyond belief. Whereas for my bachelor thesis I mainly focused on the textual practices of satire, for my master thesis I broadened the scope by paying attention to the production and reception practices as well. I thank my supervisor dr. Jan Teurlings for having the patience to deal with me the last couple of months. His guidance was unquestionably essential to my writing. I also thank my two thesis readers dr. Markus Stauff and dr. Jaap Kooijman. My thanks to my fellow rMA Media Studies students and professors for their critical assistance and feedback. Finally, my gratitude goes toward my friends and family. Their support, albeit surely dubious at times, gave me the strength to always look forward and keep moving. 3 Table of Contents Abstract..............................................................................................................................2 Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................3 1 Introduction................................................................................................................5 2 Dallas Smythe's Theory...........................................................................................10 2.1 Media/Television Programming as Free Lunch...............................................11 2.2 Audience Commodity......................................................................................15 2.2.1 Audience Labour......................................................................................17 2.3 Existing Expansions and Critiques on Smythe................................................17 2.3.1 “Watching Is Labour” and the Attention Economy.................................19 2.3.2 Audience Labour in Contemporary Media Culture..................................20 3 The Colbert Report..................................................................................................24 3.1 Free Lunch versus Satire as Critical Content...................................................24 3.1.1 Defining Satire..........................................................................................26 3.1.1.1 Satire as Dominant Reading.............................................................28 3.1.2 Culture Wars in Contemporary News and Media Culture.......................29 3.1.3 Satire in Contemporary News and Media Culture...................................32 3.2 Audience Commodity versus ‘Productive Commodity’ .................................35 3.2.1 Smythe on Contemporary Media Fan Practices.......................................37 3.2.2 Fandom: To the Colbert Nation and Beyond...........................................38 3.2.2.1 The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear...........................................42 3.2.2.2 Fan Charity.......................................................................................45 3.2.2.3 Remix Culture...................................................................................47 3.2.3 The Paradox of Satire and Fan Culture....................................................50 4 Conclusion...............................................................................................................53 References.......................................................................................................................57 4 1 Introduction Published in the first issue of the Canadian Journal of Political and Society Theory in 1977, political economist Dallas Smythe (1907-1992) wrote an article titled “Communications: Blindspot of Western Marxism.” In it, he put forward two claims about media content and media audiences. According to him, the economic and political significance of media is more important than any political and cultural meaning in media (1). Under monopoly capitalism, media function with economic goals in mind. Two main points that derive out of this conception were: first, that media/television programming is to be considered as ‘free lunch,’ and second, that audiences and readerships of media are produced as ratings for sale to advertisers and thus are commodities (3). According to Smythe, cultural criticism and ideology play a lesser part in media. The labour and time that the audience put into watching television is what Smythe calls audience labour understood as a form of exploitation of the audience. The intent of this thesis is to expand Smythe's essay by simultaneously strengthening and critiquing his claims. This thesis demonstrates that while Smythe's political economic theory in the context of monopoly capitalism has valid points, he does not leave room for nuances that are intrinsically part of contemporary media culture and thus relevant to call attention to. The Colbert Report (Comedy Central, 2005-present; TCR) as a satire and a TV show with a dedicated fan culture asks for a review of Smythe's essay. Focussing on this American satirical television news program, this dissertation shows how the genre of satire and fan culture help to identify overseen gaps in Smythe's ideas of free lunch and audience commodity. Indeed, TCR is a television show that is part of a money-making industry. As such, the genre of satire is to be perceived as yet another cog of a greater machinery. Furthermore, the show is produced to stimulate audience productivity – be it intentional or unintentional. That is, the fans offer labour and participate in events that are related to the show. This notion helps to strengthen the understanding of fans as audience commodity. The arguments here are that content in media does matter to a certain extent and audiences are to be see as ‘productive commodities.’ First, satire plays a role in a particular form of ideology that is not the same kind of ideology in the capitalist system that Smythe had in mind. Second, the fans of TCR – also known by the names names 5 varying from the Colbert Nation to Nation to Heroes – accurately fit the description of audience commodity, yet, at the same time, transcend it. In scrutinising Smythe's theory, this dissertation allow for a way to rethink the positions of the genre of satire and fan culture within today's mainstream television. Many theorists have and are still discussing Smythe's text in length (i.e. Jhally & Livant 1986, 2006; Fuchs and Caraway). A great deal has been written about
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