The Daily Show: Black Lives Matter, ideology, and online content

The Daily Show has a specific combined-media ideology and position in the hybrid media system.  holds an antiracist ideology it can normalize this through its unique position, thus aiding  BlackLivesMatter. However, this is partially thwarted by the filter bubble and polarization.

In this article, I will examine what usage of media and political ideologies how it supports specific causes and groups such as BlackLivesMatter. Lastly, I will look at the effectiveness of this, connected to the filter bubble and contemporary American polarization.multimodal. I will now give a description of The Daily Show for the readers who do not know it.

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What is The Daily Show?

The Daily Show is a satirical program that covers political news in the USA. Its current host is South African comedian Trevor Noah. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the show has taken a new form. It was renamed "The Daily Social distancing show". It has become more similar to youtube shows with quick-cuts, short segments, and changed format.

Now it is a mix between a youtube news show and an actual news show. Segments of the program were already posted on the site. This means it functions on network TV and youtube. On the video platform, they also post compilations of segments of videos organized by topic. An example of this is a compilation of their coverage of former US president Trump's "best" Tweets. 

The show and its host have become famous on the internet especially in liberal circles. Trevor Noah could be called both a traditional and social media celebrity. 

In addition to this, memes, internet articles, and tweets are often discussed on the show and posted on the different social media of the show. While this is not exclusive to internet shows they are more typical of them. Specific obvious camera shots with the anchor more front and center, having guests chime in via video instead of having them be in the studio and not using a professional studio are also indicative of this.Moreover, the show covers lots of former US president Trump-related news, quite a bit of criminal justice, and longer editorial pieces from time to time. That is not to forget the human interest pieces that pop up sometimes.

Furthermore, the show features different specialized reporters. They are often used to connect to a certain population or issue.  For instance, Roywood Junior often talks about African American issues.

Lastly, the show is also active on Twitter and other social media. Here they share clips from the show.

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Usage of the Hybrid media system

Before analyzing the ideology and its impact on political news cycles we must first analyze how the Daily Show uses different media. This will reveal what process meanings conveyed in the show go through.

 

To do so I will use the episode above to describe how the show utilizes features from multiple formats or genres. At the bottom of the video, we can see a news ticker. This is typical of American broadcast news. Furthermore, we see how the show uses other news outlets, all while joking, and applying quick cuts. This reminds us of the internet and specifically the YouTube media format. So, we see combined broadcast and internet media format. 

We can thus see that the show mixes the media formats of both the internet and broadcast media.

In this case, internet media format features would mean ways of using audiovisual media that are widely accepted on the intent and generally expected for users to be able to understand when using the internet. This allows the show to communicate meaning. The viewers are expected to have some foundational understanding of how meaning is supposed to be conveyed. Examples would be memes, specific types of shots, and a mock conversation that I will elaborate on later. The Daily Show uses all these aspects.

The broadcast media format on the other hand is the conventional ways of using audiovisual media that are conventional for Television. Examples would be a news ticker, showing other network TV clips, and having guests over in real life. A TV viewer is expected to understand these things.

This dichotomy is particularly clear when one watches the coverage of the Fauci Video incident which starts at the 03:07 minute mark and lasts for the rest of the video. Here we first see a bunch of clips from other cable news networks. This is an often-used technique by many political satire programs on network tv.  anchor would explain this afterward and go on to make some longer more content focused jokes as is exemplary in John Oliver's program "LastweekTonight".

However, the Daily Show does not follow this pattern. After the news footage, there is a mock conversation between the public and former US president Trump both personified by the Anchor. This is a typical pattern for youtube shows, like ScreenRant's "Pitchmeeting". Then there is some more cable news footage followed by a more serious ending with a moral element. The show thus combines broadcast and YouTube media format.

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Consequences of combining media formats

Combining media formats has consequences for viewers. For instance, to understand why this show does the faux conversation or refers to certain sources the viewer needs specific knowledge. This knowledge is treated as normal and thus micro-hegemonic. Thus having micro-hegemonic knowledge is required to understand the show.

This knowledge requirement is expanded as viewers need to be familiar with the broadcast media format and the YouTube or internet media format. Thus, viewers are required to understand intertextuality and features from both online and offline media. The viewer needs to recognize both the faux conversation and what using footage of a certain cable show means. The conditions for uptake are higher. One needs to be literate in more media formats.

The conditions for uptake are higher.

However, using features from multiple media formats can have advantages. The show has more options in communicating meaning. It can use memes and a news ticker.The jokes and references it can make are more varied. Thus, the ways in which the show can attract viewers and entertain or inform them are more varied.

This is relevant as any meaning that the Daily Show conveys will be communicated through this system. Both the expanded options as well as the necessity of hegemonic knowledge for receivers impact a viewer's opinion about the ideas and happenings the show covers.

This does not mean the show can fix the meaning. Meaning in the hybrid media system can be re-entextualized both by sharing and merely viewing a piece of content. For instance, someone sharing a video sarcastically might change the meaning from an honest statement to a mockery of that same statement. Furthermore, if a viewer misunderstands the show because of a lack of overlapping mental context between creator and viewer, the meaning communicated could differ for the specific viewer. For instance, a swastika could communicate a religious symbol in Buddhism and a symbol for Nazism depending upon one's mental context.

Then the question remains, why can the Daily show request such high levels of preexisting knowledge of its viewers. This is due to its specific emplacement on either TV or YouTube. On YouTube, most people will be familiar with the YouTube format and on TV most will be familiar with the broadcast format. Therefore, the chance that they would miss all these cues is diminished. Thus the show can expect a viewer to understand more media formats and have more micro-hegemonic knowledge because of its specific emplacement.

Later I will further explain the logic behind using multiple media formats. This ties into the big organizing of BlackLivesMatter.

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Political Ideology

I will now analyze what ideology the Daily Show propagates.holds. By this, I mean which political tradition does this show affiliate itself with. Hegemony is the topic of this article at large as perceivable in the last segment about hegemony in the usage of the hybrid media system.

I will use the example above to illustrate the ideology of this show. It is a compilation of their own clips called DiscrimiNATION. In it, all their segments on discrimination in a certain period of time are collected. 

We can see the show has an antiracist ideology.

We can see the show has an antiracist ideology. Discrimination is an important issue for the show. So important that they make many videos on it and make those into a compilation. 
Furthermore, the show satirizes manyof people associated with racism, especially former US president Trump. It also covers many issues that matter to minorities. Racism and inequality are often subjects of debate. This is all indexes an antiracist ideology. 

We can see ideology in the show through the assumptions the host makes. For instance, when covering voter suppression, like in the video above, it is not questioned whether solving this would be good. Racism in a democracy is assumed to be bad. This is connected to minorities. The anchor shames republicans for blocking minorities from voting. Antiracism is embedded in this assumption. When racism in the process is revealed it is mocked and treated badly. Racism seems to be an inherently bad thing in the eyes of the show. Treating it as bad shows the program sees this as a moral issue.

Thus this show's ideology is antiracist. They give thorough moral attention to antiracism. They condemn racism and assume it is a bad thing.

This does oanyone who watches the show that is in itThat all is not to mention technological hurdles such as the filter bubble.
This shows that the program has a materialist ideology. It focuses on the division of power and materials.Often specifically cionnected to race  A perfect example of this the clip under this text. This is an interview with Rutger Bregman. He is a historian who wrote books and made a speech for the Worl Economic Forum focusing on how to elevate economic inequality.  A basic income, 15 hour work week, and higher taxes for companies are just some of his proposals. This is a sixteen-minute interview where the Anchor really gives the interviewee an opportunity to lay out their story. The fact that the show makes time for this shows that the issue of inequality is a relevant one for them. This also points out that given their socialist position, the program expresses relatively favorable views of Mr. Bregman's ideas. They give them a stage and talk about them as positive. As inequality and by extension distribution of resources and power matter enough to The Daily Show to have this large segment this program has a materialist ideology. 

 

The most obvious way we can see that connection in the shows is in the assumptions the host makes. For instance, when covering inequality, like in the video above, it is not questioned whether solving this would be a good thing. Inequality is just assumed to be a bad thing. In socialist ideology, especially marxism, this is a foundational claim. Furthermore, the show many times says Donald Trump is breaking the American constitution, by breaking the trias politica or cheating in elections. They see this as bad. The show thus thinks that constitutional democracy is a good thing. This fits squarely into the radical enlightenment. One example of this is where they talk about Donal Trump not guaranteeing a peaceful transition of power. This would break the USA's constitutional democracy. That is treated very negatively. They even call the president Donald "junta' Trump. Words like dictatorships are named to paint Trump in a bad light. So one can say that constitutional democracy being good is a hegemonic truth for the show. This only makes sense if it fails in the radical enlightenment tradition as this is where that idea came from.

All in all, when we combine the findings that this show's ideology is both materialist and leftist, we must conclude that it falls in the radical enlightenment tradition. It seems to be a brand of socialism which is a successor to the enlightenment tradition. 

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The Daily Show, BlackLivesMatter, and Big organizing 

The Shows thisthat connect. This could link to theirts its BO mobilization effects

connected to the show takes responsibility for the protests. The official leaders of BlackLivesMatter do take responsibility for the protest. This is perceivable as when Hank Newsome's tweet was connected to the group they distanced themselves from it. They thus clearly set boundaries for the group. The second image below, which is a screenshot of an article on the official BLM website shows them doing this.

The Daily Show is an ally to the Big Organizing of BlackLivesmatter. They are not a leader. The show produces content favorable to BlackLivesMatter. They share the ideology and thus could potentially be contributing to the success of the movement and its power to mobilize participants

Primarily,

tsCRWe can see that the show

lm to actually commit to their movement. They want a lot of mobilized active members. It does this bounds and as previously discussed. B. The movement help bying. They could help peoplee witheNow show

For instance, the Daily show engages viewers in the video above. In the beginning, the anchor talks about the BlackLivesMatter protests. But in the end, he starts speaking in the first person. He says, "we are not naive". He identifies with the people who are demonstrating. Through this personal identification, we see howThis means the show is endorsing the protests. However, the last sentence of this videothe Show's Function clear. It ends with the anchor saying, "the people are still fighting, the people are still pushing, but something tells me, if they keep at it, there will be no stopping them". Th Thiss making them look

This means the show is encouraging people to become and remain activists. They are supposed to independently further the cause. Thus, the show is aiding  Big organizing of BlackLivesMatter. Mobilization is praised. That is exactly what the anchor praises that in the video. He says that it is good that people are mobilized protestors. Mobilization is normalized

Another way the show helps BlackLivesMatter by helping people actively engage with antiracism through a combination of humor and seriousness. This makes it more interesting to watch for many and thus easier to be engaged with the show and its antiracist ideology. This leads to more people being mobilized for the antiracist cause. This cause then becomes more easily normalized.

The first one is very briefly explicable. In the video above we see coverage of the BlackLivesMatter protests in the summer of 2020. However, even though this clip is rather short, in the end, the anchor takes almost a minute to just talk. He says that all minorities all over the world are united in this fightto him is the strength of the protests. All these people are in the same battle. 

This shows that the anchor wants people to be engaged and mobilized in activism. The show places emphasis on the idea that all minorities are in the same boat. He says they all know that the system is keeping them down, and thus they stand together. The way he says this is overtly positive. He is emotional and stating the reason for the protest's success. His tone is a mixture of angry and happy. The show says all these people do not find it acceptable and gives a tone that the protests are good. This means people will generally walk away from watching this with a sense that they should mobilize within the protest.

This could be seen as a prefigurative discourse. That means the show makes a statement, specifically describing a reality that is not there. This statement reshapes reality. He says all minorities are united and thus asks for mobilization. This description of reality is currently not accurate. A lot of people are mobilized but many are not. The statement however encourages people to mobilize. It calls to action to a certain extent. Thus, it could be considered a prefigurative statement or a statement that creates a reality by describing it.

Lastly, the show made a segment called "The Right Way for White People to Address Racial Injustice". This is a comedic interview by one of their reporters Desi Lydic  a racial dialogue expert. That is a person who teaches people to interact with racial minorities in a positive manner. The video has comedic elements, but it really does give a few tips on how to discuss Racial injustice with people of other ethnicities. It is comparable to "how-to" videos that are very common on YouTube. One could say that they are attempting to teach people a sort of speech repertoire.

The show tries to get people engaged. It wants them to learn something and thus actively change the way that people act. By changing people's behavior, they are making them act. This is illustrated by the examples above. By  people engage with their antiracist ideology they aid BlackLivesMatters Big organizing in engagement and mobilization.

By letting people engage with their antiracist ideology they aid BlackLivesMatter and its big organizing.

The Daily Show with its position in the hybrid media system is a very powerful ally for  BlackLivesMatter because it explicitly and implicitly normalizes antiracism and the BlackLivesMatter protests. anl andtheit shares with it. They let se two thingsThus, aiding in the normalization of, mobilization for, and engagement with, the movement's cause.

The Daily Show aids in the normalization of and engagement with the movement's cause.

Furthermore, ig organizing in mind we can understand why it uses the Hybrid media System the way it does. Big organizing is hallmarked by the usage of digital data. Through YouTube, The Daily Show has access to a lot of data concerning the people that watch their videos, gender, location, and other demographic information for instance. This could help them target individuals and make content that speaks to their demographic. Perhaps they can have high requirements for uptake because their audience is made up of groups that have digital and traditional media literacy. Then this would not impede communication. Thus looking back at the way it uses multiple media formats through one another makes sense in a Big Organizing perspective. 

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Unsuccessful normalization

It remains difficult to tell whether The Daily Show succeeds in normalizing the antiracist ideologies it espouses. I will attempt to give some insight here

First of all, if one looks at the reactions to the videos, we just analyzed we do see some positivity. In the comments above we can see a rather typical set of reactions. They are largely positive about the show and one even quotes the show and then says that makes them emotional. One would thus say that The Daily Show at least effectively engages and normalizes antiracism as people react to it positively in large numbers. 

However, one of these comments shows my issue with this conclusion. Static_Chip says, "man I wish the racists would listen to this guy". This comment shows one of the main reasons I think The Daily Show cannot be fully successful in normalizing antiracism Filter bubble.  content . Viewers who do have access to similar content in their filter bubble would likely have some prior knowledge on antiracism. This means that people who are familiar with antiracists would be more likely to see the Daily Show. The filter bubble ensures that some people will not see this video. Concretely the people who the algorithm predicts will not enjoy this video most likely do not get this video in their recommendations. These would be conservatives and people with views opposing antiracism. This of course nails the coffin shut. To fully normalize antiracism these people also have to be convinced of it.

The viewer needs knowledge for the show to be able to convey any meaning in the Hybrid Media System section. The viewers must understand the format of the show. The show requires viewers to have some knowledge. Otherwise, they do not understand the program and it cannot convince them of anything. The people who watched similar videos and thus likely get the Daily Show recommended would have this micro-hegemonic knowledge to a larger extent. The features and references that the show uses would be more familiar to people with some experience with similar videos. 

The show requires viewers to have some knowledge. Otherwise, they do not understand the program and it cannot convince them of anything.  

This means that people who never watched anything comparable for ideological reasons will have less of this hegemonic knowledge. B polarization in the US, we see that conservatives and progressives have very different ideas of truth they also avoid each other and the connected media. This only exacerbates the polarization which leaves no room for understanding the other side's media. So even if a conservative person happens to see the show on comedy central or YouTube, antiracism would be more difficult to be normalized for them as opposed to someone with antiracist tendencies. They would not in the correct filter bubble where they can build an understanding of the media formats that are used to normalize antiracism.

Thus, the people that the show might be able to convince of antiracism are people who have access to the show and understand it. These people are likely to already have some exposure and openness to antiracism. olarization and the filter bubble make sure that normalization does not reach antiracism's staunch opponents. 

olarization and the filter bubble make sure that normalization does not reach antiracism's staunch opponents.

This does not mean it is useless. If used correctly it could normalize antiracism to some. It also emboldens and encourages mobilization to those that already have such conviction. Basically, it can help people that are ideologically primed. They already are familiar with some values that underlie antiracism and can understand the way the antiracist discourse is enacted. For those people, the Daily show can have a normalizing effect on antiracism. However, polarization and the filter bubble make sure that normalization does not reach antiracism's staunch opponents.

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Conclusion

When we combine all that we've learned in this article we can say that The Daily Show is unique. It combines media formats from YouTube and broadcast television. This gives opportunities for meaning-making. However, to grasp the full show one then also needs to have the knowledge that is considered hegemonic by the show. from a big organizing perspective because of targetingMany conventions are not explained by the show and thus could fall flat with some. At the same time, we can see that the ideology of the show is connected to Antiracism. The topics it covers and assumptions it makes index this. Furthermore, the show aids BlackLivesMatter through normalization and engagement in Big Organizing. The program tries to engage viewers as activists, gives tools to aid the organization, and makes content favorable to the cause. Thus, aiding mobilization. All this is done with the use of digital media.  This however can only be successful when the viewer has access to the show and understands the antiracist meanings. This means that people who already have some sort of ideological priming towards antiracism are most likely to be impacted by this. Thus, polarization and the filter bubble make sure that strong opponents of antiracism will be less affected by normalization through the Daily Show

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