{"title":"Matt Sienkiewicz","description":"\u003cp\u003eDelve into the insightful world of Matt Sienkiewicz, where media studies meet sharp cultural analysis. Perfect for readers keen on understanding the forces shaping our screens and society. Browse his thought-provoking works.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"that-s-not-funny-book-matt-sienkiewicz-9780520382138","title":"That's Not Funny","description":"A 2022 Best Comedy Book, Vulture  A rousing call for liberals and progressives to pay attention to the emergence of right-wing comedy and the political power of humor.   \"Why do conservatives hate comedy? Why is there no right-wing Jon Stewart?\" These sorts of questions launch a million tweets, a thousand op-eds, and more than a few scholarly analyses. That's Not Funny argues that it is both an intellectual and politically strategic mistake to assume that comedy has a liberal bias. Matt Sienkiewicz and Nick Marx take readers––particularly self-described liberals––on a tour of contemporary conservative comedy and the \"right-wing comedy complex.\"     In That's Not Funny, \"complex\" takes on an important double meaning. On the one hand, liberals have developed a social-psychological complex—it feels difficult, even dangerous, to acknowledge that their political opposition can produce comedy. At the same time, the right has been slowly building up a comedy-industrial complex, utilizing the humorous, irony-laden media strategies of liberals such as Jon Stewart, Samantha Bee, and John Oliver to garner audiences and supporters. Right-wing comedy has been hiding in plain sight, finding its way into mainstream conservative media through figures ranging from Fox News's Greg Gutfeld to libertarian podcasters like Joe Rogan. That's Not Funny taps interviews with conservative comedians and observations of them in action to guide readers through media history, text, and technique. You will find many of these comedians utterly appalling, some surprisingly funny, and others just plain weird. They are all, however, culturally and politically relevant—the American right is attempting to seize spaces of comedy and irony previously held firmly by the left. You might not like this brand of humor, but you can't ignore it.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":49740907610385,"sku":"NGR9780520382138","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50866406392081,"sku":"CIN0520382137G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51002971259153,"sku":"NIN9780520382138","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":53521375199505,"sku":"NLS9780520382138","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0520382137.jpg?v=1751428737"},{"product_id":"that-s-not-funny-book-matt-sienkiewicz-9780520402966","title":"That's Not Funny","description":"A 2022 Best Comedy Book, Vulture  A rousing call for liberals and progressives to pay attention to the emergence of right-wing comedy and the political power of humor.   \"Why do conservatives hate comedy? Why is there no right-wing Jon Stewart?\" These sorts of questions launch a million tweets, a thousand op-eds, and more than a few scholarly analyses. That's Not Funny argues that it is both an intellectual and politically strategic mistake to assume that comedy has a liberal bias. Matt Sienkiewicz and Nick Marx take readers––particularly self-described liberals––on a tour of contemporary conservative comedy and the \"right-wing comedy complex.\"     In That's Not Funny, \"complex\" takes on an important double meaning. On the one hand, liberals have developed a social-psychological complex—it feels difficult, even dangerous, to acknowledge that their political opposition can produce comedy. At the same time, the right has been slowly building up a comedy-industrial complex, utilizing the humorous, irony-laden media strategies of liberals such as Jon Stewart, Samantha Bee, and John Oliver to garner audiences and supporters. Right-wing comedy has been hiding in plain sight, finding its way into mainstream conservative media through figures ranging from Fox News's Greg Gutfeld to libertarian podcasters like Joe Rogan. That's Not Funny taps interviews with conservative comedians and observations of them in action to guide readers through media history, text, and technique. You will find many of these comedians utterly appalling, some surprisingly funny, and others just plain weird. They are all, however, culturally and politically relevant—the American right is attempting to seize spaces of comedy and irony previously held firmly by the left. You might not like this brand of humor, but you can't ignore it.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ GARDNERS","offer_id":49750554509585,"sku":"NGR9780520402966","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51002973421841,"sku":"NIN9780520402966","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":53080092541201,"sku":"GOR014732775","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0520402960.jpg?v=1751424022"},{"product_id":"other-air-force-book-matt-sienkiewicz-9780813577982","title":"The Other Air Force","description":"Winner of the 2019 Alpha Sigma Nu Book Award   As it seeks to win the hearts and minds of citizens in the Muslim world, the United States has poured millions of dollars into local television and radio programming, hoping to generate pro-American currents on Middle Eastern airwaves. However, as this fascinating new book shows, the Middle Eastern media producers who rely on these funds are hardly puppets on an American string, but instead contribute their own political and creative agendas while working within U.S. restrictions.   The Other Air Force gives readers a unique inside look at television and radio production in Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories, from the isolated villages of the Afghan Panjshir Valley to the congested streets of Ramallah. Communications scholar Matt Sienkiewicz explores how the U.S. takes a “soft-psy” approach to its media efforts combining “soft” methods of encouraging entertainment programming, such as adaptations of The Voice and The Apprentice with more militaristic “psy-ops” approaches to information control. Drawing from years of field research and interviews with everyone from millionaire executives to underpaid but ever resourceful cameramen, Sienkiewicz considers the perspectives of the Afghan and Palestinian media workers trying to forge viable broadcasting businesses without straying outside American-set boundaries for acceptable content.    As it carefully examines the interplay of U.S. military and economic might with the capacity for local ingenuity and resistance, the book also analyzes the intriguingly complex programming that emerges from this tension. Combining eyewitness reportage with cutting-edge scholarship, The Other Air Force reveals the remarkable creative output that can emerge even from the world’s tensest conflict zones.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50037930819857,"sku":"CIN0813577985G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0813577985.jpg?v=1761389260"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-matt-sienkiewicz.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}