Influential Writing? ~ Some of The Best Is Comedy :-)
It seems even the writers who claim their main responsibility is to entertain their readers have at least some desire to Influence those readers.
Then there are the writers, those trying to influence their readers, who might laugh at you for suggesting their writing is entertainment.
Of course, being entertaining in one's writing doesn't necessitate using bald comedy; but, what about subtle humor…?
The video below is a fascinating talk by Chris Bliss called, Comedy Is Translation.
I feel he shows quite clearly that a humorous presentation of information can greatly boost its Influence.
Chris mentions an influential study by the Pew Research Center that states: "When Americans last year were asked to name the journalist they most admired, showing up at No. 4 on the list was a comedian. Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central and former master of ceremonies at Academy Award shows, tied in the rankings with anchormen Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, and cable host Anderson Cooper."
Early in the video, Chris talks about Gabriel García Márquez and his Spanish-to-English translator, Gregory Rabassa, who is quoted as saying, "Every act of communication is, in some way, an act of translation".
This video is entertaining and quite Influential :-)
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Tagged: Chris Bliss, Comedy Central, Comedy Writing, Daily Show, Gabriel García Márquez, Gregory Rabassa, Jon Stewart, Pew Research Center
