Lost In Translation: The Onion Abroad November 3, 2010

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Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2010/09/29/A_Conversation_about_Comedy_and_Politics

Onion editor Baratunde Thurston lists examples from the satirical news website that have resonated with audiences outside the U.S. While some of the gags sparked meaningful discussion on issues overlooked by traditional media, occasionally the humor has been lost in translation.

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Comedy and politics have gone together for a long time, and in this age, political comedy is everywhere. We have reached a point where instead of just mocking the news, the comedian Jon Stewart was ranked as America's most trusted news source by participants in a Time magazine online poll. How does comedy influence politics? Do jokes about politicians create their image, or just reflect what people already believe? Does political comedy lead people to be more critical of politicians or just more cynical? Join us for this conversation about the influence of comedy on politics.

This event will feature The Gregory Brothers, from YouTube and Barely Political fame for their Auto-Tune the News videos; Baratunde, the web editor of The Onion and co-founder of the blog Jack and Jill Politics; Dan Powell from Comedy Central's show "Ugly Americans"; and Steve Almond, author of My Life in Heavy Metal and Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life. Sponsored by the Graduate Program in International Affairs. - The New School

Baratunde Thurston is a comedian, author and vigilante pundit. He was nominated for the Bill Hicks Award for Thought Provoking Comedy, declared a Champion of the First Amendment by Iowa State, and called "someone I need to know" by Barack Obama. He has appeared on ABC, NPR, the BBC, CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times and ComedyCentral.com.

Thurston is the co-founder of Jack and Jill Politics and performs regularly in New York City, where he works by day as Web Editor and politics czar for The Onion. He hosts Popular Science's "Future Of" on the Science Channel, and he lives in Twitter.