comedy

Comedian Bill Hicks "was really obsessed in some ways with the idea of getting people to think for themselves, confronting them with ideas they might have on a big subject," says filmmaker Matt Harlock, one of the directors of the new documentary American: The Bill Hicks Story. Hicks died in 1994, but his influence lives on in today's political comics and his critiques of the first Iraq war sound remarkably prescient years later. Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas join Laura in studio to discuss their film, Hicks' work, and why political comedy remains so important.

Republicans in Congress, says House Progressive Caucus Co-Chair Keith Ellison, are treating the budget and potential government shutdowns as an "opportunity to inflict generationally-changing policies" in the guise of paying the bills. We're facing a government shutdown not, Ellison notes, because Democrats won't compromise, but because Republicans like Paul Ryan are interested in forcing a fight over ideological issues. Rep. Ellison spoke with Laura from Washington, D.C. to inaugurate a new segment with House Progressive Caucus members on GRITtv. We're heading for a government shutdown, Glenn Beck's leaving FOX, John Boehner is still crying, and Donald Trump is running for president? No, this isn't a joke or a game where you guess which one of these things is true--they all are. And who better to make sense--or fun--of all of this than GRITtv contributor John Fugelsang? John's on the Laughing Liberally "This Ain't No Tea Party" tour with Dean Obeidallah right now, having fun at the expense of all that's ridiculous these days, and John and Dean join Laura in studio for a quick run-down on this week's big news. Finally, Laura has a few thoughts about Glenn Beck's departure, ahead of this weekend's National Conference for Media Reform. Distributed by Tubemogul.

This weekend saw critical votes on Don't Ask Don't Tell and the DREAM Act--one victory and one defeat for progressives. Kai Wright of ColorLines notes that it was grassroots organizing and militant activism that brought both these bills to the point of passage. "In the end it's the outside that moves people. Literally outside the White House, chained to the fence, or DREAM act students hunger striking," he notes. Kai joins Laura in studio to talk about what can be learned from the movement around the DREAM Act and Don't Ask Don't Tell, moving beyond "inside/outside" strategy, and why the military is traditionally a first step toward wider equality and rights for all Americans. "I think a comic's job is always to question authority and question the status quo," says Kelly Carlin, daughter of famous political comedian George Carlin. Now, with more Americans trusting Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert to provide not only information, but even political rallies, it seems that political comedy is more relevant than ever. Kelly joins GRITtv contributor John Fugelsang and comic Lee Camp for a discussion on the place of political comedy--when your guy is in the White House, when the subject is popular and when it's not, parody and satire and the difference between, and much, much more. Finally, militant action moved Don't Ask Don't Tell, and now it's time to come out against war--and for Bradley Manning.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report have not only been reliably funny for a while now, they've become one of the most important checks on the media system, calling out the failures of the mainstream media as it continues its race to the bottom. Comedians have long made careers sharply criticizing society's powerful, and the corporate media are certainly an entrenched elite. Jamie Kilstein and Allison Kilkenny are co-hosts of Citizen Radio, a cheerfully foulmouthed political-comedy radio program. Allison is also a blogger/journalist, and Jamie is also a stand-up comic. They join Laura in studio to pick over the media's failures and debate the proper place of comedy in the news.