Satire TV: Politics and Comedy in the Post-Network Era

Charles Babbage is well described as the "pioneer of the computer", but he was far more than this: his mathematic, scientific, and engineering work is highly significant for its original approach to problem-solving while the economic, political, and theological writings show an incisive appreciation of contemporary debate, and justify the growing consensus which judges Babbage to be one of the most important and rigorous intellectual polymaths of his age.

This edition contains his two major papers: n essay on the calculus of functions, which established his reputation as a mathematician, and On the economy of machinery manufacturers, which was the first work of its kind to concentrate on the manufacturing industry-a turning point in economic writing.

The New York University Press edition includes a comprehensive general introduction in Volume I. Textual notes by leading international experts in the field of Babbage scholarship, such as Professor I. Bernard Cohen, Emeritus Professor of the History of Science, University of Sydney; and Dr. J. A. M. Dubey, Dean of Engineering at the Polytechnic of the South bank, consider the world spectrum of the writings and put the works in context.

All new texts are brought together by a comprehensive index providing easy reference to the complete works- a facility which will allow the integration of Babbage scholarship for the first time. In addition to the standard pagination, the original page numbers have been retained to allow access from contemporary sources. there is also a comprehensive bibliography if works cited in the text- an essential reference tool for any serious scholar. The Works are illustrated throughout with the original diagrams, graphs, and line drawings. Volume 3 also contains 15 plates from Babbage's Calculating Engines (1889).

Satirical TV has become mandatory viewing for citizens wishing to make sense of the bizarre contemporary state of political life. Shifts in industry economics and audience tastes have re-made television comedy, once considered a wasteland of escapist humor, into what is arguably the most popular source of political critique. From fake news and pundit shows to animated sitcoms and mash-up videos, satire has become an important avenue for processing politics in informative and entertaining ways, and satire TV is now its own thriving, viable television genre.

Satire TV examines what happens when comedy becomes political, and politics become funny. A series of original essays focus on a range of programs, from The Daily Show to South Park, Da Ali G Show to The Colbert Report, The Boondocks to Saturday Night Live, Lil' Bush to Chappelle's Show, along with Internet D.I.Y. satire and essays on British and Canadian satire. They all offer insights into what today's class of satire tells us about the current state of politics, of television, of citizenship, all the while suggesting what satire adds to the political realm that news and documentaries cannot.

Jonathan Gray is associate professor of media and cultural studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is the author of Television Entertainment and Watching with The Simpsons: Television, Parody, and Intertextuality and co-editor of Satire TV: Politics and Comedy in the Post-Network Era and Fandom: Identities and Communities in a Mediated World (both available from NYU Press).

Jeffrey P. Jones is Associate Professor of Communication and Theatre Arts at Old Dominion University. He is the author of Entertaining Politics: New Political Television and Civic Culture and co-editor of The Essential HBO Reader.

Ethan Thompson is Assistant Professor of Communication at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi.