Humor in the elections

Filipinos like to call themselves the happiest people in the world. While people can debate for hours whether that is a blessing or a curse, it is true that Filipinos will always find something to laugh about. The May 10 elections is no exception.

Our offering today is a look at Filipino humor, and the role it played in the campaign and the elections.

Humor has become part of the public political discourse, providing people with a vent for their frustrations while at the same time delivering commentary on the social and political order. On one hand, political humor affords the Filipinos the chance to inflict sharp stings on personalities and issues they would never dare confront head-on; on the other hand, the medium sometimes overwhelms the message, and we end up just laughing at the joke, without learning from the punchline.

This story was researched and written by interns of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ): Camille de Asis, Ivan Lim, Mark Tare and Angela Poe.