ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the Digital Short creations of The Lonely Island, a music comedy group whose popularity launched by saturday night live (SNL) led to the creation of viral music videos including "Dick in a Box," "Jizz in My Pants," and "I'm on a Boat". Scholars have discussed SNL in terms of politics and parody, news consumption, and news dissemination. As demonstrated through the Lonely Island, modern parody can mock multiple art and media forms simultaneously, which reflects the now established convergence culture. However, the bulk of SNL's comedy comes in the form of parody, with impersonations of celebrities, television programmes, and stereotypes of everyday American citizens. Parody has been analysed at length in a variety of mediums including literature and film, also emerging in music and television studies. Late night comedy television in the United States has had a profound impact on how audiences access news and shape their opinion on current local and world events.
