ABSTRACT
Mediatized comedy is the most influential segment of media shows, given that television remains atop all other mass media in terms of social, economic, cultural and political influence. Being the most influential medium, television guarantees the stand-up comedy mass audience, following and loyalty. It therefore attracts more viewers than any other television genre worldwide. In Kenya, the stand-up televised comedy in the entertainment industry has pronounced itself as the centre-stage, which shapes perceptions about other groups in the society as evidenced in the Churchill Show. The Churchill Show profiles jokes from cultural, geographical, social, religious, economic and behavioural aspects of the society. Such jokes are institutionalized and are reproduced today by television comedians for commercial purposes. However, these jokes do constitute ideologies that inform ethnic relations in Kenya. While studies exist on the psychological impact of ethnic stereotyping in general, little is documented concerning the ideological undertones in mediatized comedy.
