תוכניות הסאטירה הטלוויזיוניות בלבנון: כלי לשיקוף המציאות הכלכלית או שמא לעיצובה?

The article aims to examine to what degree Lebanese satirical shows reflect the actual state of Lebanon’s economy and its effects. It addresses the following questions: Do Lebanese satirical shows offer a faithful account of Lebanon’s complex economic reality, or are they politicized along sectarian lines? Does the economy transcend Lebanon’s sectarian and political divisions, or do these divisions play an important role even in purely economic affairs? In order to answer these questions, we examined six leading satire shows, between 2009 and 2016. Quantitative and qualitative analysis of these satire-shows reveals that most of them faithfully reflect economic and financial affairs to their viewers. Moreover, most of the satire-shows adhered to a “pan-Lebanese” line, looking for the uniting subjects, not the divisive ones, in the economic sphere.