Is it “problematic” to joke about the Epstein files?
Regardless of your individual political beliefs, the facts we have about Epstein are objectively horrifying.
Some people argue that because of the seriousness of the situation, jokes about it are inappropriate and dangerous. Others, meanwhile, argue that comedy is about pushing boundaries and making people uncomfortable.
Ultimately, topics like the Epstein files are not necessarily off limits in the realm of dark comedy, but they do need to be handled sensitively and with very deliberate intention.
Junior Lydia Benesh, the president of Heywire Improv, says that a good rule of thumb for humor in general, and dark humor specifically, is whether your joke is “punching up” at someone above you or “punching down” at someone vulnerable.
“If you are making fun of someone with more power, influence, privilege, whatever than you, generally okay,” Benesh said. “If you are making fun of someone with less? Generally not okay.”
Because of this, humor about Epstein can well be considered punching up in the right context. Jokes at his expense chip away at the power that he held and the ways he abused that power. They can make him seem ridiculous and lame as opposed to powerful and scary.
However, jokes at the expense of Epstein’s victims, or jokes that make light of the situation as a whole, are not examples of punching up. The more we turn the Epstein files as a concept into a meme or a joke, the more we ignore the fact that this was a real, horrifying situation that happened to real people.
A lot of the problem here is desensitization. When violent or exploitative content becomes prevalent online, people stop reacting badly to it and accept it as the norm. An article from The Inquisitive Mind magazine, written by Mira Fauth-Bühler, an expert in business psychology and neuroeconomics, points this out.
“What initially provokes outrage gradually loses its impact,” according to Fauth-Bühler. “Violence becomes normalized, often entertainment, and sometimes even a habit.”
It might seem initially harmless to make light of these events. In fact, it’s a very natural human tendency to do so.
“It’s a lot easier to make light of something than it is to actually engage with how that’s affecting you,” Benesh said.
However, if your first response to any terrible news is to turn it into a punchline, you risk normalizing these actions and accepting them as the status quo, rather than taking the mental effort to recognize a problem and solve it.
I am in no way saying that we need to stop joking about certain topics entirely. However, we do need to be careful about our application of dark jokes.
Not everything can or should be a joke. There is always a time and a place, as well as a sensitive or insensitive way to do it. If we indiscriminately joke about serious topics without stopping to think about the implications, we risk desensitizing ourselves to violence and injustice.
“At its best, comedy makes us think about the people in power critically,” Benesh said. “It knocks them down a peg. At its worst, comedy isolates people and creates an ‘other.’”
If you’re thinking about making a dark or edgy joke, consider what your intention is. If you’re trying to poke fun at people or systems who abuse their power, then go right ahead. But if you’re just diminishing the seriousness of the Epstein files for the sake of a quick laugh, then you might want to think twice about the impact of your words.