Howells Ali g

Historical Journal of Film, Radio and TelevisionVol. 26, No. 2, June 2006, pp. 155–177

‘IS IT BECAUSE I IS BLACK?’ RACE, HUMOUR

AND THE POLYSEMIOLOGY OF ALI G

Richard Howells

Race is the new sex. Just as with sex in Victorian times, race is not nowadays mentionedin polite company. Indeed, it is rarely discussed freely at all. And just like with Victoriansex, one suspects there is a marked gap between public pronouncement and privatepractice. So, when a white, middle-class, independent school and CambridgeUniversity-educated male plays a ‘gangsta’ rapper for laughs on national television,that ought to be a recipe for outrage. This is especially true when that character isportrayed as an ignorant, sexist, semi-literate, homophobic peacock who condonesdrug use and car crime and is obsessed by both designer labels and the size of his penis.

This character was first introduced to UK television audiences as Ali G. However,his additional appearances on music television (he played the limousine-driver inMadonna’s ‘My Music’ video) and a feature film (Ali G in da House1) have made himmore widely known internationally. The film, which opened in the UK in March2002, has been released in 21 other countries since. In the United States, thecharacter made his TV debut with a six-part series Da Ali G Show on HBO in February2003.2 Despite the notorious difficulties of translating comedy across the Atlantic, thisturned out to be a critical success. Virginia Heffernan, writing in the New York Times,nominated it as one of her ‘Programs of the Year’ the following December.3 CriticAlessandra Stanley described him as ‘corrosively funny’ and compared him to themuch-revered ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’.4 The show was nominated for an‘Emmy’ award5 and HBO duly renewed the series for summer 2004.6 That same year,Sacha Baron Cohen, the actor behind Ali G, gave the class day address to graduatingstudents at Harvard University—in character—celebrating his chance to address:‘da most cleverest of students in America’.7 By 2005, the show’s escalatingacclaim had led to three Emmy nominations, including best writing, bestdirecting and, most importantly, ‘Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series’.8

Meanwhile, Baron Cohen has provided a voice for the animated feature

Correspondence: Richard Howells, Institute of Communications Studies, University of Leeds,Leeds LS2 9JT, UK. E-mail: [email protected]

ISSN 0143-9685 (print)/ISSN 1465-3451 (online)/06/020155–23 � 2006 IAMHIST & Taylor & Francis

DOI: 10.1080/01439680600691677

Madagascar (2005), working alongside Ben Stiller, Chris Rock and David Schwimmer.9

We can see, therefore, that Ali G has already gained exposure, acclaim (and, as wewill see later, notoriety) in the USA.10

Ali G remains, however, an essentially British character. Therefore (and in theinterests of methodological consistency) this article will focus on Ali G’s Britishincarnation and his reception in the United Kingdom, where both the character andthe broadcasts originated. By concentrating on the phenomenon within the UK, it willbe possible to consider the issues within the cultural, media and identity contexts ofthat one specific country. This analysis will both describe and explain the Ali Gphenomenon while ultimately trying to answer the pressing question: How does heget away with it?

Those new to Ali G can gain an introductory flavour from a sequence fromthe video compilation Ali G, Aiii,11 in which he introduces a selection of exerts fromhis original and successful Channel 4 television series: Da Ali G Show. Ali isdiscovered lounging in the control gallery of a TV studio, resplendent in an electricblue tracksuit, Hilfiger hat, sunglasses and improbable amounts of gold jewellery.‘Welcome to me vid’, he intones. He expresses surprise that people have boughtthe video instead of stealing it (’ain’t I taught you nuffin’?’) but explains that it isnevertheless a charity video to raise cash to buy drugs for young children andpregnant mothers who would otherwise have to go without. ‘Let it not be said dat

FIGURE 1. Ali G - Publicity Photo. Source: Channel Four Television Limited.

156 H I S T O R I C A L J O U R N A L O F F I L M , R A D I O A N D T E L E V I S I O N

I is a brother who does not care’, explains Ali. Indeed: ‘Me ’eart is me secondbiggest organ’. We then go into a fantasy sequence in which Ali is seriouslywounded while sacrificing himself at a world peace conference—and ends upsurrounded by scantily clad female nurses who dance both admiringly andprovocatively around him. It is a scene which some may find hilarious; othersdeeply offensive.

Ali G is the comic creation of 34-year-old Sacha Baron Cohen. Cohen comes froma prosperous North London family; his father is originally from Wales, his motherfrom Israel. He was educated at the prestigious Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys’ School,was a member of the Habonim Jewish youth group, and worked at the Rosh Hanikrakibbutz in Israel. He then went to Christ’s College, Cambridge University, to studyHistory. At Cambridge, he also took part in student theatre (including a successfulperformance in Fiddler on the Roof), which had also proved a productive trainingground for Cambridge alumnae such as Monty Python’s Graham Chapman and JohnCleese. After Cambridge, he and his brother performed regularly at a comedy club inLondon’s traditionally intellectual West Hampstead neighbourhood, while Sacha alonebegan to appear on the little-known Paramount Comedy cable channel in thecharacter of ‘Bruno’, a camp Austrian fashion journalist.

He got his big break in 1998 after sending Channel 4 Television a video auditiontape in the character of ‘Borat’, a supposed Khazakstani television reportercommissioned to file features for his home network on ‘typical’ British life.12

Producers Harry Thompson and Andrew Newman liked what they saw, but instead ofgoing ahead with Borat, Newman and Cohen devised the new character of Ali G, whowas given a weekly segment on Channel 4’s The 11 O’clock Show. Here, the thenunknown Ali conducted a series of spoof interviews with a series of unsuspectingexperts and public figures who were unaware that the whole thing had been set up andthat it was they who were the real source of the comedy. In this way, the humourarose from the innocent confronting the expert and ending up in glorious and mutualincomprehension. In one celebrated example, Ali went to Northern Ireland ‘to helpsolve the problems between the Catholics and the Muslims’. He interviewed GeorgePatton, Executive Officer of the zealously Protestant Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland.Ali wore a large, gold, Lion of Judah pendant for the interview—a conversation thattouched upon marching, music, religion and sectarianism. He began by suggesting thatthe marchers should fuse contemporary drum ‘n’ bass with their traditional tunes, butsoon moved on to much more sensitive ground:

Ali G: Would you marry a Catholic girl, then?George Patton: Possibly, because of my faith, I wouldn’t.AG: What if she was really fit, though?GP: Because my religion is so important to me, that’s going to be the overridingfactor.AG: But what if she had her own car—you know, sound system in it, whatever—she wasn’t goin’ to be stealin’ money from you, whatever, would you go with herthen?GP: I think that—you know—I’m friends with Roman Catholics and I haveRoman Catholic friends—AG: But would you get jiggly with them?

R A C E , H U M O U R A N D T H E P O L Y S E M I O L O G Y O F A L I G 157

GP: My religion is the most important thing to me.AG: Even if she was really fit?GP: Yes, yes: That’s the bottom line.

This was an interview, therefore, in which Ali demonstrated not only his blindignorance of sectarian strife in Northern Ireland, but manifested his underlyingassumptions about women.

It was not only the Ulster Protestants who were on the receiving end of Ali G’sremarkable misconceptions. As part of the same ‘report’, he interviewed Republicanpolitician Sue Ramsey, a member of both the General Assembly of Sinn Fein and of theNorthern Ireland Assembly. The interview took place beneath a street mural of BobbySands, the IRA hunger-striker who died in prison in 1981. Ali was not in the leastperturbed by this:

Ali G: Is maybe the cause of the problem that they say that—and maybe it’s astereotype or whatever—but they say that the Irish is always up for the crack orwhatever. Is that a problem because the crack make you violent? Me know peoplefrom me estate: They go mental whenever there is someone around and theywant to fight them, whatever. It’s a bad drug.Sue Ramsey: No: ‘Craic’ in Ireland means having a good time.AG: For real.

In 2000, Ali G graduated from performing slots in other programs to his own TV series:Da Ali G Show. The production values were glossier, but the character and jokesremained essentially the same, and in interviews he continued to gain comic effect fromhis studiedly faux naivete. A recurring theme in both his original and glossierincarnations, though, was the much more contentious issue of race itself. This was evenmore remarkable as the ultra-sensitive issues of race, racism and prejudice were used forentirely comic effect. In one episode, Ali went to Wales, where he was shown around acoal-mining museum by former pitman Graham Gratton. Initially Ali (now resplendentin yellow with a miner’s helmet and lamp) played the familiar role of the faux naıf:

Ali G: Hundreds of years ago, miners lived in here before they became humanbeings?Graham Gratton: They never lived within the mines; they only worked within themines.AG: (Peering into a shallow crawl-space) People worked under here?GG: Yes: 30 or 40 people worked here every day.AG: Dat is a crap job!GG: No—that’s a good job!

Up above ground level, the guide leads Ali into a more formal exhibition space:

GG: Follow me and I’ll just show you some photographs—(The camera cuts away to an historical photograph of a miner blackened withwork at the coal-face).AG: So why is it mainly brothers who is workin’ in the mine?


GG: Brothers?AG: Aii: Why is it mainly the black man—that’s a bit racialist innit?GG: Oh no! That’s sweat and dirt, that is!AG: So why’s he blacked himself up to pretend to be like a brother?GG: But he hasn’t blacked himself up and he hasn’t pretended to be like you say ‘abrother’ . . .

The audience laughed.It goes deeper. In another sequence, Ali joined environmental activists protesting

about the removal of trees in London’s Crystal Palace neighbourhood. The police triedto keep the demonstrators and the property developers apart. Twice in this sequence Alicomplained that the police were treating him unfairly by preventing him from crossingthe police line—and twice he demanded of the police: ‘Is it because I is black?’

Ali G: (To camera) We is now going to meet the main copper, the guy who issortin’ it all out. (To the senior policeman) If it comes to a ruck, who do youthink’s going to win?Policeman: It isn’t going to come to a ruck.AG: But if it does?Police: No: It’s not going to come to a ruck. This is being dealt with as peacefullyas possible.AG: Is it possible for us to get in?Police: Not at this stage, because it’s still dangerous.AG: Is it because I is black?Police: Not at all.

And once again, the audience laughed. There are two important points here. First,anyone can see that Ali G is clearly not black. Sacha Baron Cohen is white; he does not‘black up’ (that is to say darken his face with stage make-up) to play this character. Hesimply adopts the (exaggerated) dress, manner and style of a certain kind of blackperson. So when he asked the commanding officer ‘Is it because I is black?’ thepoliceman did not challenge Ali’s dubious claims about his racial identity. He simplyresponded with a polite denial of prejudice: ‘Not at all.’

Ali interviewed some of the other protagonists, insisting to one environmentalistthat violence could, indeed, provide a useful solution to life’s problems. Eventually headmitted to camera: ‘Me has heard both sides of the argument; me don’t understandeither of them—but me is well up for a ruck anyway.’ He took a megaphone andbegan shouting slogans before eventually jumping over the barriers with a cry of‘freedom!’ Quickly, he was headed off by two policemen. He demanded again: ‘Is itbecause I is black?’ Again, the audience laughed.

Now, we might think that the police here were simply evading the issue of race ina defensive sort of way. But in a studio discussion on medical ethics (‘Medical Ethicz’said the graffiti-style studio backdrop), a distinguished contributor was much morepro-active:

Ali G: Wouldn’t it be great if we had the technology to make sure dat everyonewas black? Or is dat just a dream?


Dr Michael Howitt Wilson, Guild of Catholic Doctors: You couldn’t—AG: Aint that a bit racialist?MHW: I think—no I don’t think—AG: That’s a bit racialist innit?MHW: I think it’s a bit racialist—AG: Speak to me ’and coz me ’ead ain’t listenin’MHW: I think it’s a bit racialist to suggest that it would be a good thing foreverybody to be black.Dr David Cook, Lecturer in Genetics (to AG): You see your point was veryinteresting. You said why shouldn’t everybody be black—but that’s because youhappen to be black.AG: (nodding in assent) Aii.

Again, the audience laughed because they could see with their own eyes that Ali Gclearly wasn’t black at all.13

So, how on earth does Sacha Baron Cohen get away with it? Surely on suchcombustible matters of race, stereotyping and prejudice, people should be queuing upto take offence at this privileged, middle-class white comedian and his apparentmockery of black ‘street’ culture.

Well, there has been anger, but actually remarkably little. In 2000, therewas some controversy in the British national press when it was reported that Cohenhad been criticised by real black comedians. ‘Ali G rapped for being ‘‘raciallyoffensive’’’ barked the Daily Telegraph.14 According to an article by Sandra Laville, thecomedian had ‘upset some of Britain’s leading black comedians, who have accused himof causing offence and pandering to racial stereotypes.’15 The comedians, continuedLaville, had accused Baron Cohen of mocking black street culture with ‘offensivecomic material’ and claimed that he had only become so successful ‘because he iswhite’.16

The source of Laville’s article for the large-circulation, broadsheet Daily Telegrapharticle was in turn a feature in the much-less widely read New Nation, which describesitself as ‘Britain’s No.1 Black newspaper’.17 They had run an item in which they hadasked real black comedians what they thought of Ali G. Sure enough, there was somecriticism, but the alleged outrage was, in reality, hard to find. Laville’s article(and especially the headline and opening paragraphs) had exaggerated the situation,and had quoted from the New Nation article selectively.

An examination of the New Nation article itself reveals a much more moderatereaction to Ali G than Laville’s article had claimed.18 The New Nation article waswritten by Ross Slater, under the headline: ‘Should We Laugh at Ali G?’ and the sub-headline: ‘. . . or is the joke on us? We decided to ask real black comics what theythought.’19 Slater began by describing Ali G as ‘the biggest thing on British TV’ butadded: ‘The only hitch is that Ali G is not black at all. He’s white and Jewish and hisreal name is Sascha (sic) Baron Cohen.’20 Slater proceeded to pose the importantquestion: ‘are we laughing and if we are, should we be?’21

Comedian Felix Dexter admitted to being ‘divided’ on Ali G. On the one hand,he could appreciate the humour of the innocent confronting the expert. On the otherhand: ‘I feel that a lot of the humour is laughing at black street culture and it is beingcelebrated because it allows the liberal middle classes to laugh at that culture in a safe


context where they can maintain their sense of political correctness.’22 But as regardsperhaps the most contentious issue, Dexter stated: ‘It is not wrong for a whitecomedian to do material parodying black culture.’ His main concern seemed to beprofessional: would Ali G become Baron Cohen’s only, and therefore limited, comicidentity?23

Comedian Roger D told New Nation: ‘I think he is quite funny. To be honest, hemakes me laugh.’24 Roger D admitted that he had found earlier attempts by whitecomedians such as Jim Davidson25 to portray black characters offensive because theywere so divorced from reality as to make Davidson come across: ‘as someone who didnot know black people at all’. Ali G, on the other hand: ‘appears to have done hishomework and got it down pat. He knows people like that, so it works.’26 And on theissue of ‘a white Jewish guy taking on this black persona’, Roger D concluded: ‘it issuch a ridiculous concept that it adds to the humour’.27

As for comedian Gina Yashere, she declared: ‘Well, there is no denying that thegeezer is funny.’28 Her concerns were not about Baron Cohen’s act, but rather that thesame media exposure would not have been afforded to a black comedian: ‘I don’tthink he’s racist or taking the piss out of black people. What is offensive is the wholemedia frenzy about him.’29 Indeed: ‘he has only got as far as he has because he iswhite. He wouldn’t have been able to get arrested let alone his own TV show if he’dbeen a black guy.’30

Eddie Nestor was concerned that Baron Cohen’s act was not wholly original.Nevertheless: ‘I do watch him and I do laugh because if I took it all on a socio-economic level then I’d have more grey hairs than I do already.’31 He continued: ‘AndI may be naive, but I don’t think he’s taking the piss out of black people at all.’32

Finally, Richard Blackwood, perhaps the best-known of the comedians interviewedamong the wider community, said: ‘I do not really have a problem with Ali G.’He only concern was that some people watching might think that was how real blackpeople talked and behaved.33

The only real voice of dissent among the six black comedians interviewed for theNew Nation article came from Curtis Walker, who called Baron Cohen and his material‘quite offensive’.34 He claimed that Baron Cohen was trading cliches and stereotypicallanguage in an act reminiscent of Al Jolson and former British TV series Love ThyNeighbour.35 He found it ‘degrading and sad’ that Ali G was catching people’s attentionand even being featured in New Nation. ‘I don’t like the concept of a white guy playinga black guy anyway and when he is playing to a stupid stereotype it is even worse.People have to ask themselves just what it is they are laughing at.’36

Walker’s remarks, although very much in the minority, merit closer examinationlater. As for the rest of the New Nation feature, it included a selection of vox populiinterviews with five members of the public under the heading ‘What they said on thestreet’37 and a brief background section titled: ‘Stand Up The Man Behind TheMask’.38 The vox populi section revealed almost unanimous support for Ali G.‘Nneka’, a 23-year-old student from Willesden did not think him ‘racist’ andconcluded: ‘I think he is funny, not offensive.’ ‘Bode’, another 23-year-old studentfrom Willesden, agreed: ‘He’s a funny guy. He does make me laugh.’ ‘Tania’, a20-year-old student from Wandsworth enthused: ‘I think he is funny he cracks meup . . . I do think his show is excellent.’ ‘Billy’’ a 21-year-old student from Islingtonthought the show ‘hilarious’ and the fact that Baron Cohen was white ‘irrelevant’.


The only dissenter among the five was 24-year-old accounts assistant ChristopherAdegbite from Islington.39 He thought that Ali G’s act ‘really does take liberties withblack people’ and was concerned that ‘he is taking the piss out of black people’.Notwithstanding, he also commented: ‘I find some parts of the show funny . . .Hischaracter is hilarious.’

The background section of the New Nation feature stated that Baron Cohen himselfwas: ‘not nearly as dumb as you might think’. Indeed, ‘He’s a Cambridge graduatewhose own upbringing appears as far from his alter ego Ali G as you could imagine.’The insert related background information on Baron Cohen in an un-critical tone, andconcluded with examples of some of Ali G’s comedy at the expense of hisinterviewees.

Contrary, then, to the impression given by the Daily Telegraph, the comediansinterviewed for this article mostly agreed that Ali G was funny. The same can be saidfor the members of the public questioned ‘on the street’. There were someexpressions of caution, perhaps, but the overall consensus was summed up by the NewNation’s leader-page editorial headline: ‘Ali G is a bit of a laugh.’40 That’s a long wayfrom racial outrage.

Even the culturally sensitive student press seems to approve of Ali G. In a featuretitled: ‘Is it cos I is white and went to Cambridge’ in Cambridge’s Varsity studentnewspaper, author Chileshe Nkonde identified herself as ‘a black person’ andcontinued: ‘He makes us laugh. I personally come close to wetting myself whenever Icatch him on TV.’41 Four months later, Varsity interviewed Cambridge UniversityBlack and Asian Caucus president Shadidia Bari, who told them she found ‘nothingwrong with the satire of black culture provided by Ali G.’42 On the contrary, sherecognised his ‘importance in encouraging discussion about racial stereotypes.’43

When the comedian received death-threats from extremists, Bari said: ‘I sent him mysympathies.’44

In terms of popular success, Ali G has achieved high ratings on a nationaltelevision channel, made two-top selling video compilations, appeared on a musicvideo with Madonna, and in 2001 won both the Best Comedy Performance and BestComedy Programme awards from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.That same year, he received top billing in the BBC’s annual Comic Relief charitytelethon to raise money for action against poverty in Africa. His pre-recordedinterview with Manchester United and England soccer star David Beckham and hiswife the former ‘Spice Girl’ Victoria Adams was so widely anticipated that bootlegtranscripts of the encounter had been circulating on the Internet for weeks in advance.Sure enough, Ali G did not disappoint when it came to irreverence. He entered thestudio though curtains and a cloud of dry ice, resplendent in trademark cap, jewellery,sunglasses and tracksuit. This time his suit was wet-look red with his name on thefront. Soaking up the applause, he turned and raised his arms to reveal the back of histracksuit emblazoned with the words ‘SAVE AFRICA’ over an outline of a map ofItaly. He turned again to address the camera:

Hear me now! You is probably thinkin’ why is I doin’ Comic Relief? Well, meonly agreed to do it because me thought we was goin’ to get a free trip to meetme brothers in Africa—and while we was there, maybe score some Botswananhome-grown. Now check it: Africa ain’t just the country dat gave us


Bob Marley45 (pauses while laughter dies down). I has seen documentaries aboutit and there is some terrible images that has been left in me mind—especially oftribeswomen with well-droopy swingers. With your ’elp we can stop theseshockin’ things ’appenin’. Now please big it up for me guests tonight: Every boywants to be in his boots, and every man wants to be in his missus. Big it up nowfor none other than David and Victoria Beckham!

A remarkably lewd and irreverent interview followed. Such was Ali G’s fameby this stage that the celebrity couple were well aware that Ali G was indeeda character played by an actor,46 but such was Baron Cohen’s ability to improvisethat he was still able to keep well ahead of David and Victoria Beckam, both of whomhe managed to insult freely while at the same time underlining his character’scontinuing political ignorance and chauvinistic attitude towards both women andsexuality.

It is in many ways remarkable that the Ali G character should nowadays gain suchwidespread acceptance among both the black community and the public at large.Television programs that had used ethnicity with comic intent, and especially thosefeaturing white entertainers pretending to be black, are no longer thought to beacceptable on national television. A classic example is The Black and White MinstrelShow—a light entertainment program broadcast by BBC Television between 1958 and1978. Here, white male singers and dancers ‘blacked up’ in supposed imitation of theAfrican-American musicians of the 19th century. Their wigs and faces were black, buttheir eyes, lips and gloves were bright white.47 Their renditions of numbers such as‘The Camptown Races’ were considered mainstream popular entertainment at thetime; audiences peaked at 18 million and in 1961 the show won the Golden Rose ofMontreux award. In 1967, the Campaign Against Racial Discrimination presented apetition to the BBC asking for the program to be taken off air. It continued to bebroadcast, however, for another 11 years. Today, the show is frequently cited as anembarrassing anachronism; a bravura display of racial insensitivity.48

The Black and White Minstrel Show is not the only British television program thatwould nowadays be deemed unacceptable. A character supposedly from India was aregular feature on BBC Television’s ‘The Dick Emery Show’, which ran for 18 seriesbetween 1963 and 1981 and was an early (British) example of the quick-fire charactersketch format. Among the characters portrayed by the white Emery was an Indianman with large teeth who raised his bowler hat to reveal traditional headgearunderneath as part of the opening titles. The character’s catchphrase was: ‘weBritish’—the comedic implication being that such a man could not be properly Britishat all. It is difficult to imagine such a sketch being permitted today.

The history of white men playing ethnic characters for laughs is not limited to thelesser names of British television comedy. Peter Sellers was twice nominated forAcademy Awards and famed for his international films roles (including two for StanleyKubrick).49 In the Blake Edwards screen comedy The Party (1968), Sellers blacked upto play Hrundi V Bakshi, a hapless Indian film extra who causes chaos on both film setsand at a Hollywood social event.50 In his earlier years as a radio and record comedian,however, Sellers had duetted with Sophia Loren in the 1960 novelty recording:‘Goodness Gracious Me!’ Here, Sellers sang the part of a physician from India tryingto diagnose Ms Loren’s (affairs of the) heart problem. Sellers affected the manner and


accent of someone speaking imperfect English while at the same time uttering‘typically British’ colloquialisms such as ‘goodness gracious me’. In the middle of thenumber he intoned:

From New Delhi to DarjeelingI have done my share of healingAnd I’ve never yet been beaten or outboxed.I remember that with one jabOf my needle in the PunjabHow I cleared up beriberiAnd the dreaded dysenteryBut your complaint has really got me foxed.

While this record proved extremely popular at the time (it was produced by no lessthan George Martin, who went on to produce The Beatles), it has proved lessendearing to contemporary British-Asian comics.51 Indeed, the group of British-Asiancomedians responsible for the radio and subsequent TV sketch show Goodness GraciousMe52 made the pilot under the original working title of ‘Peter Sellers is Dead’.Goodness Gracious Me proved popular in both media, making humour out of British-Asian identities and stereotypes, along with the problems of cultural assimilation.Importantly, however, this was a show in which Asians were played only by Asians.This move towards authenticity was underlined by another British TV program TheReal McCoy53, in which the cast was again made up of ethnic minority members.The title The Real McCoy stressed the fact that these were genuine minority performersand not white comedians playing ethnic roles.

It seems now, therefore, that if ‘racial comedy’ is to be seen on Britishtelevision,54 it is only to be performed by real members of the appropriate racialgroups. In these more sensitive times, the idea of a white comedian playing (andespecially lampooning) black appears no longer to be acceptable. Indeed, according toJeffery Richards, British racial humour has altogether retreated from the mass mediaand into Northern variety clubs because it is considered too ‘politically incorrect(in its sexism and racism) for television’.55

So how does Sacha Baron Cohen get away with it? There is no single explanationfor this. Rather, there are complex layerings that combine to help explain why BaronCohen’s act is greeted with amusement rather than odium.

First, and most obviously, it is the character of Ali G—and not the actor playinghim—that makes the outrageous remarks and therefore insulates Baron Cohen frompublic hostility. In this way, the actor can raise his hands and (appear) to dissociatehimself from Ali G’s more objectionable opinions, lifestyle and behaviour. NeitherShakespeare nor Laurence Olivier, for example, is held accountable for the misdeedsof Richard III. Of course, this becomes less persuasive when the writer and the actor(who never appears out of character) are one and the same, as is the case with SachaBaron Cohen. A more fitting metaphor, then, might be of the music-hall ventriloquistwhose doll speaks and behaves perversely to the feigned embarrassment of theperformer and the delight of the audience.

This leads us to the second (and consequent) explanation: Ali G skilfully practiseswhat we might describe as ‘the humour of transgression’.56 This works in much the


same way as the child who deliberately says something rude in polite company. Thehumour lies not so much in what was said, but in the exquisite inappropriateness ofhaving said it in such circumstances. Thus, audiences actually want Ali G to transgressthe boundaries of acceptable behaviour. An inoffensive performance by Ali G wouldbe as incomplete as a tennis game in which John McEnroe did not abuse the umpire.Ali G does not disappoint—as manifested by his live ‘performance’ on BBC nationalradio that led to a complaint being upheld by the Broadcasting Standards Commission.Sacha Baron Cohen ‘in the guise of his character Ali G’,57 had appeared on thenational Radio 1 Sarah Cox breakfast show to promote his forthcoming record andfeature film: Ali G in da House. Thirteen listeners complained to the Commission thatthe interview contained ‘swearing, sexual innuendo and offensive comments’,exacerbated by the time of transmission during school holidays.58 The swearingincluded what the finding described as ‘the F-word’.59 The BBC shared thecommission’s displeasure, observing that: ‘Ali G seemed determined to overstep themark.’60 The Commission upheld the complaint, considering the interview: ‘whollyinappropriate for broadcast at a time when significant numbers of children might havebeen listening.’61 It is interesting to note that both the BBC and the BSC—afteroriginally mentioning Sacha Baron Cohen—proceeded to refer exclusively to ‘Ali G’and not the actor as the malefactor in this instance. Needless to say, the interviewand the ensuing ‘outrage’ both served to increase the public profile of bothSacha Baron Cohen and Ali G.62

It is important to stress, however, that the transgressive nature of Ali G’s humouris not limited to areas (such as swearing and sexual innuendo) that might irritateconservative tastes. Ali G also (and gleefully) transgresses liberal sensibilities bymaking merry in sensitive areas that many consider should not be trespassed uponwith irreverent humour. In this way, Baron Cohen’s comedy persona seems set toannoy all sides of the debate at once. The question, then, returns: How does he getaway with it?

One of the ways in which Baron Cohen does manage to get away with it is by alwayspresenting a moving target. He never gives interviews,63 so he has never been explicitabout what he is trying to do. Fundamental to this is the underlying (and unanswered)question about exactly who Ali G is supposed to be. According to The Sunday Times, thecharacter of Ali G is comprised of ‘layers of ambiguity’.64 And as Gary Younge put it inthe Guardian: ‘nobody really knows who, or rather what, he is supposed to be.’65 Doubtsremain about whether he is even supposed to be black at all.

There are basically three main theories in popular circulation: (1) SachaBaron Cohen is a white man pretending to be a black man; (2) Sacha Baron Cohenis a white man pretending to be an Asian66 pretending to be a black man; (3) SachaBaron Cohen is a white man pretending to be a white man who is pretending tobe black.

The first of these theories has the greatest potential for racial offence, but isactually the least well supported of the three. Not surprisingly, perhaps, this ‘whiteman playing a black man’ hypothesis was most prevalent in the feature on real blackcomedians in the New Nation. According to Felix Dexter, ‘the humour is essentiallycoming out of a white guy pretending to be black.’67 Curtis Walker said: ‘I don’t likethe concept of a white guy playing a black guy . . . and when he is playing a stupidstereotype it is even worse.’68 Roger D, on the other hand, admitted that he found the


comedy effective while stating: ‘Ali G is a white Jewish guy taking on this blackpersona.’69 Roger D’s statement, however, is both less precise and more revealing thanit originally appears. D says that ‘Ali is a white Jewish guy . . .’. What he does not sayis ‘Sacha Baron Cohen is a white Jewish guy . . .’. The second statement would havebeen more clearly accurate, for there is no evidence that the character of Ali G isJewish at all. What Roger D has done (unwittingly, perhaps) is articulate the layeringinherent to the question of identity here by confusing the character with theperformer, and vice versa. So, when, we re-visit Felix Dexter’s opinion: ‘the humouris essentially coming out of a white guy pretending to be black’, we have to askourselves: ‘who is doing the pretending? The actor or Ali G?’ Curtis Walker is moreprecise. In stating: ‘I don’t like the concept of a white guy playing a black guy’ he ismuch clearer on the question of performance. For him, it is Sacha Baron Cohen whois pretending to be black. What is much less clear is—as we are about to find out—iswhether Baron Cohen is actually pretending to be black at all.

Before we investigate that conundrum, however, we need to move on to thesecond of our three theories: that Sacha Baron Cohen is playing an Asian characterwho is in turn pretending to be black. The concept here is that certain young BritishAsians nowadays adapt the street style of British and American blacks because theyconsider black culture ‘cooler’ than their own. As one impassioned reader wrote toGuardian columnist Gary Younge: ‘Ali G is ASIAN. That’s half the joke; Asian guystrying to be cool like black guys.’70 Stuart Jeffries, also writing in the Guardian, agreedthat Sacha Baron Cohen was ‘a Jewish comedian posing as an Asian wannabe rapper’who ‘plunders and mangles’ Caribbean speech patterns and hip-hop culture while atthe same time embracing the ‘homophobic and sexist attitudes as well as the drugspurportedly beloved of gangsta rappers.’71 Interestingly, original series producerHarry Thompson (according to The Sunday Times): ‘suggested the Asian nameAli G, further blurring the character’s ethnic identity.’ They quoted Thompson:‘If he had a whiff of Islam about him, we thought people would be afraidto challenge him . . . If Muslims took offence, there was a plan to explain that thename was short for ‘‘Alistair Graham.’’’72 So, if Ali G presents a moving target,there is evidence to support that he does so deliberately. New Nation editor MichaelEboda’s position was more generous: an Asian purporting to be black but still callinghimself ‘Ali’ would add to the humour: ‘he couldn’t even give himself the rightmoniker’.73

It is the third theory about Ali G’s identity that carries most support, however.The assumption here is that Ali G is a satire on British white suburbanites who affectthe style and attitude of black (and especially American black), inner city gangmembers. As the New Nation editorial stated:

This character is rooted in a cultural phenomena (sic) of our times—namely thatmany young people especially those who live in and around the capital adopt‘black’ personas. It affects white, Asian and Jewish youngsters . . .As our strawpoll in the street proves, black people on the whole find Ali G funny because he isridiculing those non-blacks who wish that they were black.74

New Nation editor Michael Eboda—this time writing in the Independent—went so far asto trace Ali G’s humour to a specific incident at London’s multi-racial Notting Hill


Carnival in 1997. National radio DJ Tim Westwood, ‘the white middle-class son of achurchman’ was performing at the Carnival, but was concerned that the people hethought were his real fans weren’t getting close enough to the stage. Eboda quotedWestwood as announcing: ‘‘‘Right, I want all the white people to move to the backand let my big dick niggers come to the front.’’ A roar of approval went up—whitescheering just as vociferously as blacks.’75 Apparently, Cohen had ‘seen Westwood andfound the DJ’s attempts to imitate what he assumed was black culture quite hilariousand so the character Ali G was born.’76 This is an anecdote that is doubly revealing: onthe one hand it tells us something about Ali G. On the other hand, it tells ussomething about ourselves: Today we find the word ‘nigger’ hugely offensive, while‘big dick’ hardly raises an eyebrow. In Victorian times, it would have been preciselythe other way round. Race is indeed the new sex.

The ‘wannabe’ theory of Ali G is by no means limited to Michael Eboda. It is thehypothesis most widely adopted by Britain’s ‘quality’ press. According to Julia Smartin the Independent, Ali G is a ‘street-talking parody of young white men who adoptblack gangsta affectations in order to appear cool—the dissatisfied wannabe homeboyswho live in Middle England yet dream of the Bronx.’77 She quotes second seriesproducer and director Dan Mazer who says: ‘There are a lot of real Ali Gs in Staines,people who genuinely believe they are living in Compton, Los Angeles . . ..’78 But, hecontinues, Ali G’s home town could be almost anywhere in Britain:

. . . these sorts of things exist. There are groups of people in Britain who thinkthey are in the Bronx or South Central LA. They drive cars, smoke joints, andlisten to rap music aspiring to be in a drive-by shooting. Their dad’s an accountantand their mum’s a primary school teacher and they are fairly well-brought-up.79

According to The Sunday Times profile, Sacha Baron Cohen was indeed: ‘impersonatinga white boy pretending to be into black gangsta rap.’80 Series Producer HarryThompson, writing in the same newspaper 3 months later, agreed: ‘Ali was to be asatire on the disaffected wannabe homeboy of the suburbs, the kid stuck in Staineswho dreamed of Compton or Watts in America.’81 This is a belief that is also to befound in the student press and even on fan websites. Chileshe Nkonde, identifyingherself as black in the Cambridge University Varsity expounded: ‘It is crucial to realisethat much of the humour behind Ali G’s character is in fact a mockery of White guyswho pretend to be Black and hence it is not intended to be a platform for racialattack.’82 The author of ‘Flabby Abi’s Phat Website’ was yet more assertive in gettingthe point across to a public that might not understand. A page titled: ‘Who �is� AliG’ carries the firm conclusion: ‘Please note people: Sacha Baron Cohen is a white manpretending to be a white man (Ali G) who is trying to be a black man. �That� isthe humour.’83

This may leave audiences—and especially liberal, white audiences—comfortablewith laughing at Ali G. It remains open to question, however, whether it is all quite assimple as that. The fact that we have three competing theories about who Ali G reallyis suggests that not everyone is laughing for the same reason. Black comedian RichardBlackwood reflected the general confusion over Ali G’s intended identity when he toldthe New Nation: ‘I would like to meet the guy and find out just what the character isreally supposed to be.’84 The Sunday Times profile took a similar line, agreeing that: ‘his


character has more layers of ambiguity than most.’85 To some, this may be merelysome sort of popular cultural parlour game. To others, however, the social stakes areconsiderably higher. This is something that concerned Guardian columnist GaryYounge (whose photograph identifies him a journalist who is black): ‘There’s no doubtthat Ali G’s funny’, he wrote:

But are we all laughing for the same reasons? . . .His racial identity may beunclear. Views over whom his jokes are directed may differ . . .we are leftguessing . . . leaving the key questions of ‘‘What are we laughing at?’’ ‘‘Whom arewe laughing at?’’ and ‘‘Whom are we laughing with?’’ either unanswered or withcontradictory responses.86

Younge proceeded to argue for what we might call the polysemy of Ali G. Thecharacter worked ‘on so many different levels that you can have two different peoplewatching the same video and laughing at completely different things.’ Certainly,people might have been laughing at what Young calls ‘‘‘wiggers’’—whites who want tobe, or even think they are, black.’ On the other hand, he continued, ‘it is equallypossible that somebody else might be laughing at his rendition of what stupid, sexist,drug-taking layabouts black men are.’87

This is a possibility that has not been widely discussed in public debate. This ispartly for the obvious reason that few people would nowadays admit to laughing for‘politically incorrect’ reasons even if they actually were. As Felix Dexter put it:

I feel that a lot of the humour is laughing at black street culture and it is beingcelebrated because it allows the liberal middle classes to laugh at that culture in asafe context where they can retain their sense of political correctness.88

The Sunday Times was again in agreement: ‘although he is supposed to be sending upwhite wannabe gangstas, white teenagers are able to chortle privately not only at thehaplessness of his victims but at the hopelessness of black street culture.’89

This is a possibility that cannot be discounted. It could indeed be possible to arguethat Ali G gives some audiences the opportunity to laugh at black people. For theeducated classes, this could additionally be being done from behind the protective(and convenient cover) of irony. A more charitable interpretation, on the other hand,might be that while they are certainly laughing at Ali G, this does not mean that theyare therefore laughing at all black people. What they are laughing at is sexism,homophobia and a casual attitude to drug use and street crime. In that way, it might bepossible to respect racial differences without at the same time having passively tocondone views and practices of which people would not approve in their owncultures. Indeed, it could be argued that it really is only the attitudes and practicesthat are being ridiculed because on only has to look with one’s own eyes to see that AliG is not actually black at all.

The act of setting up a deliberately absurd character in order to mock his politicsis not without precedent in British television culture. In 1966, writer Johnny Speightcreated Alf Garnett, the bigoted, arch conservative, sexist, racist, homophobic andanti-Semitic working—class anti-hero of BBC television’s Til Death Us do Part. Theseries proved hugely popular, continuing until 1975 and spawning American


television’s All in the Family with his blue-collar equivalent Archie Bunker. It becamewidely believed, however, that contrary to Speight’s liberal intentions, many of theaudience found themselves in agreement with much of Alf Garnett’s view of the worldand that this, ironically, explained much of the show’s popularity. We cannot overlookthe possibility, then, that some of those who enjoy Ali G are less affronted by hisopinion and lifestyle than they admit. Ali G is, as The Sunday Times declared:‘stupendously incorrect politically . . .’.90 It is quite conceivable that for some, thischaracter provides an outlet for emotions which have been suppressed during whatthey may consider to be years of liberal hegemony.

A second ‘comedic-historical’ explanation for the success of Ali G is that here is acharacter who is clearly trying to be something that he is not. This is a situation thatthe British have always found hilarious. In Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part One, forexample, Falstaff hugely exaggerates his bravery and skill as a fighting man—much tothe amusement of both his friends and the audience, both of whom know the truth ofthe matter having witnessed the event for themselves. In the same way, we laughinglycontrast Ali G’s enthusiasm for a ‘ruck’ (to say nothing of his alleged enthusiasm forand familiarity with firearms) at the Crystal Palace demonstration with his meeksubmission at the mere sight of two unarmed policemen. British audiences know thathalf the joke of Ali G lies in the fact that the character lives in Staines—a placehe refers to as ‘the ghetto’. The way he tells it, Staines is a seething cauldronof drug-based gang violence, Uzis and drive-by killings. In reality, of course, Stainesis a ‘blissfully bland’91 town remarkable only for its crushing dullness: anondescript satellite on the Western periphery of London on the flight-path toHeathrow airport. The real residents of Staines find this part of the joke particularlyenjoyable.92

British comedy also has a history of lampooning characters who attempt tore-invent themselves in terms of social class. Goldsmith’s Mrs Hardcastle in She Stoopsto Conquer is only one such instance of the provincial snob who fails to carry it off. Forfive series and 44 episodes (1990–1995), British television audiences laughed in muchthe same way at Hyacinth Bucket (which she insists is pronounced ‘Bouquet’) in theBBC situation comedy Keeping up Appearances. Where Ali G differs, of course, is thathe is a character who aspires to be socially down-mobile. As such, he is indicative of anew kind of British class-consciousness in which people attempt to play down theirprivileged or even merely comfortable backgrounds. Middle-class people who affectthe accent and style of working class Londoners, for example, are disparaginglyknown as ‘Mockneys’.93

These seemingly competing theories about Ali G lead us to conclude that hishumour is polysemic. It is, in other words, both multi-layered and open to differingand even opposing interpretations. There is no simple, single meaning. Many of theseinterpretations are dependent on or particular to the individual viewer. In interpretingthe meaning (or more accurately, meanings), we need to be aware of what Suliemanand Crossman refer to as: ‘the reader in the text’.94 Here, we are reminded of thereception theory of both literature and media which contends that the total meaningof a text is not constrained within the parameters of the text itself. Rather, the readeror recipient brings his or her own background, culture and experiences to the act ofreading, listening or viewing. The received meaning, then, is a collaboration betweenwriter and reader over which the writer has only partial control.95 Consequently, it is


perfectly feasible that different people do laugh at Ali G for significantly differentreasons.

Arguably, some of the questions about who Ali G ‘really is’ were answered in thefeature film that followed the television series and was released in 2002. Ali G in daHouse depicts a character who is most easily recognisable from the third of ourprovisional answers: Ali G is a white man pretending to be black. Here, Ali’sgrandmother (‘me Nan’), with whom he lives, is white, as is his girlfriend (‘meJulie’). His ‘posse’ are all Caucasian, and he lives in a middle-class, semi-detachedsuburban house. When he is elected to Parliament, the returning officer solemnlyreads out his name as ‘Alistair Lesley Graham’. The revelation is greeted withlaughter, and an embarrassed Ali attempts to protest: ‘What a stupid name!’

Ali G in da House was greeted with moderate popular success and somewhat tepidcritical acclaim. Partly, this may have been part of a well-chronicled pattern oftelevision comedies that have transferred uncomfortably to the big screen. Equally,some of the comic ‘edge’ may have been lost in that the film explained too muchabout Ali G. Certainly, there was the characteristic ‘rudeness’ (in one early scene, Alias awoken by his dog, Tupac, licking his genitals. Ali is only momentarily concernedabout this; he finally responds by lying back, blissfully, and murmuring to the dog:‘play with me balls’). Less typical, though, was the explanation of a situation whoseopacity was, for many people, the appealing part of the enigma of Ali G. For some, itis contended, the transgression into ‘politically incorrect’ humour may have beenneutralised by clarifying Ali G as a white suburbanite.

Four important points need to be made here, though. First, the fact that a manhas a white grandmother, white friends and a white girlfriend, together with atypically Caucasian name, does not automatically mean that he himself is (or considershimself to be) white. Second, we would be wise to recall the original series producerHarry Thompson declaring in January 2000 that the name ‘Ali G’ had beendeliberately selected to give the character ‘a whiff of Islam’ and that it would beexplained that the name was short for Alistair Graham if ‘Muslims took offence’.96

It is entirely possible that, in the years that followed, the issue of Muslim offencebecome considerably more significant to the Ali G production team. Third—it hardlyneeds to be pointed out—Ali G is a fictional and not an historical character. There is,therefore, no enduring or definitive ‘truth’ about him to be found. Logic andconsistency are not always the hallmarks of fictional—and especially comedy—characters. The character can change his history at the stroke of a keyboard. Fourth,the establishment of the ‘true identity’ of the Ali G character is not really the point atissue here. Of much greater interest is the public reaction and debate over Ali G, andthis was at its most vigorous and informative during the TV series in which SachaBaron Cohen did indeed provide his audiences with a deliberately moving racialtarget. The fact that some of the questions might possibly have been answered twoyears later does not affect the cultural and sociological interest of the controversy atthe time.

Crucially, however, Ali G still wants to be though of as black, even thoughhe may not be so. We can also conclude, therefore, that the humour of Ali G isbased much more in identity than it is in race. Ali G in da House strongly suggeststhat Ali G may in fact be white, but that makes his preferred ‘street-black’ personaall the more interesting. It is something to which he still clings in terms of style,


language and outlook. When he is forcibly ejected from the floor of the House ofCommons, the ‘member for Staines’ is once more heard to protest: ‘Is it because Iis black?’

By responding to Ali’s ‘blackness’ when he is in fact so obviously white, people(whether they are audiences, real or fictional politicians) are responding to his identityrather than to his pigmentation. In an increasingly multi-cultural Britain, it isbecoming all the more clear that race and identity are not the same thing. Race isgiven; identity is not. This, in turn, leads us to conclude that for many people, thecomic appeal of Ali G is not in his colour but in his character. Just as (say) CharlieChaplin’s screen persona was not ‘for or against’ tramps with moustaches, Ali G is atelevision character who is recognisable and amusing in his own right. In this way,people are able to laugh at a particular individual without disrespecting an entire race.At any rate, it’s usually Ali’s establishment ‘victims’ who end up looking far sillierthan he does.

� � �

My purpose in this article has not been to argue whether or not Ali G is‘a good thing’. Nor have I attempted to argue whether or not people ought to findhim funny. The fact is that, for better or for worse, most people in Britain do.My aim, rather, has been to show that the reaction to him has been very differentfrom that which we might have expected. I have then attempted to explain why thismight be.

This leaves me with a cause for some optimism. Frankly, I have some doubts aboutAli G’s real contribution to racial understanding. My optimism lies, rather, in thepublic reaction to him. Rather than respond with knee-jerk reactions and predictablyentrenched positions, the discussion in all sections of the British media has been(essentially) intelligent, sophisticated and constructive. Michael Eboda, we remember,is the editor of a black newspaper that was misleadingly portrayed as having declaredAli G to be ‘racially offensive’.97 In fact, the leader article had described him merelyas ‘a bit of a laugh’.98 Sure enough, there had been a ‘long and disgraceful tradition’ ofwhite comedians ‘blatantly mocking black people as part of their acts.’ When we sawthem, continued the leader, ‘we were rightly appalled and condemned themaccordingly.’ But Ali G, it averred, was ‘very different’.99

What was different, of course, was not just Ali G but the sophistication withwhich the phenomenon was being discussed. Eboda later wrote in the large-circulation Independent that the way in which both black and white people found Ali Gfunny ‘shows a certain level of maturity’. Indeed, he continued: ‘It’s refreshing thatwe are big enough to realise that not every non-black person who comments on blackissues can be deemed racist for doing so.’100 Gary Younge, a black journalist writing inthe traditionally liberal Guardian concurred:

In such a nebulous, subjective and sensitive area the true mark of our racialsophistication will be whether we can have an intelligent discussion about whatmakes us laugh and what makes us uneasy.101

If race is indeed the new sex, the fact that we are getting better at discussing itopenly—and even allowing ourselves to have a sense of humour about it—does


indeed suggest that there is hope yet that, like sex before it, we might just be able tobreak out from one of our most constraining social taboos. We needn’t always beembarrassed to talk about race in the future.

Acknowledgements

An earlier version of this article was given as a plenary paper to the XIXthInternational Association of Media Historians Conference, University of Leipzig,Germany, 21 July 2001. An expanded and revised version was given as to the MediaResearch Seminar series at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University ofLondon on 19 March, 2002; I acknowledge the helpful feedback received from theparticipants. Finally, I thank members of my seminar series given as DistinguishedVisiting Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, 2004. It was the studentbody who alerted my attention to the appeal of Ali G in the USA, and who againprompted me to try and come to grips with his humour.

Notes

1 Ali G in da House (directed by Mark Mylod, Film Four UK/Studio Canal/TalkBackProductions/WT2/Working Title Films/2002). The plot concerns Ali’s electionto the British Parliament.

2 For Ali G’s introduction to the USA, see Neil Strauss, As Clueless as HeWants to Be, New York Times, 3 February 2003, arts section, pp. E1–E3. TheBBC website in the UK misleadingly, I think, reported that the show wasnot generally well received in the USA. See Maggie Shiels’ article for the BBCwebsite: Ali G’s Stateside Flop, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/reviews/2788697.stm posted 22 February 2003, and Mark Lawson, Is it Because Iis British?, Guardian, 25 February 2002, G2.

3 Virginia Heffernan, Television: The Highs; The Programs of the Year, New YorkTimes, 28 December 2003, section 2, Arts and Leisure, p. 26.

4 Alessandra Stanley, TV Weekend; The High Art of Mockery, New York Times, 21February 2003, section E, Performing Arts/Weekend, p. 1.

5 55th Primetime Emmy awards, Academy of Television Arts and Motion Pictures,2002–2003, Outstanding Nonfiction Program category nomination. The eventualwinner was a program about the Cirque du Soleil.

6 See Denise Martin, HBO is Down with Ali G Show, Daily Variety, 29 October2003, p. 5.

7 See Beth Potier, Booyakasha: Ali G addresses ‘da most cleverist students inAmerica’, in The Harvard University Gazette, 14 June 2004, p. 1.

8 57th Primetime Emmy awards, Academy of Television Arts and Motion Pictures,2004–2005. The nominations were announced on 14 July 2005.

9 Madagascar (directed by Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath, Dreamworks/Pacific DataImages, USA, 2005).

10 Daily Variety critic Phil Gallo, on the other hand, found the show’s ‘push for cultappeal’ to be ‘forced’. See Phil Gallo, Da Ali G Show, Daily Variety, 20 February


2003, p. 10. To be fair, Ali G’s popularity is likely to be much more East than Westcoast.

11 Ali G, Aii (directed by James Bobin and Steve Smith, Talkback/Channel FourTelevision, UK, 2000).

12 Recently, Baron Cohn has revived the character of Borat in both the UK and theUSA. In April 2005 he appeared, in character, at a rodeo in Salem, Virginia. Here,according to the Independent, he told onlookers that ‘their President drank blood’and sang: ‘a mangled version of the American national anthem’. Apparently, BaronCohen had to be escorted from the arena: ‘If he had been out there a minutelonger, I think someone would have shot him’, an onlooker told the Independent.See Ali G Star Nearly Lynched After Prank (no by-line), Independent, 14 January2005, p. 18.

13 I have contacted Dr Cook to find out more about the circumstances of theinterview, together with his views about the ethics of ‘spoof’ interviews. Dr Cookhas not responded to my inquiries.

14 Sandra Laville, Ali G rapped for being ‘‘racially offensive’’, Daily Telegraph, 11January 2000, p. 3.

15 Laville, p. 3.16 Laville, p. 3.17 The Daily Telegraph is a nationally published ‘quality’ broadsheet with a daily

circulation of 1,042,000 for the year in which Laville’s article was published. TheNew Nation’s circulation for the corresponding period was a weekly 31,250. Itsclaim to be ‘Britain’s No.1 Black Newspaper’ might, in fact, be challenged by TheVoice, whose 2000 circulation was 33,860. Source: Willings Press Guide 2000, UKedition, volume I (Teddington, Middlesex, 2000).

18 Ross Slater, Should We Laugh at Ali G, New Nation, 10 January 2000, pp. 6–7.I gratefully acknowledge the help of Nicholas J. Cull in sourcing an original copyof this article.

19 Slater, pp. 6–7.20 Slater, p. 6.21 Slater, p. 6.22 Felix Dexter, quoted in Slater, p. 6.23 Dexter, quoted in Slater, p. 6.24 Roger D, quoted in Slater, p. 6.25 Jim Davidson is a mainstream British comedian and game-show host who used to

portray a ‘black’ character called ‘Chalkie’.26 Roger D, quoted in Slater, p. 6.27 Roger D, quoted in Slater, p. 6.28 Gina Yashere quoted in Slater, p. 6.29 Gina Yashere, quoted in Slater, p. 6.30 Gina Yashere, quoted in Slater, p. 6.31 Eddie Nestor, quoted in Slater, pp. 6-7.32 Nestor, quoted in Slater, p. 7.33 Richard Blackwood, quoted in Slater, p. 7.34 Curtis Walker, quoted in Slater, p. 6.35 In Love Thy Neighbour, real black actors played the black characters, who traded

insults (with comedic intent) with their white neighbours. The show ran for sevenseries and 55 episodes between 1972 and 1976.


36 Curtis Walker, quoted in Slater, p. 6.37 No by-line. New Nation, ibid., p. 7.38 No by-line. New Nation, ibid., p. 6.39 This interviewee was the only one of the five to be credited with a full name in the

New Nation vox populi feature.40 No by-line, Ali G is a bit of a laugh, New Nation Comment, the New Nation, 10

January 200, p. 2.41 Chileshe Nkonde, Is it cos I is white and went to Cambridge, in Varsity, 27 January

2000. Varsity is the student newspaper of Cambridge University, with a 2000weekly (term-time) circulation of 10,000. Unfortunately, recent editions of Varsityare not currently held at the British Newspaper Library.

42 ‘Varsity Writer’, Young, Gifted and BAC, Varsity, 11 May 2002.43 Varsity, 11 May 2000.44 Varsity, 11 May 2000.45 The late reggae musician Bob Marley (1945–1981) was, of course, Jamaican.46 This is by no means without precedent on British television. Barry Humphries has

long been interviewing people as ‘Dame Edna Everage’ and, more recently,Caroline Aherne as ‘Mrs Merton’. Although the interviewees are well aware of thesituation, the interviewer’s comic persona enables him or her to be far moreirreverent with guests than if they were to ask the same questions in the ‘firstperson’. Additionally, the interviewees have knowingly ‘signed up’ for anestablished treatment in an avowedly comedic context.

47 Curiously, the female singers and dancers were all overtly Caucasian.48 For a fuller discussion of race and television, see my Visual Culture

(Cambridge, Polity Press; Malden, Massachusetts, Basil Blackwell, 2003),pp. 205–214.

49 Sellers was nominated for Best Actor in Being There (directed by Jerzy Kosinski,United Artists, USA, 1979) and Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying andLove the Bomb (directed by Stanley Kubrick, Columbia, USA, 1964). UnderKubrick’s direction, he played leading roles in Lolita (directed by Stanley Kubrick,MGM, USA, 1962) in addition to Dr Strangelove . . . (op. cit).

50 The Party, directed by Blake Edwards, Mirisch/United Artists, USA, 1968.51 In Britain, the term ‘Asian’ usually applies to people from the sub-continent of

India and Pakistan. This differs from North American usage, which normally refersto someone from East Asia. In Britain, an ‘Indian’ can mean either someone fromIndia or a Native American, depending on context.

52 BBC Radio and Television, 1996 to present.53 BBC Television, 1991–1996. Meera Syal appeared in both The Real McCoy and

Goodness Gracious Me.54 This paper deliberately restricts itself to British television. North American

television, for example, has its own history. At present, The Ali G Show is a Britishtelevision phenomenon. American treatments of race on television are wellexplored in studies such as Herman Gray’s Watching Race (Minneapolis, Universityof Minnesota Press, 1995), Robert S. Lichter, Linda S. Lichter and StanleyRothman’s Watching America (New York, Prentice Hall, 1991) and Sut Jhally andJustin Lewis’s Enlightened Racism (Boulder, Colorado, Westview Press, 1992). JohnFiske and John Hartley’s Reading Television (London, Routledge, 1978) has usefulsections on stereotyping but (in addition to being now more than 20 years old)


concentrates on drama and not comedy. John Fiske’s Television Culture (London,Routledge, 1987) has a similar focus.

55 Jeffrey Richards, Films and National Identity, Studies in Popular Culture (Manchester,Manchester University Press, 1997), p. 276. Richards’ study in fact strays beyondthe study of film and into television and popular culture as a whole. He also notesthe conventions of the ‘stage Irishman’ (pp. 230–231). This represented aprejudice that was ‘partly racial’ (p. 230). A complete chapter is given over to‘The Black Man as Hero’ (pp. 60–81).

56 I am indebted to the members of the SOAS Media Research Seminar for theircontributions on the transgressive nature of Ali G’s humour and approach.

57 Broadcasting Standards Commission finding CN 8562.13, Sarah Cox, BBC Radio1, 18 February 2002.

58 BSC CN 8562.13.59 BSC CN 8562.13.60 BSC CN 8562.13.61 BSC CN 8562.13. The BSC ordered the BBC to publish and broadcast

the finding against itself (Section 119 [2] of the Broadcasting Act 1996), andthe BBC agreed to improve its briefing procedures for live studio guests in thefuture.

62 A poster advertising the film was also the subject of complaints: Ali G was shownwith his hand on a naked women’s bottom. The Advertising Standards Authorityupheld the complaints and the poster was withdrawn from circulation.

63 Baron Cohen has given the occasional interview in the character of Ali G—theintent being comedic rather than insightful.

64 No by-line, Profile column, The Sunday Times, 9 January 2000, p. 15. The 2000weekly circulation of the national ‘quality’ broadsheet The Sunday Times was1,343,000. Source: Willings Press Guide 2000, UK edition, volume I (Teddington,Middlesex, 2000).

65 Gary Younge, Is it cos I is Black, Guardian, G2 Section, 12 January 2000, pp. 2–3.The 2000 daily circulation of the nationally circulated, ‘quality’ broadsheetGuardian was 392,000. Source: Willings Press Guide 2000, UK edition, volume I(Teddington, Middlesex, 2000).

66 Again, I am employing British usage of the term ‘Asian’ here.67 Felix Dexter quoted in Slater, p. 6.68 Curtis Walker quoted in Slater, p. 6.69 Roger D quoted in Slater, p. 6.70 Gary Younge, Is it Because I is Black?, Guardian, 12 January 2000, pp. 2–3, p. 3.71 Stuart Jeffries, Chillin’ With Rehash Ali, Guardian, 1 April 2000, Saturday Review

Section, p. 4.72 No by-line, It’s Chillin’ What da Boy Get Away With, The Sunday Times, Profile

column, 9 January 2000, p. 15.73 Michael Eboda, We Can Take Ali G’s Humour in Our Stride, Independent,

Review section, 12 January 2000, p. 4. The 2000 daily circulation of the national‘quality’ broadsheet Independent was 225,000. Source: Willings Press Guide 2000,UK edition, volume I (Teddington, Middlesex, 2000). ‘Moniker’ is London slangfor ‘name’. Eboda was writing as a guest columnist on this occasion for theIndependent.

74 Editorial (no by-line), Ali G is a Bit of a Laugh, New Nation, 10 January 2000, p. 2.


75 Eboda, p. 4.76 Eboda, p. 4. The Westwood story also appears in Younge, p. 3. According to

Younge, Westwood has ‘feigned a black street accent for his hip hop slot’.77 Julia Smart, Getting Jiggy Wid da Staines Massive, Independent, 28 March 2000,

Tuesday Review section, p. 1.78 Smart, p. 1.79 Smart, p. 1.80 The Sunday Times profile, p. 15.81 Harry Thompson, Da Start of Something Massive, The Sunday Times, 19 March

2000, News Review section, p. 4.82 Chileshe Nkonde, It it Because I is White and Went to Cambridge, Varsity, 27

January 2000.83 http://www.geocities.com/sunsetstrip/theater/2712/who_is_ali.html, accessed

1 June 2001.84 Richard Blackwood quoted in Slater, p. 7.85 The Sunday Times profile, p. 15.86 Younge, p. 15.87 Younge, p. 3.88 Felix Dexter, quoted in Slater, p. 6.89 The Sunday Times Profile, p. 15.90 The Sunday Times Profile, p. 15.91 Smart, p. 1.92 Staines’s real residents additionally know that the town is in fact in the county of

Middlesex, and not Berkshire as Ali G mistakenly believes. For more on thereactions of Staines residents to Ali G, see Smart (op. cit) and Ali G? Isn’t ThatOne of the Local Youth Groups? (no by-line), Surrey Herald, 13 January 2000. TheSurrey Herald is a local weekly newspaper with a 2000 circulation of 13,000.Source: Willings Press Guide 2000, UK edition, volume I (Teddington, Middlesex,2000). Smart also refers to a rare interview given by Ali G (in character) to theStaines and Ashford News. This was, reported Smart, of such ‘extreme, one could saymassive crudity’ that it was not subsequently published elsewhere. Finally, aninsert on What they Make of Ali G in Staines, accompanied Gary Younge’s featurefor the Guardian (op. cit).

93 The term is compounded from ‘mock’ and ‘Cockneys’. Those who speak witha less specific London-area accent are referred to as speaking ‘Estuary English’—derived from the areas surrounding the River Thames estuary.

94 Susan Suleiman and Inge Crossman (eds) The Reader in the Text (Princeton,Princeton University Press, 1980).

95 Roland Barthes, therefore, was able to speak of ‘the death of the author’. SeeRoland Barthes, Image, Music, Text, Translated by Stephen Heath, FontanaCommunications (London, Fontana, 1977).

96 No by-line, It’s Chillin’ What da Boy Get Away With, The Sunday Times, Profilecolumn, 9 January 2000, p. 15.

97 Laville, p. 3.98 Ali G is a Bit of a Laugh (leader page comment, no by-line), New Nation, 10

January 2000, p. 2.99 Ali G is a Bit of a Laugh (leader page comment, no by-line), New Nation, 10

January 2000, p. 2.


100 Eboda, p. 4.101 Younge, p. 3.

Richard Howells is Senior Lecturer in Communications Arts at the Institute of

Communications Studies, University of Leeds, England. In 2004, he was Distinguished

Visiting Professor at the Center for the Arts in Society at Carnegie Mellon University,

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His research interests revolve around media, art and popular culture,

and his work typically involves the use of case studies to illustrate both the particular and the

wider relationships between societies and their cultural texts. His publications include The

Myth of the Titanic (1999) and Visual Culture (2003). In addition to his scholarly work, Richard

Howells is a regular contributor to BBC radio and television programmes on media and

cultural issues. He is currently working on Ernst Bloch and a critical theory of art, popular

culture and Utopia.


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