Laughing Matters

How many intelligence analysts does it take to screw in a lightbulb? There is no uproarious response—or any answer, really—to this droll inquiry in the intelligence context, despite the classic setup. Why not, though? Somehow, the intelligence sector, at least at first blush, makes an unlikely subject, object, or, dare we say it, even agent of humor. This chapter proposes a further blush, however, with an eye toward humor and comedy in, of, and about the intelligence community, through a variety of theoretical lenses. It begins with a survey of the history and theory of humor since antiquity. Then, it examines humor in and on intelligence, from spoofs of the blockbusters, both kind and unkind, to nostalgia in the form of latter-day Eurospy productions, to subversion (or not) in the case of humor in authoritarian systems. The chapter spends some time with intelligence personnel’s purposeful efforts to be funny, internally and externally. To the extent that, as some experts suggest, the road to more and better engagement with the contemporary publics that intelligence agencies protect and serve is paved with humor, then this chapter seeks to explore the promise and the perils of humor as a discursive tactic—and possibly a weapon—for the intelligence community.