278 Best Dad Jokes That Will Make You Laugh

Laughter Therapy Really Could Boost Your Emotional Well-being

Letting off steam at a laughter yoga session in Kolkata, India

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It seems that laughter therapy is no joke. Structured interventions that aim to tickle our funny bone, like laughter yoga or hospital clowns, really do appear to reduce anxiety and improve life satisfaction.

Laughter, which is also common in non-human animals, is thought to enforce social connections and may even help babies acquire a sense of self. It has also been linked to improved health, with researchers finding that clown visits shorten the amount of time children spend in hospital.

Five scientific ways to help reduce feelings of anxiety

Yelsyn-Mauricio Porras-Jiménez at the University of Jaén in Spain wanted to understand how we can better support people's overall health – "not just the physical, but also the spiritual and emotional", he says. "In the midst of searching for how to truly implement this comprehensive care, I came across laughter therapy."

Porras-Jiménez and his colleagues carried out a meta-analysis of 33 studies done in the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Many of the participants were nursing students, but they also included people undergoing end-of-life care, surgery or in vitro fertilisation, as well as individuals with depression or burnout.

All of the studies were made up of two groups: one received some form of laughter therapy – such as doing laughter yoga, which combines the physical activity with laughter exercises; being visited by a clown; watching funny films; or taking part in guided group laughing sessions – while the second group acted as the control, receiving either no intervention or carrying on with their usual care.

The researchers found that laughter therapy was consistently linked to reduced anxiety and improved life satisfaction. If you were to measure anxiety on a scale of 0 to 100, says Porras-Jiménez, the control group would have an average score of about 60, while the laughter therapy group would be 8 to 10 points lower. For life satisfaction, the control group would score about 50 and the laughter therapy group 10 to 12 points higher, he says.

But the participants couldn't be blinded to the fact that they were receiving laughter therapy, so the findings might just be due to the placebo effect, says Sophie Scott at University College London.

Why do some people experience anxiety more intensely than others?

A new understanding of how our genes, environment, brain and gut interact is helping to explain differences in our disposition to anxiety

But laughter does induce physiological changes that align with feeling less anxious, she says, including reductions in cortisol, a hormone produced in response to stress, and an uptick in endorphins, which act as neurotransmitters in the brain to create a feeling of well-being.

"It's hard to say whether it's because of the laughter or because of the social context in which you felt comfortable enough to laugh," says Scott. "I suspect it's both."

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Make Late Night TV Shows Funny Again - Washington Examiner

As a millennial, I grew up in an era when late-night television transitioned from being funny to being political. This transition made late-night TV unfunny.

Jay Leno and David Letterman were liberal-leaning, to be sure. Still, their audiences tuned in for their monologues ripping into former President Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, covering the O.J. Simpson trial, or lambasting former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Everyone was fair game. Today, late-night hosts are just political commentators with a team of comedy writers. But those writers all too often appear afraid to write jokes unless said jokes have a hint of disdain for normal America or conservatives.

This explains why Stephen Colbert, CBS's late-night TV host, announced this week to his studio audience that his show is being canceled. This isn't just CBS axing its late-night host; it is canceling a comedic institution that has been around for decades. Colbert will continue his nightly show until May 2026, but he and his supporters aren't very happy.

Colbert, Democratic politicians, and other warriors of the Left are blaming President Donald Trump for the cancellation. They're saying it's a result of CBS's 60 Minutes settlement with Trump after a highly edited interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Leftists are also speculating that CBS is kowtowing to the White House so its merger with Paramount goes through, and Republicans wanted Colbert axed before his commentary could negatively affect them in the midterm elections.

The thing is, it's kind of hard to affect elections and the minds of voters when no one is watching you! Americans want irreverence, truth tellers, and laughter. Americans didn't watch Colbert, which is why his show was losing $40 million a year — yes, $40 million.

For an example of actual comedy, consider the massive success of the Netflix live-streamed Tom Brady roast. It saw comedians joke about Nazi-esque facial hair, and poke fun at Kevin Hart's stature. Tony Hinchcliffe said MMA founder Dana White loves Trump because they both like to put immigrants in cages. It was hilarious.

For another example, what about the Shane Gillis tour? The once canceled comedian was denied his promised job on Saturday Night Live because of a podcast interview in which he imitated an Asian. Now, five years later, he has a recurring show on Netflix, and he has returned to SNL as a host (honestly, if I were him, I would have roasted Lorne Michaels in that monologue a la Norm Macdonald!) And, Gillis's ESPY Awards hosting gig was the talk of the internet this past week despite the stuffy audience being afraid to laugh.

Comedians such as the family-friendly Nate Bargatze and the contrasting crude Ricky Gervais and Dave Chappelle are necessary in comedy and society. Bill Burr, Andrew Schultz, and others have ventured into the sacred realm of talking about abortion and in vitro fertilization and still made their audiences cry with laughter. The truth: comedians can save the First Amendment in a world where the Left, Right, and center want to cancel anyone for saying something that they or their constituency finds mildly offensive. But we need at least somewhat bipartisan offenders. The reason The Late Show is failing is that it stopped being funny, it stopped entertaining, and it stopped surprising the audience. It became boring, predictable, and political.

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What Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, and others don't realize is that being a bit risky is good. It creates audience loyalty, engagement, and therefore, money.

They could learn from what Johnny Carson told Mike Wallace years ago: "They think that just because you have a tonight show must mean you deal in serious issues. It's a danger, it's a real danger. Once you start that, you start to get that self-important feeling that what you say has great impact, and you know, strangely enough, you could use that show as a platform, and I don't think you should as an entertainer."

Adam Friedland On Why Comedians Should Focus On Being Funny, Not ...

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Comedian and talk show host Adam Friedland has been turning heads online with his unique version of talk television on "The Adam Friedland Show." There, he turns the heat up on his guests in hilarious fashion, never shying away from the sometimes uncomfortable questions on everyone's minds.

Friedland sat down with Fox News Digital and broke down why he believes comedians shouldn't be looked at as "modern-day philosophers" as they sometimes are, and why taking yourself too seriously as a comedian may not be the right move if your focus in life is to make people laugh.

The 38-year-old comedian hosts a weekly talk show where he interviews a wide range of guests — from politicians like California Rep. Ro Khanna and disgraced former Congressman Anthony Weiner, to former NBA star Blake Griffin and the Nelk Boys' Aaron Steinberg.

Regardless of who you are or what you do, one thing you can count on when you go on Friedland's show is that he will test your wit and ask you uncomfortable questions.

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For example, when interviewing Anthony Weiner, the comedian did not shy away from addressing the elephant in the room.

Read On The Fox News App

"You haven't seen the documentary, right? About your run for, I mean, I imagine that would be like f-----g stressful as f--- for you to watch it," he asked, referencing the 2016 documentary "Weiner" that depicted the former congressman's disastrous 2013 bid for New York City mayor. Like his stint in Congress, his run was blown up by a sexting scandal that made him a national punchline.

"I'll say this, as a person that just watched it, it's incredible," he told Weiner.

Friedland's never-ending bits typically fly over the heads of the unsuspecting celebrities or politicians on the show, making for hilariously awkward interactions.

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Fox News Digital asked Friedland whether he believes guests like Weiner are aware that they are submitting to be put in uncomfortable positions like this before coming on his show.

"Probably. Anthony Weiner is running for city council now so he's trying to relaunch a campaign. I think sometimes a lot of guests don't really know what to make of me, which is fun," he replied. "It makes a fun show."

Since Friedland's interview with Fox, Weiner lost his city council bid.

It is becoming more commonplace to see prominent politicians like President Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., making appearances on comedians' podcasts. The line between political media and comedy podcasts can sometimes seem blurry.

While Friedland admits that he's always been interested in politics and occasionally hosts politicians on his show, he's upfront with the fact that his main objective is to "just do what's funny," and not take himself too seriously.

"I guess comedy is having a good moment right now. I don't think it should be one or the other though. I think we should have the media. I do jokes on stage about Tinder and stuff. I don't think that makes me into Wolf Blitzer," he joked.

The comedian noted that nowadays, comedians are sometimes "looked to as authorities in a way" in which they are not.

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Friedland hailed the late Norm Macdonald as one of his favorite comedians of all time.

"I try to kind of be mindful of that, I guess, when I'm doing my talk show." He joked, "Because I am kind of, effectively, I am an idiot."

One of Friedland's favorite comics growing up, Norm Macdonald, had similar feelings about comedians being looked at as sage-like figures.

"You know, Norm Macdonald had a quote once that said that people say comedians are like modern-day philosophers, and that's really insulting to modern-day philosophers. And I think I would probably agree with that," he concurred.

Growing up, Friedland's favorite comedians were the type of people whose main objective was simply humor, and never aspired to be looked at as "modern-day philosophers." They also include comedy icons like Louis C.K., Kat Williams and Conan O'Brien, whom Friedland credits with inspiring the loose and "silly" atmosphere on his show.

Original article source: Adam Friedland on why comedians should focus on being funny, not becoming 'modern-day philosophers'

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