A Ranker Opinion Graph of the Domains of the World of Comedy
One unique aspect of Ranker data is that people rank a wide variety of lists, allowing us to look at connections beyond the scope of any individual topic. We compiled data from all of the lists on Ranker with the word “funny” to get a bigger picture of the interconnected world of comedy. Using Gephi layout algorithms, we were able to create an Opinion Graph which categorizes comedy domains and identify points of intersection between them (click to make larger).
In the following graphs, colors indicate different comedic categories that emerged from a cluster analysis, and the connecting lines indicate correlations between different nodes with thicker lines indicating stronger relationships. Circles (or nodes) that are closest together are most similar. The classification algorithm produced 7 comedy domains:
American TV Shows and Characters: 26% of comedy, central nodes = It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, ALF, The Daily Show, Chappelle’s Show, and Friends.
Contemporary Comedians on American Television: 25% of nodes, includes Dave Chappelle, Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais, Billy Connolly, and Bill Hicks.
Classic Comedians: 15% of comedy, central nodes = John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Charlie Chaplin, and George Carlin.
Classic TV Shows and Characters: 14% of comedy, central nodes = The Muppet Show, Monty Python’s Flying Circus, In Living Color, WKRP in Cincinnati, and The Carol Burnett Show.
British Comedians: 9% of comedy, central nodes = Rowan Atkinson, Jennifer Saunders, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, and Dawn French.
Animated TV Shows and Characters: 9% of comedy, central nodes = South Park, Family Guy, Futurama, The Simpsons, and Moe Szyslak.
Classic Comedy Movies: 1.5% of comedy, central nodes = National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Ghostbusters, Airplane!, Vacation, and Caddyshack.
Clusters that are the most similar (most overlap/closest together):
- Classic TV Shows and Contemporary TV Shows
- British Comedians and Classic TV shows
- British Comedians and Contemporary Comedians on American Television
- Animated TV Shows and Contemporary TV Shows
Clusters that are the most distinct (lest overlap/furthest apart):
- Classic Comedy Movies do not overlap with any other comedy domains
- Animated TV Shows and British Comedians
- Contemporary Comedians on American Television and Classic TV Shows
Take a look at our follow-up post on the individuals who connect the comedic universe.
– Kate Johnson