As of 2024, Twitter (X) has around 586 million active monthly users. While it's the most popular in America, 245 million people worldwide use the platform daily. While most people come on to Twitter (X) to have fun and decompress after a stressful day, just as many (48%) Americans say they use it to get news.
Many people also say they go to Twitter (X) to follow brands. In recent years, some brands have hit the goldmine with being funny. The iconic Wendy's clapbacks that started in 2017 ushered a new type of marketing strategy for brands: being funny and relatable in the age of internet memes.
Humor is important, but it can especially help women in some situations. One study found that humor helps more easily influence people and that women benefit more from using humor in public speaking than men.
The researchers analyzed TED talk presenters, both male and female, and noticed that people thought of the funny women as more influential than their equally funny male counterparts or less funny female colleagues.
Another research project also found similar things when they studied start-up pitches from CEOs. Investors and judges would favor funny pitches more than unfunny ones, regardless if they came from a man or a woman. Still, Ella Miron-Spektor, an associate professor of organizational behavior at INSEAD, writes that people view funny women leaders as more competent, diligent, and independent.
Women leaders often fall victim to the confidence-warmth double bind. Research has shown in the past that people view assertive women as less likable and less influential, and more threatening to their male counterparts. Yet they can't appear too warm and friendly because then they're perceived as less competent.
Still, the comedy field is a pretty male-dominated environment, even in 2024. The numbers differ from source to source, but most claim that women don't make up even a third of all professional stand-up comedians in the U.S. That's due to the still prevailing stereotype that women aren't and can't be funny.
