Shock humour is a style of comedy

Comedy

Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...

 intended to shock the audience. This can be achieved through excessively foul toilet humour, mocking of serious themes (a.k.a black comedy

Black comedy

A black comedy, or dark comedy, is a comic work that employs black humor or gallows humor. The definition of black humor is problematic; it has been argued that it corresponds to the earlier concept of gallows humor; and that, as humor has been defined since Freud as a comedic act that anesthetizes...

), or through tactlessness in the aftermath of a crisis.

In radio, shock jock

Shock jock

Shock jock is a slang term used to describe a type of any radio broadcaster who attracts attention using humor that a significant portion of the listening audience may find offensive. The term is usually used pejoratively to describe provocative or irreverent broadcasters whose mannerisms,...

s use this brand of humour. In conservative communities, such risque broadcasting can cause controversy, such as Jim Quinn

Jim Quinn

Jim Quinn is an American radio talk show host based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His program, The War Room with Quinn and Rose, is aired on 12 stations across the U.S. and is also heard on XM Satellite Radio Channel 166 from 6–9 a.m...

 and Don Jefferson's "Stupid Human Tricks" segment of their late-80s WBZZ-FM show.

Examples of shock humour include the coarseness of Andrew Dice Clay

Andrew Dice Clay

Andrew Dice Clay is an American comedian and actor who played the lead role in the film The Adventures of Ford Fairlane.Clay has been in several movies and has released a number of stand-up albums...

, the television shows Family Guy

Family Guy

Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...

and Da Ali G Show

Da Ali G Show

Da Ali G Show is the name of two related satirical TV series created by and starring British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen and featuring the character Ali G....

.