EN
Humour in German media coverage of Poland and Poles Media play a significant role in perceiving the world and construing our conception of reality, due to the fact that the samples of social discourses exposed in them have a strong influence on the shaping of the image of the nation, opinions, attitudes, and a hierarchy of values. The present article discusses humorous content in German press, television, and internet coverage of recent years, which has reinforced the negative image of Poland and Poles in Germans’ consciousness. In the introductory part, the attention is focused on presenting the essence and functions of humour in the light of contemporary humour research, with a special emphasis placed upon interdependencies between humour, language, and discourse on the one hand, and ethnic cultures on the other, which differ in terms of preferred norms and values.