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In Who Is America?, Sacha Baron Cohen has successfully persuaded a Georgia House of Representatives member to drop his trousers and attempt to touch others with his rear, shouting, “I’ll turn you gay!” and “USA! USA!”
He’s coaxed a reality TV personality into claiming she rescued 6,000 Africans from a brutal warlord. Additionally, he’s convinced an ex-senator to film a tutorial instructing toddlers on firearm use, including a catchy tune advising, “Aim for the head, shoulders, not the toes, not the toes.”
It’s perplexing to think how anyone could be tricked into performing such blatantly embarrassing acts on television, but there are genuine psychological explanations for why people fall for Baron Cohen’s pranks. Behind the scenes, he employs proven psychological strategies to manipulate his participants—and these tactics might be more difficult to counter than you’d expect.
10. Social Reframing: How Politeness Can Lead You to Commit Terrible Acts
In an episode of Who Is America, former US congressman Joe Walsh enthusiastically endorses a “Kinderguardian” initiative, which proposes teaching four-year-olds to handle semiautomatic weapons and mortars.
“In under a month—less than a month!” Walsh exclaimed to the camera, “a first grader can transform into a first grenadier.”
When the footage surfaced, Walsh defended himself by claiming he was attempting to be culturally sensitive. He acknowledged the idea seemed “somewhat insane” but explained he participated because Baron Cohen posed as an Israeli, and Walsh thought, “This is Israel, and Israel prioritizes strong defense.”
As odd as his justification may seem, it aligns with the psychological concept of “social reframing.” Erving Goffman noted that when social interactions break down, individuals often assume the fault lies with their own misunderstanding. The mind instinctively seeks to reinterpret the situation from another angle, crafting explanations to rationalize the other person’s bizarre behavior within their own framework.
This is precisely what Walsh did. Upon hearing something astonishing, he assumed he was being rude and unconsciously adjusted his perspective to make his interaction with Baron Cohen more comfortable. While this tactic wouldn’t work on everyone, Walsh, who takes pride in his social abilities, was more eager to believe everyone liked him.
Sacha Baron Cohen understands this strategy well. He once revealed that a key realization in developing his Ali G persona was “the patience of certain upper-class individuals, who were so eager to seem courteous.” He discovered that the more socially polished a person is, the more likely they are to engage in absurd actions just to maintain the illusion of social success.
9. Social Transactions: How Compliments Can Make People Agree to Anything
Walsh was particularly easy to influence because Sacha Baron Cohen had flattered him beforehand. Instead of revealing it was a comedy show, Baron Cohen told Walsh he was receiving an award as a “Friend of Israel.”
Walsh felt honored—not only because he was receiving an award but also because Sacha Baron Cohen was appealing to his idealized self-image. Walsh prides himself on being a staunch supporter of Israel; being acknowledged by the nation itself reinforced the way he wished to perceive himself.
In our subconscious, there’s what psychologists refer to as a hidden social transaction, constantly keeping track of debts. When someone appeals to your ideal self-concept, you unconsciously feel compelled to return the favor emotionally to balance the scales. This might manifest as something simple, like a compliment—but a skilled manipulator can leverage this goodwill to make you comply with nearly any request.
8. Isolation: How Corinne Olympios Was Pressured Into Endorsing Child Soldiers
“A single glance into the eyes of a child soldier as he receives a new launcher, and you immediately know it’s all worth it,” reality star Corinne Olympios stated on Baron Cohen’s show. “When you fire a grenade, you’re launching a dream.”
Advocating for arming child soldiers was just one of many absurd statements Olympios was tricked into making. While her speech may seem hilarious on-screen, her account of the behind-the-scenes events reads like something out of a nightmare.
“I just wanted to escape,” she recalls. “So I went along with it.”
Olympios arrived at the studio with her manager, but Baron Cohen’s team immediately separated him to handle paperwork. To ensure Olympios was isolated and more susceptible to manipulation, they deceived her manager, claiming she had instructed him to leave.
A crew of 20 people was filming, but everyone except Sacha Baron Cohen acted as if they couldn’t understand English. When Olympios grew uneasy, she found herself surrounded by unresponsive faces, with no one to turn to.
As her anxiety grew, the crew feigned an attempt to fetch her manager, despite knowing he had already left. They returned, pretending he was occupied with a phone call and urging her to complete the interview alone.
They finally released her when she began experiencing a panic attack. Throughout the ordeal, she was so terrified that she claims large portions of the event are a blur in her memory.
7. Outcome Control: Why People Will Say Anything for Money
Behind the scenes of Borat, many participants were compensated for their involvement. Most received between $150 and $400, though a group of impoverished Romanians were paid as little as $5.50 each to allow Sacha Baron Cohen to place live animals in their homes.
While it may seem insignificant, paying participants in advance has a psychological impact. When someone offers you money, you subconsciously perceive them as having authority. Research shows that people are more likely to disregard social norms and comply with absurd requests when they believe the other person controls the outcome.
Baron Cohen told the Romanian villagers he was filming a documentary about their poverty. Believing he was there to assist, they overlooked his bizarre behavior, such as awkwardly kissing them or attaching horses to a broken car.
This same dynamic likely influenced Corinne Olympios’s willingness to comply with Baron Cohen’s requests. He paid her, offered her a chance to appear on TV, and made her feel trapped. By controlling an outcome that mattered deeply to her, he made her far more susceptible to manipulation.
6. Group Conformity: Why People Commit Awful Acts Just to Belong
There’s a darker layer to the Corinne Olympios story. She wasn’t entirely alone; she had one acquaintance present. Whenever her panic escalated, a producer from The Bachelor, the show that launched her career, would step in.
As Olympios described it:
He kept reassuring me, saying, ‘Corinne, you’re doing amazing.’ And I’d respond, ‘Jordan, I know I’m doing great! I’m fantastic! You’re the issue here! What the hell is going on?’ But he kept vanishing, so I couldn’t continue the conversation.
Baron Cohen exploited Olympios’s friend to make her feel out of place for being uneasy. He tapped into her need to fit in—a central theme in Baron Cohen’s work. He’s previously stated that Borat serves as a “stark illustration of how racism thrives on mindless conformity.”
This tactic works on nearly everyone. Research consistently shows that most individuals tend to align with what seems to be the prevailing opinion, even when it appears utterly ridiculous.
5. The Illusion of Legitimacy: How Baron Cohen Bypasses PR Representatives
It’s natural to question how Sacha Baron Cohen manages to lure people into his studio. One PR representative even wrote an online article confidently stating, “I’d like to believe none of my clients would ever agree to an interview with a disguised Sacha Baron Cohen.”
He claimed to have safeguards in place—speaking to Baron Cohen’s producer, verifying claims online, and cross-checking databases. While this sounds impressive in theory, in reality, none of it would have prevented the deception.
Sacha Baron Cohen goes to great lengths to ensure his setups appear credible. Former presidential advisor Pat Buchanan revealed that he was invited onto Da Ali G Show under the guise of participating in a documentary titled The Making of Modern America.
Buchanan verified its legitimacy—but Baron Cohen had anticipated this. Upon researching, Buchanan discovered a website for the fictional documentary. He also learned that the fake production company mentioned in the letter was officially registered with the government.
This is how Baron Cohen bypasses scrutiny—he ensures his fabricated companies are legally documented. This influences how people act during the show. When something appears legitimate, every request he makes becomes far more convincing.
4. Masking Persuasive Intent: How Sacha Baron Cohen Lulls His Targets Into Compliance
When former Assistant Secretary of State Alan Keyes encountered Sacha Baron Cohen’s character Borat, he received a gift: a rib supposedly from a Jewish person.
Keyes, smiling, accepted the supposed rib of a Jewish man with a simple, “Thank you very much.” He stood there, holding it and grinning, until the reality of the situation hit him—prompting him to rip off his microphone and storm out in shock.
This is a key part of Sacha Baron Cohen’s strategy. He often spends around 15 minutes asking ordinary questions to relax his guests before introducing absurd ones—when they’re least prepared and unable to think critically.
Having time to think significantly alters outcomes. In one study, psychologists discovered that people are twice as likely to surrender subway seats if the request is unexpected. If they anticipate the question, they can prepare a response and are more likely to refuse.
Baron Cohen’s outrageous behavior catches everyone off guard. As Linda Stein explained, recalling her experience, “He was incredibly shrewd in how he eased into his shocking antics. I never once suspected there was an actor present.”
3. Breaching: How Baron Cohen Reveals People’s Deepest Beliefs
Philip Van Cleave insists he only participated in Sacha Baron Cohen’s act because he sensed it was a setup.
“I chose to go along with the plan,” Van Cleave asserts. “I thought if my suspicion about it being a setup was correct, I could expose it and alert the gun-rights community.” He insists Baron Cohen didn’t outsmart him. “Ultimately, we both played each other.”
While we’ve shown sympathy for some of Baron Cohen’s other participants, Van Cleave’s explanation can only be interpreted one way: he’s not telling the truth.
Van Cleave spent three hours creating a gun tutorial aimed at four-year-olds. During this, he confessed to previously advocating for arming seventh-graders and even suggested that children make better killers because they lack developed consciences.
Philip Van Cleave genuinely believes in arming students. He had supported this idea before meeting Sacha Baron Cohen, though he hadn’t proposed arming children as young as four. Baron Cohen didn’t deceive him into saying anything he didn’t believe—he simply coaxed him into revealing views he typically hides.
This comedic approach functions as a breaching experiment—a method to uncover how people respond when social norms are violated. When Baron Cohen expresses extreme opinions, others feel more comfortable sharing their own radical views, which appear tame in comparison.
They feel free to voice thoughts they’ve never dared to express because, in this context, their most extreme ideas seem relatively reasonable. Unaware, they don’t realize they’ve been manipulated.
“People let their defenses down,” as Sacha Baron Cohen has explained, “and reveal their own biases.”
2. Dehumanization: Why Ordinary People Express Racist Views
One of Sacha Baron Cohen’s most famous achievements was convincing an entire bar in Tucson, Arizona, to join in singing, “Throw the Jew down the well!”
While it might appear that Baron Cohen exposed a bar full of hidden racists, even he disagrees. Instead, he attributes this behavior to something else—apathy. As he stated:
Did it show they were anti-Semitic? Maybe. But perhaps it only revealed their indifference to anti-Semitism. [ . . . ] I find it intriguing that not everyone in Germany had to be a fervent anti-Semite. They simply had to be indifferent.
Sacha Baron Cohen believes apathy is the true reason people say such offensive things—not because they’re inherently racist, but because they simply don’t care about the issue.
He’s not alone in this theory. Philosopher Richard Rorty has shared similar views, suggesting that humans naturally dehumanize those they don’t interact with. If you live in a wealthy nation and only engage with fellow citizens, you might view genocide abroad as no more troubling than the death of an animal.
1. Interdependence: Why Compliance Ensures Survival
Social Psychologist Harry T. Reis has claimed that Sacha Baron Cohen’s comedy is essentially a psychological experiment—just one conducted without controls or ethical considerations.
Reis contends that Baron Cohen has showcased what he terms the “influence of the environment”—essentially, how external factors can alter behavior. According to Reis, the reason people act so absurdly on Baron Cohen’s shows is rooted in our evolutionary past. He explains: “The mind is a collection of adaptations, crafted to address the enduring challenges humans faced as hunter-gatherers.”
Our survival has depended on cooperation and reliance on others. Consequently, when others act oddly, we instinctively adapt to be as accommodating as possible, simply because it aids our survival.
Reis believes falling for Baron Cohen’s tricks is nothing to feel embarrassed about. “Virtually all of us would likely act the same way under similar circumstances.”
