Saturday Night Live: right-wing, anti-Obama, comedy demagoguery
“Whatever the case, SNL is now an anti-Obama conservative comedy show. It’s certainly better than Fox’s ill-fated attempt to make a right-wing Daily Show. But conservative is what it is.” ~ Ethan Porter
I have read and re-read Mr. Porter’s jab at Saturday Night Live and I am still trying to make heads – let alone tails - of it. From what I can tell, the fact that SNL makes fun of the president, as opposed to fawning all over him as so many in the press do, pretty much means it’s joined the ranks of right-wing pundits and talking heads.
Good grief. And here I thought that making fun of politicians was the point. Memo to Jon Stewart: lay off Obama unless you want a gig at Fox News.
Porter’s reasoning goes something like this:
- Week after week SNL mocks Obama.
- Obama is polling very well. Unlike Palin who was “obviously incapable of governing” Obama shouldn’t be mocked because people like him (they really like him!).
- The sketches are about such facile subjects as Chinese debt as opposed to engaging in ideas that are “a bit complicated.”
- Lorne Michaels backed McCain in 2008.
- The guy who plays Obama does it in blackface – sort of.
Therefore, SNL has become a bastion of right-wing demagoguery.
So let’s see. Does this mean that SNL was a bastion of left-wing demagoguery the past eight years? If memory serves they took a shot or two at Obama’s predecessor. I think Cheney was the butt of a few “left-wing, anti-Bush talking points” as well. I think we may be on to something….
Rolling this out a bit further, we can see that not only was SNL very left-wing the past eight years, they were avidly right-wing the eight years before that. They mercilessly targeted Bill Clinton even though his polling was still quite favorable. They echoed those rabid right-wing talking points about Monica Lewinsky and the definition of “it” and the whole shebang.
And yet, if we stroll back just a bit further, we find the left-wing SNL at its fever pitch with leftist Dana Carvey spoofing George H. W. Bush night after saturday-night. Actually, this left-wing SNL seems to have lasted over a decade. Twelve whole years to be precise.
Wow. Looking back, it’s almost as if the show mocks every president regardless of their politics or party. It’s almost as if they do it to try to be funny, rather than out of some deep-seeded political agenda.
But I could be wrong. Maybe SNL isn’t in it for the laughs. Maybe they’re trying to take the president down – one sort-of-funny-but-not-that-funny sketch at a time.
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No getting around the fact that SNL nailed it with the Obama in China sketch. There’s a difference between turing ‘conservative’ and making fun of the truth. I’m surprised Ethan doesn’t see this.
Rick,
And beyond that, it wasn’t just a skit about Obama. It was about the condescending attitude Americans have toward other nations – and in particular the hypocrisy of our positions toward China.
But yeah, they got Obama too while they were at it. Every president should be roundly spoofed and mocked and poked fun at. Anything to keep them honest.
In response to another comment. See in context »Humor is hard, whining is easy. SNL has lost its edge in many ways, but their political humor remains sharp. As an Obama supporter, I winced at this particular skit, but that was because it uncomfortably close to home, not because it was stupid (unlike the vast majority of other segments)
If Obama can’t stand the heat, he should get out of the kitchen.
It’s whiners like Ethan Porter that give the left-wing a bad name.
Mr. Kain,
As I replied to Mr. Porter, the real question is are the skits funny or not. The Daily Show skewers Mr. Obama all of the time and since they are usually deadly accurate, they are usually pretty funny. If they are not accurate, they are not likely to be very funny. I don’t really watch SNL so I have not seen the skits in question.
So is SNL supposed to take an opinion poll to discern if a politician is disliked enough for them to laugh at? Or is Lorne Michaels expected to make the script available to Ethan Porter, so Porter can make the final decision? If its the former, how low do the ratings have to be to make them eligible for mocking? Man, the more I think this through, the more complicated it gets.
Here’s a thought though. Maybe its all right to make fun of our officials. I would argue that making them look foolish is healthy for a democratic society. I would also argue that taking offense to something this silly just goes to show that there are kooks on both sides of the political spectrum. Obama is president, not a golden calf. To treat him as such just validates the talking heads who refer to him as the “Chosen One” in an effort to mock liberals.
Understand, I like the man. I voted for him, and I support the majority of his reforms. I also laugh at SNL’s portrayal of him. This double standard that some people have is ridiculous.
As for Ethan, we get it. You REALLY like Obama. Enough that, I suspect if you were in charge, Fred Armisen would be first against the wall. You sir, are just that dedicated. Now stop, please.
If Obama can’t stand the heat, he should get out of the kitchen.
Well, I’m betting Obama isn’t worried about heat from SNL at all, and he probably understnads as well as anyone here that he’s a target for satire from that quarter. It’s his supporters who can’t take the heat, right?
And how does Porter feel about the Rock Obama sketches, where he’s clearly not being mocked? I suppose those are okay? Let’s ignore the hay they made off Palin just a year ago while we’re at it, or the Joe Wilson sketch earlier this year. Honestly, I’m surprised Erik wasted a post on something so transparently off base.
I always got a good laugh out of SNLs Bush-Cheney comedy and never thought of it as a left wing conspiracy,now suddenly because obama is being ridiculed in SNL skits are they the next white house bully target ?? This admin is overly sensitive to criticism which is one thing but to either directly or indirectly(thru surrogates like porter) target any unflattering references like they do is something we should all be concerned about……….