Diversity and political correctness get a satirical nod from Saturday Night Live in this skit about what different groups of people think they want. Turns out, you can’t please everybody.
Satire
Throwback Thursday: Obamacare Edition
In the spirit of the social media phenomenon #ThrowbackThursday, I wanted to share a clip from a Saturday Night Live episode that aired about a year ago. In this clip, the cast takes on the glitch-ridden Obamacare website, which was the brunt of many a joke when it was rolled out last October. I saw this soon after it was released, and I laughed so hard that it was a wonder I didn’t break a rib. So here it is again, in all its glory.
Note: If the YouTube video I linked to above is not working for you, you can also watch it on Hulu.
“Saturday Night Live” + Ebola
Saturday Night Live spoofed the panic over Ebola in this humorous parody of the movie The Fault in Our Stars. This is a good example of how the media can counter political scare tactics by using humor to make a worrisome topic or situation seem less so. They say laughter is the best medicine, and while that might not hold true with a case of Ebola, it does hold true when it comes to Ebola-phobia, a disease that much of the American population has been grievously afflicted with over the past couple of months.
Jon Stewart didn’t vote!!! Or did he? Does it really matter? Apparently it does.
It became big news when The Daily Show host Jon Stewart announced in an interview with CNN that he didn’t vote.
Why is this big news? Lots of people, the majority of Americans in fact, don’t vote. Why does it matter than Jon Stewart was one of them?
I believe it’s because Stewart is considered a political role model for many people. His show, which satirizes the news, is the only exposure to politics some people get. I could write a whole blog post on that point alone, but the point here is that people reacted when someone they saw as influential in the American political system treated the fundamental right to vote so flippantly.
The resultant outrage goes to show just how important television comedy has become in our political system, and that’s the point I really want to emphasize. The influence of comedians like Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert has become impressively extensive.
Stewart cleared the air later in the day on his show when he announced that he really did vote. In his comments, he stated, “I want to apologize. It sent a message that I didn’t think voting was important or that I didn’t think it was a big issue. And I do.”
So relax, everyone. Stewart has relented of his secret plot to single-handedly bring our political system crashing to the ground by setting an example of not voting. He voted. The fact that this even made the news shows just how powerful television and television comedians have become.
South Park
This would hardly be a blog about the intersection of movies/TV shows and politics if I didn’t talk about South Park, so here goes. The show, which has been running for 18 consecutive seasons (since 1997), is an animated sitcom aimed at a mature adult audience. It satirizes a wide range of topics, and as you might could guess, the world of politics provides lots of material for the show’s creators to work with. The in-your-face shock factor that the series relies on has drawn much criticism, but don’t let that fool you into thinking that South Park is unpopular. On the contrary, it has won numerous awards and accolades, and its Wikipedia page even has an entire section dedicated to its cultural and political influence.
What kind of influence are we talking about, exactly? Well, here’s a video that seems to be pretty representative of the show’s raunchy, off-beat satire, which you can watch if you’d like to judge for yourself. But think twice about watching it if you’re easily offended by, well…anything.
One of the interesting elements of the series is its tendency to mock politicians and causes on both sides of the aisle. Each episode opens with this quirky disclaimer:
All characters and events in this show-–even those based on real people–-are entirely fictional. All celebrity voices are impersonated…..poorly. The following program contains coarse language and due to its content it should not be viewed by anyone.
Does a show which has so much to say about everything accomplish much of anything in the end, or is its message lost in all the chaos? After 18 seasons, it would appear that the answer is a resounding “yes”…if nothing else, South Park lets everyone – from the president on down – know that they’re not above criticism, no matter who they are, and that life is just one big inappropriate joke. I think there’s a serious message behind all the humor, a message of accessibility. In America, anyone can criticize anyone, regardless of respective social status, and that’s a celebration of freedom right there. I’m not personally into the show’s method of delivery, but I do think that it has a message worth communicating.
“Freddy Spaghetti” Provides Ample Fodder for Political Statements on the Role of Government
In episode 24 of season 2 of Parks and Rec, whimsically titled “Freddy Spaghetti” after a guest musician on the show, Leslie and Ron really outdo themselves in showing their true political colors, and the contrast is pretty humorous. On the episode, the staff of the Pawnee Parks Department is in the midst of dealing with the latest crisis – a budget shortage that threatens to shut down their whole department. Two auditors from the state are present, and while they get down to business figuring out what to cut, Leslie and Ron are left to explain to the irate townspeople why the annual “Freddy Spaghetti” concert has been cancelled (due to a lack of funds). Throughout the ordeal, libertarian Ron Swanson is absolutely beside himself with joy that a government department, albeit his own, is being slashed. As he states more than once throughout the show, he views government services as a waste of taxpayer money. Leslie, on the other hand, is heartbroken over this new development. She loves the services the Parks Department provides, and she does everything she can to preserve them. The episode ends before the crisis is resolved, but not before both Leslie and Ron emphatically (though, to their credit, civilly) disagree over the role of government in daily life.
As Ron states in the pilot episode of Parks and Rec, he hates bureaucracy, and he believes that government should only consist of one man:
Leslie repeatedly displays her enthusiasm for what she views as the positive role of government in the city of Pawnee. See her and Ron’s opposite reactions to the government shutdown below:
And there you have it. Libertarian meets Liberal. Small Government meets Big Government. The one thing NBC tells us for sure is that it is possible for even people with diametrically opposed viewpoints on a big matter to disagree in an amiable manner.
NBC’s “Parks and Recreation” is a breath of fresh air
Parks and Recreation, starring Amy Poehler as Parks and Recreation Department Deputy Park Director Leslie Knope, is a refreshingly optimistic take on the political system. Or, to be more specific, Knopes’s indomitable, sunny outlook is a pleasant departure from darker, more cynical shows like House of Cards, even if the same can’t be said for every character on the show – for example, department director Ron Swanson (played by Nick Offerman) can’t stand government, stating in the pilot episode that he would rather work for Chuck E. Cheese. See a collection of his cynical-yet-humorous quotes here.
This article from Slate explores the politics of the show as a whole. In it, the author contrasts the political views of Knope (fairly liberal) and Swanson (staunchly conservative), but makes the point that the show as a whole takes no definite political stand. In fact, Parks and Recreation utilizes comedy, irony, and hyperbole (in short, all the elements of a good satire) to ridicule both sides of the aisle. Don’t worry though – it’s all in good fun, and the result is a delightful, knee-slappingly funny concoction that will leave you grinning long after the episode is over. If it weren’t for a decent amount of gratuitous sensuality and sexual innuendo, this would hands-down be one of my favorite TV shows.
In conclusion, the balance between Swanson and company’s collective skepticism and Knope’s optimism about all things politics works well. In the end, the show reminds us all that politics can be fun and entertaining no matter what your political views are.
The Nineties Called…They Want Their Culture Back
Portlandia, starring Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein, is an interesting (if somewhat confusing to those of us who don’t live and breathe hippie culture) sketch comedy show about Portland, Oregon’s unique blend of what the main characters term “The Dream of the Nineties”…aka a culture full of unemployed, tattooed, coffee-drinking, flannel-wearing, bike-riding, vegan hippies. This show exudes a certain offbeat charm, helped along by its honesty and its ability to laugh at itself. As I watched the first couple of episodes, I found myself wondering how accurate they were. Well, here is a blog post by a Portland resident that addresses that very question. According to the blog’s author, the show is actually pretty accurate in its depiction of Rip City.
What does this have to do with politics, you may ask?
Well, just listen to this interesting quote from Carrie Brownstein’s character in the pilot episode when Fred Armisen’s character tells her that “the dream of the nineties is alive in Portland”:
“So from what I can surmise, what you’re positing, Portland’s almost an alternative universe. It’s like Gore won – the Bush administration never happened. It’s almost like cars don’t exist…”
Basically, they tell us, this is Liberal Central. Interesting.
Mr. Gil goes to Kentucky
It recently came to my attention that there is an honest politician out there, and his name is Gil Fulbright.
…Or Philip Mimouf-Wifarts, depending on how much money you’re donating when you ask him.
Okay, so maybe he’s not all that honest, but what really matters is that he’s honest about being a scumbag, right?
He’s also not a real politician, so that’s a strike against him too, but it makes for a darn good story. Powered by IndieGoGo, this humorous campaign for “Honest Gil” aims to “help fix America’s corrupt political system by running a satirical candidate against Mitch McConnell and Alison Lundergan Grimes in the Kentucky Senate Race.” You can also visit the main campaign website at http://www.honestgil.com. This video explains the campaign’s goal, and this one is a hilarious-because-it’s-true parody of every political ad you’ve ever seen.
I was particularly amused by the tagline on the bottom of this ad regarding net neutrality: “Paid for by whoever will donate, seriously, call us.”
While this campaign admittedly does not fall into the “TV and movie” category that this blog is dedicated to, this topic piggybacks on my earlier post regarding the way politicians are represented as conniving and money-hungry in House of Cards. On Gil Fulbright’s website, he promises us this:
“If elected, I’ll definitely sell you out to special interests and lobbyists, but I’ll sell you out to your face. I’ll drop the act and do whatever you pay me to do — as long as you can afford it.”
The joke is that even though the results will be the same, at least he’s being honest about it…unlike those jerks who sell us out behind our backs. Humor is a powerful rhetorical tool (perhaps the most powerful one there is), and I think this is an amazing way to get Americans thinking about our political system – how it works (or doesn’t) and who wins and loses as a result. While the picture may not be as bleak as Gil paints it, it’s definitely food for thought.
“I Take My Political Cues from Jimmy Fallon!” …Said No One Ever (Hopefully)
Late-night talk shows are chock-full of political satir – I mean, news. POLITICO put together a video of some of the highlights from last night. Included in the discussion is Hillary Clinton’s potential bid for the 2016 presidential election, Obama’s foreign policy/the current war with ISIS, and VP Joe Biden’s most recent campaign shenanigans. I love late night talk show humor – it’s a welcome relief from the somber talking heads on all of the major news networks. But that’s all it is for me…a supplemental respite. It’s not my main source of news. But for many it is, so it’s always interesting, and somewhat depressing, for me to watch late-night talk shows from that perspective. As a supplement, it’s great, but as a main news source, not so much. There’s more to any news story than thirty seconds of jokes, but I feel like a lot of people don’t know that.
In one of my classes this semester, my professor asked us all where we get most of our news. The guy sitting behind me promptly responded, “Twitter!”, which got a chuckle out of the class, but I was pretty appalled. Entertainment definitely has its place, but it’s not exactly scholarly, and I believe we have a responsibility as citizens to engage in meaningful inquiry when it comes to the political world we are surrounded with. After all, what else is “government of the people, by the people, for the people” all about? Don’t let yourself believe that actual news happens on late-night talk shows or Facebook. Those are good places to start, but don’t ever let yourself stop asking questions about what’s going on in the world around you – and once you’ve asked them, find out the answer. Don’t settle for letting someone else tell you what’s important in a thirty-second sound bite or 140 characters.
Hollywood, D.C. 
