SNL… They were doing so well for a while. It looked like rather than bending over for the administration, they were going to return to the irreverent brand of “take no prisoners” humor that has made them the political powerhouse that they are today. There was the infamous “Obama Deals with China” sketch, followed by a few subtle jabs at the POTUS, but it has ended there. In an attempt to remain politically relevant, SNL has decided to once again go after none other than Sarah Palin. At the very least, you have to respect them for being ballsy, right?
To the untrained eye, SNL’s recent “Rahm Emanuel Apology” sketch would seem to be poking fun at the chief-of-staff designate. To be fair, they make him look like a bit of a jerk (albeit still a smart one.) Personally I would have gone with the whole “he looks like Brad Garret on a heroin-bender” angle, but keep in mind that I’m a bi-partisan hack. The most notable part of the SNL piece had nothing to do with Emmanuel himself, but the jabs taken at Sarah Palin:
“You come after me on Facebook? What, are your fourteen? Here’s a status update: Grow the f–k up! Poke me again, and I will write s–t on your wall so obscene your computer will cry. Go back to the tundra, you f–king gimmick!”
One has to ask themselves, “Where are the jokes?” The only truthful premise for any of these punchlines is that Sarah Palin effectively used social networking tools to make a fool out of the pencil-necked Emanuel. Does that really make her immature? Most of the current administration use some form of new media (including the President himself who seems quite the twitter-fiend). The only difference is that Palin seems to currently have more sway over public opinion and the ultimate ability to define policy (even though she holds no office). Still, I haven’t yet seen anyone address the mean-spiritedness of the SNL swipes at Palin. Maybe that’s because those attacks are only reserved to Palin herself, as seen by the reaction to a recent joke at her latest Tea Party speech.
“We really do love our trees. I named my daughter Willow. Isn’t that granola enough for them?”
Don’t expect to see Palin at your local comedy club anytime soon, but the joke can stand on its own two feet. According to the mainstream media however, it was seen as too edgy or (according to some) flat out “mean.” How can a joke with no clear-cut personal target, no true social relevancy or words of hatred be mean? Maybe I’m just a simp.
See when it comes to dealing with Palin, none of the facts matter. Much like their sentiments towards FoxNews, the media is blinded by its hatred for the woman. You’re going to see a lot more “pile-ons” when it comes to Palin in the coming months, and here’s why…
Palin’s Achilles heel was her lack of experience in dealing with the media. Much like Reagan, she decided to control her own message. She did so by hitting the road with her book and dealing directly with the American people. Unlike Reagan (who worked in the entertainment industry for years), this wasn’t going to help her where she needed it most. The only way to gain media experience is to get in front of the media.
Enter Palin’s Fox News contributorship. Palin now has an open venue where she can get her feet wet in dealing with the press, without having to worry about getting sucker-punched like a photographer adjacent to a coked-out Sean Penn.
It really is a genius move on her part, and the folks at NBC hate that. The fact that she’s incredibly hot only exacerbates their problem. While I’m not necessarily 100% sold on Palin as an 2012 candidate so far, what the media continues to do to her is criminal. I’m talking Barney Frank-level criminal. Why isn’t he in federal prison, by the way? I’d pay a nickel to see that mugshot.
What do you folks think of the “Rahm Emanuel” sketch? Was it funny or just another chance to jump on the Palin-hating bandwagon?
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