Did the SNL Skit Help or Hurt Palin
Posted by centreman on September 14, 2008
OK, sometimes you have to turn off the politics for a moment and realize it is just a spoof, just for a laugh. Usually a politician will be around for years and years before they earn themselves a spoof spot in Saturay Night Live. But like everything else with Sarah Palin she is on Fast Forward and with an almost uncanny look-alike with Tina Fey in the bullpen, how could the SNL crew not jump on it.
If you haven’t seen the clip here it is.
I think this spoof actually will hurt Obama more than Palin. He is not mentioned but Clinton’s frustration sure is, that is a reflection on his decision not to have her on the ticket. There is nothing that can be done about that now. The Skit speaks for itself, it is funny, there is no need to deconstruct it. It works and in my view it was the highlight of the whole show. Phelps certainly looked like a Fish out of water for the rest of it.
What is more interesting to me though is the comparison between Palin / Fey. They are incredibly similar in appearance as this image shows.
If McCain / Palin win, Tina Fey will be signing onto steady employment for the next 4 years with SNL no matter what happens with 30 Rock. But these spoofs work for Palin not against her in classic political looking glass style.
Despite the superficial similarity in appearance, Fey is rightfully off the mark for humor and spoofing in other aspects which ,makes the humor work. This highlights what people like about the real Palin through the looking glass. Tina Fey is the apex of the smart geek chic, the hot girl who doesn’t get her own sexuality because she can’t see herself through her own glasses. Inherently awkward around men and overtly supicous of them all. She illuminates the opposite of the daddy’s girl and the intelligent modern woman who just never got her father’s approval. Despite massive success in life this shadow comes out of Fey and it is a big part of her success as a comedian.
Palin in stark contrast radiates confidence so brightly that she is the princess, the daddy’s girl who daddy told could do anything in the world and no matter what would always be proud of her. Her confidence on stage, her basking in the light, speaking strongly and with confidence as the boys stare at her in the hall, it is like a scene from Tina Fey’s Mean Girls Film.
If we were in high school, how could these two twins not be a modern day Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain with Fey as the Pauper getting her brief moment to be Prince last night on SNL. It is the cheerleader, valedictorian and most popular girl in school compared to her invisible twin sister in the back of the class, in the math elite and going to band camp while a single boy does not even notice her.
Although these two women are almost twins externally, they could not be more opposite in what their personalities radiate. A media looking glass feature that will certainly serve Palin’s political purposes long into the future as well as SNL’s ratings…
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expatforobama said
Do you really think Palin radiated confidence in her interview with Gibson? I beg to differ. She radiated, alright, but not confidence. Something more at bravado. She took every opportunity to overreact to simple questions the way I do when I’m in a bad mood and my girlfriend asks me to do the dishes. And her attempt to hide the fact that she wasn’t sure what the Bush Doctrine was didn’t exude confidence at all.
However, I agree that this SNL skit may have helped the McCain campaign as much as it did the Obama if not more, by keeping her in the limelight way beyond the 15 minutes she deserves. But, I have a feeling that we’re coming up on a critical turning point in this election and she will usher it in. She may very well be the deciding factor in a Democratic win.
And the skit was hilarious wasn’t it?
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Response: The Skit was great. In an earlier post I gave the first part of her interview with a Gibson an F. The second part a B-. This post is mainly just about the SNL skit and my view of Palin at the moment, her major first impression to America was the speech at the convention, the lipstick line etc, it will take a number of media stumbles and interviews like Gibson’s to take the shine off that initial first impression speech. And I also agree that she will be the pivot point in this election for either a Democrat or Republican win, I look forward to the next 7 weeks… : )