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Wit's EndTroy Patterson takes readers' questions about the unfunny state of political comedy.


Posted Thursday, April 10, 2008, at 3:21 PM ET

(Continued from page 1)

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Anonymous: "Praise, undeserved, is satire in disguise."—Alexander Pope

Troy Patterson: What an original thought!

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Phoenix: Could it be that Saturday Night Live makes flabby comedy in general? I haven't seen anything worthwhile on that show in years.

Troy Patterson: Oh, I don't know. The digital shorts—"D— in a Box" and so on—are pretty tight. I laughed at Tracy Morgan's pro-Obama response to Tina Fey's pro-Hillary editorial, especially the way Morgan inflected the phrase about preferring government cheese. It was funny; it's just not truly political.

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New York: I think satire is great, and in the course of the past seven years, has been a very important release valve for all the ills that our government has hoisted upon us. I give them much credit for their biting political satire and for speaking truth to power. However, the shows I used to watch for satire aren't as funny any more. I used to love Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show, but they're just not funny any more. Not at all. And the reason is that they think they are allowed to criticize insert name of candidate here, when she/he only is trying to make this a better country. I think so-called satirical shows step over the line when they make fun of people I agree with.

Troy Patterson: And, here is an illustration of the chief commercial problem of satire. This question would seem to be a comment on the perceived audience mindset that leads to so many empty jokes. The strength is in the subtlety, and the subtlety is so subtle that it almost went over my head. Bravo!

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Greencastle, Ind.: The most cringe-worthy "comedy" I've seen is Hillary Clinton with Jay Leno—between her being so unnaturally forced and Leno trying to steal every punchline possible ... a shiver just went through me while I was typing.

Troy Patterson: Yes, that was weird. Some would say there's something troubling in the way that Clinton joked about being "pinned down by sniper fire" on her way to Leno's set—an extreme version of something that most politicians do when appearing on late-night shows, attempting to defuse a volatile issue by making a ha-ha. Also, Clinton is reportedly very funny in private, but TV comedy is not her bag.

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Annapolis, Md.: Your article is headlined "how satire got flabby," but it really only describes the flabbiness rather than explaining how it got flabby. There always has been a flabby side of political humor—Bob Hope is a shining example. Would you say that humor has grown more flabby? If so, why has this happened?

Troy Patterson: Fair enough. Explaining the "how," I would say that, yes, it has grown a bit more flabby, partly because there's more of it. (Carson stepped down and late-night shows began proliferating around the time that Dan Quayle arrived on the national scene.) Also, the Monica Lewinsky scandal gave comedians more license to delve into the personal side of politicians. On the other hand, the development of the cable business has enabled people like Stewart, Colbert, and Bill Maher to profitably sell satire to small audiences.

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Washington: I'd agree that we're not in a golden age of political satire, but I think Letterman's "Great Moments in Presidential Speeches" has been nothing short of brilliant—and there is no joke that ever needs to be added. Maybe we're at a point where you cannot invent a joke that is as funny or absurd as the real thing.

washingtonpost.com: Great Moments in Presidential Speeches (YouTube)

Troy Patterson: I agree. Though Letterman's political jokes are largely anti-political these days, something about George W. Bush seems to incite "Dave's worn-on-his-alienation" (Peterson's words) in a way that gets him cracking.

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Troy Patterson: What fun! Thanks for reading my piece, and thanks for your thoughtful responses.

Questions? Comments? Complaints? You can reach me via the bio line at the moment of my articles on Slate. Rock on....

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Slate television critic Troy Patterson also writes the movies column for Spin and contributes to publications including the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, and Men's Vogue.
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