"Positions guaranteed to drive voters wild" was funny. "Don't tell mama I'm for Obama" was a little funny too. That's about it. Satire requires wit. What were those clips of african dudes jumping up and down? Was that supposed to be funny or add to the humor in some way?
I actually found the Fox clip kind of funny. Its mean spirited but nothing you wouldn't see on Weekend update, particularly the Marion Barry bit. I thought the caption "Barack Obama vs Tiger Woods; Who's more diverse?" pretty funny too. Otherwise the forced laughter and the terrible acting of the pretend anchors really brought it down. Overall its not up to Colbert or The Daily Show but I think its better than recent SNL. The problem with the parody is that its hard to parody something that already is petty without looking more petty and mean spirited yourself. Even though I understand this wasn't a professional piece its amateurishness IMO was almost too painful. The Fox anchors were bad enough and the way they tried to go about out badding them seemed childish. On a sidenote I saw a thing about the Fox show and apparently this is the brainchild of Joel Surnow who is the producer of 24. I think unfortunately for Surnow liberals seem to do humor better while conservatives do outrage better.
I'm black, and liberal, but I also have a soft spot for sketch comedy and I commend efforts to mix political commentary in, young people et al might not be informed otherwise. Didn't see any racism in the clip (aside from the Tiger Woods bit), Obama, like Bush Jr. before him, does have a lot of hype for someone with his experience level and I don't see how you can't be allowed to satirize that without being called a racist. I do think they're being true to themselves, and making a noble effort, I just don't wanna see Limbaugh or Ann Coulter on there (I still can't forget Rush's horrific statements about Donovan McNabb). I'm comfortable with the second clip too, a tad race-baitey, but ultimately all new TV programs should be scrutinized and held to a higher standard, very much in the spirit of the "Nobody's Watching" guys on YouTube. I'm probably one of the few people who think cable news and political commentary have gotten more enjoyable and accessible over the last 15 years; of course, I'm not even 30, so whatever.
Wow, I love Bill Maher. I actually think his commentaries at the end of his "New Rules" bit, especially the first two this year, are freaking brilliant. I've been a fan of Jon Stewart since he replaced Arsenio Hall 13 years ago, and I do think the Daily Shows inclusion of the British, Black and Middle Eastern commentator over the past year have been a nice improvement, they seem to broaden the scope a bit.
