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Palin falls prey to fey
[Quote:]
Not since Chevy Chase made many viewers perceive Gerald Ford as a clumsy stooge has a television impersonation been credited with altering the political narrative to such a degree, said John Pitney Jr., a professor of American Politics at Claremont McKenna College.
“The parodies may have done a bit of damage. People remember Gerald Ford through the prism of Chevy Chase,” he said. “Ford was among our most athletic presidents, and he had a wide-ranging knowledge of public-policy issues. But because of ‘SNL,’ many came to think of him as a buffoon.”
A recent Washington Times poll found that independent voters are crediting the “Tina Fey effect” with turning them off to the McCain ticket.
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I disagree entirely — I think it was on your blog, even, that I saw a video showing Palin and Fey side by side, and Tina Fey quoted Sarah Palin verbatim! What Tina Fey does with Sarah Palin’s character is not caricature; it’s an accurate impersonation. It’s hilarious specifically for that reason, because it’s not over the top; that’s how Sarah Palin actually talks in real life, and here’s a comedian doing it pretending that she’s making a caricature. Bush may have gotten some of his buffoon status from famous clips like the “strategery” thing, but Sarah Palin’s buffoon status is all her own. Tina Fey is just riding that wave.
What Tina Fey does with Sarah Palin’s character is not caricature; it’s an accurate impersonation.
Usually SNL does caricature – people look at it expecting caricature. If what they see is impersonation, and it is hilarious as well, how do you think that impacts what people think of Palin? You may disagree with the “caricature” label, but the Tina Fey effect may very well be real.