Satire and Sexism

Thus far, I've been reluctant to write about Sarah Palin because I think V.P.ILF gets enough attention, but Tina Fey's impersonation really reframed the spectacled spectacle for me. Sure, I've been passively reading and listening to the tabloid-esque gossip about her, feeling sick to my stomach watching her perform her Little House on the Tundra routine, but Fey's performance really drew me in because it got to the heart of why the media's obsession with Palin rubs me the wrong way: sexism.

SNL comedians create political satires, exposing flaws or outrages in the political system by exaggerating the personalities involved and their plight. Ironically, the McCain campaign accused Fey and Amy Poehler (who played Hill) of sexism, when Fey and Poehler's act was in fact a parody of the sexist exploitation of female political candidates. Fey played up Palin's sex appeal, batting her eyes and posing with air-shot-gun, while Poehler played up Hill's reputation as an unappealing, testosterone-raging bitch. Together, Palin and Hillary stand at opposite ends of the spectrum of the media's stereotypes of women: sexy, coy, and dumb; and bitchy, power-hungry, and therefore unfeminine. Fey and Poehler, by exaggerating these stereotypes, drew attention to the prevalence of these stereotypes and the real issue that they present to women vying for political clout in a male-dominated world.

And hey, Palin thought it was funny, according to this NY Times article from the Caucus blog...because she once dressed up as Fey for Halloween.

Lucky for Fey that she's sexy, but a comedian. It seems that the "funny" label elevates women above the media's spectrum of judgment. Probably because comedians are busy self-parodying all the time anyway...

P.S. Speaking of Palin look-alikes: what about Dr. Melfi(MILFY?) on The Sopranos?