I remember when Barack Obama first took office, some of the late night comedians continued to make jokes about President Bush. Any humor regarding Barack Obama was as sharp as a teddy bear. The Director of Talent at Comedy Central, JoAnn Grigioni, was quoted as saying ”I think people who may be having a hard time skewering Obama are experiencing that because right now his flaws, those that would be comedy fodder, are not so obvious.” Strangely, I’ve never had a problem mocking him, but then I’m not a professional comedian.
This has been changing somewhat lately. Saturday Night Live had a recent skit where Obama was mocked by the Chinese who hold much of our debt. But overall I’m still not seeing anything even remotely close to the level of comedic energy that was directed at Bush (or Clinton, Bush the Elder, Reagan, etc). Comedians are still largely holding Obama in reverence.
Now take a look at this picture of Obama addressing the media in a 6th grade classroom:
Teleprompters, a PA system, a podium with the Presidential seal…all to speak informally to members of the media after addressing some students. And comedians don’t find anything about Obama worthy of mockery?
The Clampdown 