Satire+and+Poltical+Cartoons

By the Venerable Patrick Germain and the Honorable Selmon Rafey

In a new age of vast media exposure, ** political satire ** gives satirists a broad and powerful range of opportunities in influencing public opinion. Political satirists and cartoonists accomplish what journalists and news anchors, with their efforts of maintaining constant ** neutrality **, cannot. These forms of humor allow for their authors to provide their opinions without mitigating them through the need to avoid taking sides. Political satire thrives off of criticism and inauthenticity in government; Jon Stewart, satirist and current host of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” related in an interview, “ [y]ou know, the jester has always benefited from the ability to be a brat. But if people weren't feeling that they lived in times that were really inauthentic, it might not resonate.” Political satire and cartoons will survive as long as there are issues with the government which, looking at history, means political humor will likely last as long as mankind.

History of American Political Satire and Political Cartoons


Political humor dates back to even before the creation of the United States of America. Benjamin Franklin is credited with creating the first political cartoon in American history by publishing his famous “Join or Die” cartoon on May 9, 1754, in the Pennsylvania Gazette. The basis of the cartoon is a colonial myth that if one reunited before midnight the pieces of a snake that was cut in half, it would become whole again. Franklin shows keen insight here through this metaphor because he knew that the territorial integrity of the colonies was in danger of attack by the French; indeed, the French and Indian War would start the same year. The same cartoon would be used as a call to unity among the Americans for years to come.

Political cartoons are responsible for the proliferation of many key American symbols. The personage **Uncle Sam**, who is the most recognizable personification of the United States, began to appear in cartoons after the War of 1812. Before the United State’s receival of the



Statue of Liberty from the French, the character of **Columbia** was the female personification of the nation, whom was the origin of many of the places and edifices that carry the sa me name. These characters were used to create a sense of patriotism like image #2 shows, or with the recruiting poster, “I want YOU for U.S. Army” serving as the best example.

But the image of Uncle Sam was also used as a symbol to represent the excesses, immorality, and war-mongering of the United States, as is shown in illustration #3.

In the current era, political cartoons are found in nearly every newspaper and all over the internet. Satires have become quite common. The sketch comedy program Saturday Night Light often directly mock American politicians politicians by acting as them and putting themselves in ridiculous situations that underscore that politician’s weaknesses. The poor approval rating of the George W. Bush administration led to widespread satirization, with popular actor Will Ferrell doing stand-up comedy routines in the character of the former president and with Comedy Central even airing a short-lived program “Lil’ Bush” which satirized nearly all of the political leaders of the era as children.

**Topics of Political Satires and Cartoons**
Cartoons and satires will always attempt to keep up with the most recent news developments. Topics that are old, overanalyzed, or irrelevant will not be popular or humorous enough for people to notice the underlying purpose. It is not uncommon for other, non-political, events to be used with political happenings to make the cartoon or satire more appealing to a wider audience, as is exhibited in cartoon #4 where the media is being likened to the NFL replacement referees who made a highly suspect call in a game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Green Bay Packers.

** Purpose and Effects of Satire and Cartoons **
What is perhaps satire’s greatest appeal is the freedom it allows the satirist to openly state opinions about topics pressing to them, while masking it with humor and bombast in a way so that it is not offensive. One famous case was Jon Stewart’s coverage of the ** James Zadroga **
 * 9/11 Health and Compensation Act **, where he dedicated an entire episode on his show to the bill and its surrounding stagnation in Congress. After his critical episode, the bill’s passage through Congress and signing into law was seemingly expedited, something many attributed to Stewart’s coverage. Though the issue was covered in newspapers and political talk shows, the combination of The Daily Show’s widespread audience and his bitingly critical commentary pushed the bill forward in a way others could not have. Political cartoons can also urge the broadest audience, that is American public, to be more introspective in looking at his or her role in the political system. Cartoon #5 draws attention to the very limited knowledge that the average American voter has of his or her candidates.

** Dangers of Political Cartoons **
Certain acts of satire have always drawn criticism throughout history, though in the modern age of instant sharing and widespread visibility, satire has sometimes become a cause of violence and conflict.

Perhaps the most famous case of the inherent danger of political cartoons is the Jyllands-Posten controversy, where 12 ** editorial cartoons ** of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad were posted. According to Islamic law, depictions of the Prophet are forbidden, and the pictures in questions had a variety of terrorist-related imagery, such as swords and bombs. After the pictures were published, a variety of attacks were executed in Pakistan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iran, and numerous other protests around the world, leading to over 100 deaths, while increasing tension in areas of the world where Western nations were already viewed unfavorably. The main question that had arisen in the aftermath was to what extent free speech should be allowed, and exactly how much freedom could something as “lighthearted” as a cartoon be given.

Another issue of political cartoon controversy is the fact that satirical cartoons can be interpreted as an attack or as offensive, even if that was not the originally claimed intent. For example, during the 2008 presidential election, the New Yorker had a cover image of then-Senator Obama in the Oval Office while in Muslim garb, his wife Michelle with a machine gun, an American flag burning, and picture of Osama bin Laden hanging on the wall. The New Yorker claimed that it was satirizing the accusations made by some right-leaning dissenters of the senator, though some, including Senator Obama and Senator McCain, saw it as offensive and tasteless.

**Vocabulary**:

 * Political Satire: openly criticizing or ridiculing figures from politics in the hope of improving society
 * Neutrality: not taking a side in debated topics
 * Uncle Sam: male personification of the United States, physically represented as an aged, lean, tall man wearing star-spangled clothing
 * Columbia: female personification of the United States before the Statue of Liberty, represented by a powerful woman, most often in a dress
 * James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act: a bill proposed and later ratified in Congress which would provide health benefits for those who worked at the 9/11 site in New York City
 * Editorial Cartoons: a cartoon dealing with current events and/or popular personalities to make a critical point

**Questions**:
1. What was the first American political cartoon and what was its purpose?

2. Before the 20th century, who was the female personification of the United States?

3. In what opposing ways is Uncle Sam often portrayed?

4. What separates journalists and newscasters from political cartoonists and satirists?

5. What effect did Jon Stewart’s coverage of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act have on the act?

6. Why might political cartoons attempt to connect to apolitical sources?

7. How did the New Yorker portray Barack and Michelle Obama in 2008?