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Satire on 'Saturday Night Live' used to be a deadly weapon; is it still enough in the Trump era?

JL;DR SUMMARY Robert Zaretsky explores the enduring impact and evolving role of satire, particularly through the lens of Lorne Michaels and his creation, Saturday Night Live (SNL). A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Jewish HumorAmerican PoliticsUniversity Of TexasSatireSnlTrump EraCultural ImpactLorne MichaelsHarry Ransom CenterTelevision Comedy

Places mentioned

Austin, Texas, United States
"A funny thing happened when I went to Austin last week."
Houston, Texas, United States
"A professor at the University of Houston and the Womens Institute of Houston, Robert Zaretsky is also a culture columnist at the Forward."
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
"Born Lorne Lipowitz in Toronto in 1944 and not, as some folks still believe, on a kibbutz in Israel Michaels is, of course, the creator of Saturday Night Live, the weekly NBC television comedy show that has been running, and often stumbling, since 1975."

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Cairo Item ID 63575
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Retrieved 2025-10-11 05:31:06 UTC
Curated 2025-10-11 08:31:06 UTC