The Politics of Fear
On the cover of the July 21, 2008, issue of The New Yorker, artist Barry
Blitt satirizes the use of scare tactics and misinformation in the presidential election to derail Barack Obama’s campaign.
Is this satire or tasteless and offensive?
4 comments:
It's satire. The concerns I've been reading about is that the readers of the New Yorker would "get it" but middle America isn't that deep. huh. I'm not a fan of dumbing down in order to bring the feeble along. Although, it's pretty obvious that the feeble voted this horrible BushCo mess into office...twice! And are still falling for the xenophobic, fear mongering, bald-faced (no slur intended to bald people) lies. So, perhaps we don't need to give them fodder for their dimness.
Hey - thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving such a nice comment. :-)
I saw a story on CNN International about this topic this morning. Most of the "average Americans" that commented in the cover were only really concerned about the burning flag. They didn't say anything about the Obamas. I wonder if they even realize who is being pictured on the cover.
Dumbing down or not, the fact of the matter is that the majority of Americans comprehend at the fourth or fifth grade level, and while the public may or may not take the time to figure out the satire involved, it is likely to influence the less-engaged voter.
Friends*
I get the satire....
but I think it is in poor taste. Barack Obama is fair game in the political arena but to include a negative and outlandish depiction of his wife is downright disrespectful.
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