On October 15, the nation’s most powerful men sat stiffly on an imposing dais, clad in white ties and tails -- except for the Cardinal, decked out in ecclesiastic “purple.” The formal ballroom of New York’s Waldorf Astoria seemed an unlikely setting for some much needed comic relief.Yet for days after the annual Al Smith Memorial Dinner, the media buzzed with clips of Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama delivering hilarious routines that put many professional comedians to shame.Barack Obama deadpanned: “Contrary to the rumors you have heard, I was not born in a manger. I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father Jor-El to save the Planet Earth.”While, John McCain’s monologue even had Hilary Clinton throwing back her head with laughter: “When Larry King asked President Clinton a couple weeks ago what was the delay and why wasn't he out there on the trail for Barack, Bill said his hands were tied until the end of the Jewish high holidays.”Americans...

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Saturday Night Live’s ratingsare up almost 50% over this time last year, partly because it’s making news andnot just mocking it. In early October, the show, which had gleefully andpredictably been mocking the GOP candidates for weeks, pulled (then heavilyedited) a scathing sketch placing the blame for the sub-prime mortgage meltdownon Barney Frank, other Congressional Democrats, billionaire liberal financierGeorge Soros and other wealthy Democratic supporters – who were described as “peoplewho should be shot.” Tellingly, an earlier sketch accusing VP candidate SarahPalin’s husband of impregnating their daughter was aired without much fuss. Provingonce again that today’s satirists aren’t necessarily as even handed orcourageous as they like to appear.

Of course, in the internet age,there’s no such thing as a “censored” sketch – clips of the doctored SNL bitnow exist for eternity somewhere on the web.

Expect...

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