Satire
"Status is always ripe for satire..." - Stephen Colbert
What is Satire?
The use of humor and exaggeration to pinpoint a character/moral flaw of a public figure or call to attention a political or moral issue in society.
Satire in Television
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is a weekly half-hour show that takes a satirical look at news, politics, and current events. (Pictured below and video example later!)
Tools of Satire
Satire in Cartoons
This cartoon is commenting about how much of an outcry there was from Americans when the Twinkie might be gone from the shelves, and how little outcry there is when it comes to the state of our environment. This is shown by a large crowd of people holding a sign that says "Save the Twinkie!" and only 2 people holding a sign that says "Save the Earth." One of the people is saying "we're doomed" while observing the group rioting for the Twinkie.
http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/politicalcartoons/ig/Political-Cartoons/Save-the-Twinkie.htmThis cartoon is commenting about immigration policy. The 'policy' sunscreen is painting the elephant to be more white than it is. This suggests that the point of the cartoon is showing that immigration policy is becoming more and more exclusively for white people.
This cartoon is commenting about violence in video games. It shows a man reading the newspaper with the headline "School Shootings" and the father wondering where kids learn to be violent. His son is behind him on the floor paying a game called "Cop Killer". This cartoon is suggesting that video games might be contributing to the violence in schools, and that parents are oblivious to this fact and buy them the games anyway.
https://tpeschoolshootings.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/school-shootings-cartoon.gif
Satire in Video
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Transgender Rights (HBO)
Original Satire
Two adult white males are standing in the middle of the street. Both men are wearing shirts that read "#AllLivesMatter". The first man is shouting to the second man, "We can't allow Muslims in our God-given country! They don't belong here, and if we let them in, they'll ruin the life God has blessed us with!" The second: "Yeah! Syrians are all murders!"