The fusion of popular culture and presidential politics may have begun way back when — the Rat Pack campaigned for Kennedy, Nixon deadpanned “Sock it to me?” on Laugh In — but this election cycle that blurred line has completely vanished. 

In the Feb. 26 Democrat debate, Hillary Clinton snarkily asked the moderators if they wanted to offer Obama a pillow, referencing the previous weekend’s Saturday Night Live skit mocking the media crush on her primary rival.

That same SNL ep featured Tina Fey’s hilarious pro-Clinton proclamation: “Bitch is the new black.” Obama later responded, “Clearly, Tina Fey and I are going to have to have a conversation,” and Clinton herself showed up the following week to compare rictus grins with her impeccable impersonator Amy Poehler. (Obama, meanwhile, got a humourless portrayal by Fred Armisen with black makeup and a furrowed brow.) 

Following the SNL sketches, the press corps suddenly seemed all confrontational with Obama. Coincidence? Well, the Project for Excellence in Journalism confirmed that the media sharpened their sticks afterwards. “There were a lot of factors at play,” spokesperson Mark Jurkowitz told AP. “But there’s no question the skit, if nothing else, was perfectly timed.’’ 

Lately, this seems the rule rather than the exception. Take Mike Huckabee’s surprise showing in the Republican race. When the news media initially ignored him, Huck caught their interest with a comedy campaign ad — “My plan to secure the border? Two words: Chuck Norris.” He then evoked Bill Clinton by jamming with Jay Leno’s band and promised Stephen Colbert a running-mate slot. This led to Colbert, Jon Stewart and Conan O’Brien feuding, and eventually fist-fighting, over who could take credit for Huckabee’s success.

Huckabee even nailed SNL’s best political cameo when the then-still-hanging-by-his-fingernails candidate refused to leave the Weekend Update desk after his segment was clearly over. Clinton’s comeback was similarly assisted by beelining to TV; following that SNL skit she also made a pre-primary appearance on The Daily Show.

“This election is about judgement. Yet tomorrow is perhaps one of the most important days of your life and you’ve chosen to spend the night before talking to me,” Stewart mused. “Senator, as a host I’m delighted. As a citizen, I’m frightened.”

Clinton countered with what sounded like a pre-scripted quip — “It is pretty pathetic” — but her appearance was a strategic attempt to win over the young folks filling Obama rallies across America.
Oprah Winfrey has become a regular at those same rallies, handing her first-ever political endorsement to Barack Obama, perhaps as atonement for inadvertently helping Dubya take power in 2000.

Oh, you thought that was Ralph Nader’s fault? Well, G-Dub had been lagging in the polls until a humanizing appearance on Oprah. She asked no tough questions, instead allowing the Texas governor to coast on his down-home charm. He kissed her cheek, welled up discussing his twins’ birth, came clean on alcoholism and cracked wise about his presidential pedigree — “if my name was George Jones I’d be a country and western singer.”

Bush’s campaign reps told The New York Times they were delighted to have an hour of TV “unfiltered” by news media. And it worked. The Oprah appearance gave Bush just enough of a bump to bum-rush Florida.

That’s the problem with the loss of church/state separation between news and entertainment. Huckabee, for instance, is so jovial hardly anyone mentions that, y’know, he doesn’t believe in evolution.

Admittedly, it’s not Regis’ job to play hardball and reading Letterman’s Top Ten List isn’t gonna win Obama the White House. But entertainers who claim to be unbiased — unlike Chuck Norris, Tina Fey or the celebs in will.i.am’s “Yes We Can” viral video — might want to ask Oprah if ratings are worth becoming an unwitting political pawn. 

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