On Oct. 7 2023, Israel suffered a terrorist attack engineered by Hamas, a terrorist organization operating in Gaza, a Palestinian territory. In response, Israel’s government declared war on Hamas, and in the following days bombarded Gaza with a series of airstrikes, killing and injuring thousands. The conflict in Israel has always been divisive, but since the beginning of this new phase of the war, the average person would have to tread very lightly to avoid divisive comments.
Not even a week after the war began, however, satirical news outlet The Onion published an article called “’The Onion’ Stands With Israel Because It Seems Like You Get In Less Trouble For Doing That.” Nobody batted an eye.
Comedy during tragic times has always been a complicated subject. The majority of big organizations and individuals avoid tackling devastating topics as soon as they happen so they’re not labeled as insensitive. In contrast to The Onion article, for example, Saturday Night Live chose to discuss the Israel-Hamas war in a more serious tone, allowing host Pete Davidson to address audience members about his personal experiences with terrorist attacks and the healing power of comedy. Even after Davidson’s heartfelt intro, if SNL decided to throw in a joke about the war during the Weekend Update segment, the odds of backlash were considerable. This begs the question: what’s so different about The Onion’s jokes?
The Onion as an independent company has established a reputation for tackling sensitive topics over years of publishing biting satire. The writers of the magazine — through their shocking wit and harsh headlines — prove to audiences that they’re aware of the magnitude of such topics, and aren’t publishing to offend, but rather shine a light on societal ills.
SNL could and occasionally does do this, but not to the extent of The Onion, likely due to its affiliation with NBC and its larger audience.
To many, the headline about the Israel-Hamas conflict is offensive, and only serves as a beacon for distasteful humor. Reading the article, however, proves my point about the intelligence of these writers. They establish the horrors and controversies of the war, but use the piece to prove the stupidity of picking between two sides that clearly have done wrong in this conflict. In layman’s terms, it uses uncomfortable humor to prove a point, which is what all good satire should do.
Satirical humor should make us step back and think about what’s going on, inevitably leading to uncomfortable revelations. Pointing out the wrongdoings of a government that the public has widely supported is controversial, but necessary for creating an accurate picture of the global conflict. There’s no defending Hamas and their actions, but that doesn’t mean you have to fully support the Israeli government’s siege on Gaza. The public majority doesn’t fully understand this, but The Onion does.
Of course, this doesn’t mean people should go around making controversial statements about global issues for laughs. What deviates good satire from unnecessarily shocking humor is its point. Those writing satirical articles are trying to point out clear flaws in our world, while shock humor is simply trying to get a chuckle and a gasp out of the audience. A perfect example of the two occurred a few weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Gilbert Gottfried made a joke about the attacks at a Comedy Central roast and was met with widespread criticism. A few days later, The Onion published a satirical newspaper about the same topic, and was revered.
Don’t get me wrong; I love Gottfried’s work and I think he’s a brilliant comedian, but his joke about the 9/11 attacks was clearly in poor taste. He was trying to address the elephant in the room, as the roast was one of the first comedic events to happen after the attacks, but only came across as distasteful in his attempt. Unlike Gottfried’s joke, The Onion’s piece was rooted in the clear anger and confusion over the state of America, using humor to process their troubled thoughts. Some of the headlines were offensive and eyebrow-raising, but had a legitimate point to make about society and the problems it was facing.
Humor makes us ponder. A good joke should make us feel slightly uncomfortable, but not completely disgusted. Well-written satire should make us think while feeling shocked. Using these tools wisely can make a wildly complicated issue like the Israel-Hamas war more digestible, and can change the way society approaches controversies.
Michael Perrone can be reached at [email protected].
