Postseason analysis: 'Saturday Night Live' more liberal than ever
A recent study by the Media Research Center indicates that Season 51 of 'Saturday Night Live' has become more politically liberal compared to previous seasons. The analysis revealed that 91% of jokes during the season targeted conservatives, with only a small fraction aimed at liberals. Critics argue that this trend may alienate a portion of the audience and harm the show's appeal.
- ▪The study found that 91% of 'Weekend Update' jokes were directed at conservatives.
- ▪Only one of the top ten targets for jokes was a liberal figure.
- ▪MRC President David Bozell expressed concerns about the show's political bias potentially alienating viewers.
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| Original publisher | The Washington Times |
| Canonical URL | https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/may/18/postseason-analysis-saturday-night-live-liberal-ever/ |
| Publication time | Mon, 18 May 2026 16:45:57 -0400 |
| Retrieval time | 2026-05-18T21:09:56.946Z |
| Last seen | 2026-05-18T21:09:56.946Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
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| Summary | WeSearch · cerebras-chat (WeSearch summarizer) |
| Summary source text | contentText |
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| Cluster | 1Oz71TH77Hdy |
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| Commercial reuse | May the content be reused commercially? | Not permitted |
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
The Media Research Center’s “NewsBusters’” is out with a new study showing that the recently concluded Season 51 of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” is more politically liberal than the previous season. According to the study, 91% of the season’s “Weekend Update” jokes were directed at conservatives, while 83% of its cold open political characters were conservatives or Republicans. NewsBusters analysts examined all 20 shows of the season that ran from Oct. 4, 2025, through May 16, 2026.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Washington Times.
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