“South Park” is a satire of reality, and it is clear that Season 27 has been effective in relating to audiences and ensuring that politicians understand the current political climate. The season premiere saw the fourth-highest ratings on an episode, and marked the largest linear premiere of an episode the show had ever seen. “South Park”, though humorous, offers many lessons that can be applied to Californian politics and how we conduct our politics in the age of President Trump, especially in its recent episodes.
President Trump, a target of the occasionally crude episode, made no response to the show, though the White House did: “The Left’s hypocrisy truly has no end – for years they have come after ‘South Park’ for what they labeled as ‘offense’ content, but suddenly they are praising the show,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said in a statement to Variety. “Just like the creators of ‘South Park,’ the Left has no authentic or original content, which is why their popularity continues to hit record lows.”
Unfortunately for Rogers, the show proceeded to hit record highs. But Rogers got one thing right: many democrats have criticized the show for years, but are now praising the show. This is because “South Park” criticizes both sides of the aisle and refuses to be politically monogamous, something that many Americans can’t seem to comprehend in this day and age.
In Season 27 of “South Park”, the main antagonist, Eric Cartman, embodies what the creators of the show want to see in politics. Creator Matt Stone once said, “I hate republicans, but I really hate liberals,” with some expletives mixed in. Cartman doesn’t care who he offends; he only wants to offend, and that’s what makes him such a great model for Americans. Americans have adopted a my-way-or-the-highway approach to politics, which has clearly yielded almost no positive results. Cartman teaches us that political monogamy is not the way to go and to keep an open mind when it comes to politics.
We invest in our nation when we vote for a politician, and not all of our investments can be good. That is why we must always ask ourselves if our politicians are still serving their purpose as representatives of our interests. Think: Do they create policies that help me? Do they create policies that benefit my area? When a politician makes a bad decision, it’s important to remember that they can be replaced and that there is generally a better alternative, especially as elections become more local. This is not to say that I want my politicians to be fully partisan; instead, I want them to work with conservative interests to truly unite the country, instead of arbitrarily voting no on propositions by the opposing party.
In November, California faces an important vote to permit a decidedly undemocratic process: Gerrymandering. While it is undemocratic, it is not unwarranted, and is a valuable cause for democrats. California democrats have much to learn from “South Park” about campaign and messaging. “South Park” is incredibly effective with their political messaging, having invented a new generation of conservatives known as “South Park conservatives.” Behind their humor lies truth: in the new season, it’s the abuse of power and use of law for financial and political gain, and it has clearly gained the attention of many conservative politicians. California democrats can gain the attention of the nation by using subtle mockery or humor to plead their case. For example, Gavin Newsom’s team has taken to mocking Trump’s style of tweeting, which gained the attention of many conservatives who called Newsom immature. This, in turn, allowed Newsom’s team to point out that Trump does the same when he tweets, in a possibly more childish way.
While gerrymandering is never good, California at least offers voters the chance to have a say and have the opportunity to show critics that what they are doing is only fair through effective messaging.
“South Park” is directed at the 18-49 age range, and no age range has seen a larger drop in approval for Trump between June and August—when “South Park” premiered—than the 18-49 age range. While it is unlikely that “South Park” had any direct effect on this, there is some chance that the show had some minute effect on Trump’s approval rating. Trump’s campaign was more effective than almost any other conservative presidential campaign in winning voters of this age range, and he largely used popular culture to do this. “South Park” also used popular culture to show Trump’s flaws, and it’s possible it had an effect. Democrats need to learn how to use this pop culture correctly.
It can be argued that “South Park” is a childish show that only serves to divide our nation. This is an incredibly valid argument because “South Park” is meant to be a childish show, with lewd references and immature content. For many, that’s what makes it so enjoyable to watch. “South Park” clearly does not mean to divide, as it pokes fun at both sides of the political spectrum. In fact, the creators of the show have openly stated that they hate both parties. “South Park” fights for what it believes in, not the interests of a political party, which makes it such a valuable resource for understanding the state of our nation and world.
“South Park” is often solely known for satire and occasionally obscure content, but it can offer political advice. Mainly, it tells us to be consistently critical of policy and policymakers, as they are there to serve us. Specifically, Season 27 of “South Park” advises us not to be monolithic in our views, to question our party’s politics, and to remain vigilant against political manipulators.
