Fiorina calls SNL impersonation of Palin 'sexist'

Carly Fiorina, a spokesperson for John McCain's presidential campaign, told MSNBC that she felt Tina Fey's portrayal of Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live was "sexist."

Without even delving into the fact that Tina Fey is widely suspected to be a major supporter of Senator Hilary Clinton, played on SNL by Amy Poehler, the entire purpose of the sketch was to point out that attacking Palin's credentials is not sexist. It is in fact a reasonable thing for citizens to do, and a responsibility for the media. The only joke that even bordered on sexist was a crack about Palin's "Tina Fey glasses," which was clearly a joke aimed at the striking resemblance between Fey and Palin. Palin herself has made mention of her resemblance to Fey.

However, all of this is secondary to the fact that Saturday Night Live has run some of the most glass-ceiling-shattering sketches in its history this year. First there was the classic sketch in which Clinton debates Senator Barack Obama (NBC does not currently have this sketch available online). The moderator grills Clinton and then asks Obama, "Can we get you anything?" Then Tina Fey made a triumphant return to SNL's Weekend Update with the famous/infamous "bitch is the new black" segment. Fey rips the mainstream media a new one over what she saw as the sexist mistreatment of Hilary Clinton's campaign.

Fey has risen to the top of a field which is dominated by men, and she has done it in an uncompromising way, because she is one of the most talented comic writers in television. If Tina Fey has it in for Sarah Palin it certainly isn't because Fey is sexist. Just the opposite, Fey's point is that an inexperienced and seemingly unqualified woman being tapped for the Vice Presidency is as sexist as a qualified woman being denied the position.

Gender reconciliation, like racial reconciliation, is not a competition in which certain benchmarks must be met at all costs. It is a march towards equality, and the means are as important as the ends. If Sarah Palin becomes Vice President, it will not make life any easier for Jane Doe who makes 30% less money than her male co-workers. The inauguration of a female VP is just an arbitrary benchmark unless it is perceived that the woman in question earned the position.

The SNL sketch in question is a nuanced criticism of the media, and its fear of being perceived as sexist, and the McCain camp, which seems to believe that American women cannot see the differences between Palin and Clinton.