Editorial: Donald Trump in Saturday Night Live

Donald Trump is a millionaire with a monumental ego that has led him to be a T.V. celebrity, and he is now using this visibility to run for the Republican candidacy. His success as front-runner in the primary polls reflects the increasing trivialization of politics, where candidates appear on every TV show not to talk about their plans for government but to be an active part of the entertainment industry.

This is the context in which we should see Trump’s appearance today in the NBC comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL). The show has traditionally brought politicians during its long history, although not as the “host” around whom the show revolves, as is the case of Trump. He is the only one boasting an experience of 14 seasons on TV with high ratings. It is probably expected that his presence will bring the numbers up, and that it will be controversial enough that people will still talk about it the next day.

However, it is impossible to disassociate Trump’s political popularity from his discourse of resentment towards Mexican immigrants, because that was the basis on which he built his candidacy. This is what stood out from his speech announcing his presidential ambitions. Unfortunately, there already was a frustrated Republican base ready to fervently embrace such discourse. For many years, Congress has said that most problems, from the economy to safety, are caused by those who enter the southern border illegally.

NBC did well in breaking its relation with Trump’s production The Apprentice. SNL, however, did not have the same sensibility. If Trump had directed his outrageous comments about mexican immigrants towards the African American community, he would probably not be on the show as a funny guy. But that’s another story.

For those who are upset about Trump’s presence, the solution is not to ban him from SNL. The  disagreeing viewer should switch the channel, showing NBC its disgust, and the consumer should remember which products sponsor the show, and stop buying them. This is the kind of demonstration that is usually the most heard.