?:reviewBody
|
-
In July 2019, news reports announced that Halle Bailey, half of the sister duo Chloe x Halle, would be starring as Ariel in an upcoming live-action remake of Disney's version of The Little Mermaid. That news was met in some quarters, Emma Teitel wrote, with an avalanche of hateful, racist comments from white people who cannot abide a Black Ariel; white people who are livid that anyone other than a Caucasian red-head was cast in the role. This brouhaha was soon followed by an article whose headline declared that conservative political commentator Tomi Lahren had responded to the controversy by defiantly proclaiming, Everyone knows mermaids are white, just like Santa and Jesus!: Although the racial depictions of figures such as Jesus and Santa Claus have sometimes been the subjects of contention, many viewers who queried us about this article apparently didn't read past its headline or social media lead, because its over-the-top style and its publication on a website called Alternative Facts were obvious clues to its nature as a piece of satire rather than news reporting. Alternative Facts (whose slogan is YOUR OWN OPINIONS. YOUR OWN FACTS. YOUR OWN REALITY.) notes in a footer that all its material is satirical in nature, and the Tomi Lahren piece was penned by writer/comedian James Schlarmann and tagged as satire and political satire.
(en)
|