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Vanity Fair spoofs New Yorker cover

Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor July 22, 2008 03:57 PM

Cover-McCain2.jpg
(Vanity Fair)

In a little intramural joshing in the magazine world, Vanity Fair today posted a send-up of the by-now infamous New Yorker cover meant to be a satire of attacks on Barack Obama's patriotism.

The New Yorker's version showed Democrat Obama in Muslim garb fist-bumping his wife Michelle while the American flag burned in the fireplace under a portrait of Osama bin Laden.

Vanity Fair's shows Republican John McCain, using a walker, fist-bumping his wife Cindy while the Constitution burns in the fireplace with a portrait of President Bush over the mantle.

"We here at Vanity Fair maintain a kind of affectionate rivalry with our downstairs neighbors at The New Yorker," the magazine's editors say, explaining their spoof. "We play softball every year, compete for some of the same stories, and share an elevator bank. (You can tell the ones who are headed to the 20th floor by their Brooklyn pallor and dog-eared paperbacks.) And heaven knows we’ve published our share of scandalous images, on the cover and otherwise. So we’ve been watching the kerfuffle over last week’s New Yorker cover with a mixture of empathy and better-you-than-us relief.

"We had our own presidential campaign cover in the works, which explored a different facet of the Politics of Fear, but we shelved it when The New Yorker’s became the “It Girl” of the blogosphere. Now, however, in a selfless act of solidarity with our downstairs neighbors here at the Condé Nast building, we’d like to share it with you."

OBAMA-NEW-YORKER.jpg
The July 21, 2008 New Yorker cover


32 comments so far...
  1. No offense taken here. This Republican finds it amusing to say the least.

    Posted by CMartel2 July 22, 08 04:36 PM
  1. Age discrimination! LOL! Beauty discrimination!? LOL! God bless America!

    Posted by mk July 22, 08 04:57 PM
  1. Aside from the liberal fantasy of the Constitution being burned, the cover looks like a good all-American scene to me.

    Is that legal drugs Cindi is holding for her beloved husband? How normal and sweet.

    Posted by Sandra Martin July 22, 08 05:10 PM
  1. Its sad- I feel that the artist has taken extreme liberty with their depiction of John McCain. Everyone knows that the McCain tumor bulge lives on the left side of his face, not the right.

    Posted by Frodo July 22, 08 05:49 PM
  1. This relatively mellow - nor is it a cheap shot. However, the New Yorker achieved its goal - once out - the damge is done. Anyone everh hear the term, "christian terrorists"? I hear the term "islamist terrorits" all the time - even on NPR.

    Posted by Axis North July 22, 08 05:58 PM
  1. Cindy McCain was addicted to prescription drugs at one time.

    Posted by Howard Hughes July 22, 08 06:22 PM
  1. Frodo, you are too funny.

    Posted by Rusty July 22, 08 07:02 PM
  1. Hey, was it done by the same artist? Hmm, guess publicity gets you the extra work. heh

    Posted by jerry manning July 22, 08 07:35 PM
  1. The difference is that the Obama piece was satire about the Right-wing - not the Obamas.

    This piece isn't satire.

    Posted by rrsafety July 22, 08 07:56 PM
  1. The Vanity Fair cover is very clever, except for the Constitution being burned as Sandra pointed out. I think the reaction will be much different and very telling. Obama and his followers are very thin-skinned and will whine and cry like the spoiled brats that they are at the drop of a hat. If that is how they react to every "crisis" who could possibly want him to be our president.
    John McCain, on the other hand, will probably have several copies of his cover framed and mounted on his bus, on his plane and in his home and at his office. Maturity and a sense of humor are requirements in the business of American politics. I am afraid that Obama and Boss Dean have not learned that yet.
    The Democrats are a perfect example of why the United States is becoming a Nation Of Wimps.

    Posted by Robert Peterson July 22, 08 09:00 PM
  1. Wow, you people are really in the bag for the biggest flip flopping, pandering, outright liar of a candidate we have seen in a long time.

    John McCain is not fit to lead the United States for more reasons than I have room for here, and I really hope you all can regain some long-lost logic and vote for someone that will actually help you, not the top 2%.

    Wake up before it's too late. This election is too important to throw to someone like John McCain because you are either too ideologically rigid, or frankly, too much of a racist to see the real problems and issues that Barack Obama will solve, and John McCain will perpetuate.

    Posted by Shane July 22, 08 11:43 PM
  1. Oh, and by the way Howard Hughes, Cindy wasn't just addicted to prescription drugs, she stole them from her own charity.

    That's right, a millionaire stole drugs from her own charity.

    Posted by Shane July 22, 08 11:45 PM
  1. Has everyone forgot McCain dumped his first wife for his money train. and lets not forget his rosey past of not being able to keep his pants on around the ladies.

    Posted by Peter Johnson July 23, 08 01:33 AM
  1. A parody of a parody?
    The first one was worst than the second or the other way around?

    Posted by eric Antoniou July 23, 08 02:16 AM
  1. Thats funny

    Posted by Nikkia July 23, 08 06:38 AM
  1. Important lesson Vanity Fair needs to learn - the first person to present a satirical idea is cutting edge - the person who tries to lampoon it comes off as a pathetic wannabe

    Posted by Mark July 23, 08 09:07 AM
  1. C'mon Vanity Fair, you can do better than that! A hand full of pill bottles? The containers should be spilling out of a Gucci bag. Instead of a fist bump, he should be whacking her with his walker (there have been rumors of spousal abuse). Nice try, but lame.

    Posted by American Woman July 23, 08 09:47 AM

  1. I'll bet the McCains take this far better than the Obamas, and their fans.

    Liberals write more clever jokes, but conservatives laugh at themselves far more honestly. Being right carries with it the advantage onfnot taking oneself too seriously.

    Lets get back to election coverage and issues.

    Posted by roneida July 23, 08 10:41 AM
  1. Right on rrsafety ...

    Posted by Kris July 23, 08 11:15 AM
  1. Nah, that was lame.

    A parody of a parody is nothing but plagiarism. Besides, Cindy would have a IV needle in her arm, hooked to a vat of Budweiser and wearing a dominatrix outfit with a picture of John McCains ex wife on the wall.

    Johnny Boy would be in Blackface trying to learn some dance moves via a floor chart to compete with Barack's smooth/cool neo-Black style. McCain is a 2008 Amos n Andy character, yearning for a cold-blooded Chicago street-walkin' sista like Michelle to light a fire under his 72 year old frame.

    and that's being nice about it

    Posted by DavidDuke July 23, 08 12:13 PM
  1. Both magazine are competing to be the Mad Magazine for grown ups. How fitting that both magazines are so boomer oriented.

    Posted by scampiman July 23, 08 12:18 PM
  1. you can't even compare how the McCains take this compared to the Obamas.

    you want old money that will favor their business partners and war profiteering croneys? Vote McCain!

    you want the everyday American to be represented fairly, vote Obama.

    Gee, I wonder why the tax-skirting fortunate ones are fearful... they may have to pay their fair shares!

    and, yes, The Patriot Act is a bastardization of law that directly threatens the Constitution... no fantasy here... more like a right wing inspired nightmare.

    Posted by kelster mcgil July 23, 08 12:27 PM
  1. republicans are better at laughing at themselves because they are so used to being made fun of. take that anyway you like.

    Posted by mike July 23, 08 12:32 PM
  1. Offensive?!?! NO. What's offensive is lying, cheating and stealing away our money to perpetuate a lie and a war designed ONLY to make companies like Halliburton and their exec's richer, at the cost of American and Iraqi lives! THAT my friends is offensive. Whats more offensive? A candidate that has been bought by those same war criminals, who intends on continuing the same dictator-like policies. i can't believe so many American have become so complacient, apathetic, stupid, and uninvolved. If we ALL actually paid attention to the truth, Obama would have a 70% lead on McFilpFlop in the poll's. Only two types of people supprt John
    McSaywhatever: people who hate black people, and people with a vested interest in making money on the war, or on the deregulation of industry. PERIOD, now, that is offensive!

    Posted by Mike Riskin July 23, 08 12:43 PM
  1. Sibling rivalry? I suppose, only this sibling is weaker and dumber!

    Posted by Max July 23, 08 12:43 PM
  1. Someone else pointed out that this is interesting for something that has been mentioned above.

    The Obama cover has no real basis in fact, other than the fist bump.

    The McCain "cover" has no real fabrications, other than, perhaps, the burning of the constitution.

    Posted by MBS July 23, 08 01:25 PM
  1. Instead of real issues the media has time to attempt humor that is over most peoples intelligence. southdakotagov.inof

    Posted by Jack Reacher July 23, 08 02:55 PM
  1. Shane-What will your guy do? Change? Change what? His record is NO record. 3 years in the Senate doing nothing. In the Illinois House, 130 present votes, the guy is an empty suit This Democrat is voting for John McCain.

    Posted by Ed July 23, 08 03:28 PM
  1. Both covers grind the same axes, support the same agenda, and shill for the same political party. I hope their common building burns to the ground.

    Posted by Leftists, Terrorists, and Partisan Media Shills for Obama July 24, 08 11:50 AM
  1. pathetic. affectionate rivalry? how about jealous sibling, bouncing up and down in the background screaming "look at me, look at meeee" while the sister gets attention.

    the fact that the initial attention was due to a groundbreaking-ly pathetic faux satire magazine cover certainly doesn't make this a very proud moment in either magazine's history.

    in both cases, it is simply about "look at me, look at meeeee..." type of attention getting, on par with the ridiculous attention getting graphics at the bottom of any 24 hours news service

    Posted by randf July 25, 08 01:01 AM
  1. I agree....with the very few people who have said this:

    -the Obama(s) cover...poked fun at clearly inaccurate, extreme and false assertions about them.

    -the McCain(s) cover....however deals much more in the realm of fact-- She was addicted to Pills...he is at the 'walker' age, he did have recent cancer cells removed from his head.

    John McCain would never ACTUALLY burn our great constitution..... but he has surely stood by - and even aided and abetted -- while George Bush, Cheney, Rummy, Perle, Wolfowitz, Gonzales and the rest of them figuratively burned it - - re: habeus corpus, the Abu Ghraib scandal, Pat Tillman, wiretapping (started By CLINTON) etc etc

    Posted by andre July 25, 08 03:30 PM
  1. ...the cover.. FUNNY

    ...the voters for McCain... Just plain SCARY!!

    Pay attention people, don't you think that after all we've been through as a nation, we really DON'T NEED McCain in office!?!

    I mean, really, Obama may not have a lot of experience, but you can assume that since he doesn't he'd be less likely to bend us all over the way the Bush administration has and presumable the way the McCain administration will!!

    Posted by NehemiahTeach1 July 26, 08 03:10 PM
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About political intelligence Field reports from Boston Globe reporters and editors covering the 2008 presidential campaign and the national maneuvering of Bay State politicians.

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