Joshua Marx

"An All-New 'Cold Open' War: The Decline in Russian-American Relations During Vladimir Putin's Presidency"

Following the Cold War in 1991, which was filled with tension and threats of mutual annihilation, the US government and citizens hoped for a new alliance with Russia that could be mutually beneficial. Now, thirty years after the end of the Cold War, the US and Russia have returned to their old roles as adversaries and rivals on the world stage. Saturday Night Live (SNL), an American television comedy show running for nearly fifty years on NBC, has portrayed the change in relations through its depiction of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Through the jokes told in the sketches, Putin’s depiction is representative of Americans’ impressions of him as a ruthless leader who meddles in US affairs.

Twenty years ago, the US and Russia had close ties and a strong working relationship, whether improving each other’s economy or working together to solve global challenges like terrorism. The American people, too, did not despise Russia. In 2000, SNL created a sketch that had Presidents Bill Clinton and Vladimir Putin converse and engage in a cordial discussion. The writers of SNL seemed to indicate that their US audience did not have enough information to despise the new Russian president.

Over the next few years, though, American relations with Russia took a downturn. One cause for concern from the Russians was the continued post-Cold War existence of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), designed as a geopolitical mutual defense pact against the Soviet Union. NATO even grew to include some former Warsaw Pact members and Socialist republics under the USSR. Also, Putin learned that in order to maintain popularity, he needed to emphasize Russian nationalism and not cave to the West. In 2014, Russia invaded and annexed Crimea, which Ukraine, a US ally, had previously controlled. Later, Russia stepped up its cyber warfare and heavily influenced the 2016 US presidential election in hopes that political outsider Donald Trump would win. Through these actions, the Russian president created an enemy in the American people and contributed to the idea that Russians were influencing and spying on Americans.

By the 2010s, Saturday Night Live changed its portrayal of Putin to show how Russia is now an adversary of the US. Leading up to and following the 2016 election, Putin was shown on SNL as a sinister leader who spies on Americans and unnecessarily meddles in their affairs. For example, in an SNL sketch of the reality TV show Family Feud, Putin’s character is shown on Trump’s team and creepily states how he knows the contents of host Steve Harvey’s dreams. In other appearances on SNL, Putin is shown trying to manipulate Trump or threatening Russian citizens. As shown through the unofficial political barometer but informative satire of Saturday Night Live, the American people have lost much respect towards the Russian government due to President Vladimir Putin’s nationalistic but unjust actions to bring back Russia’s standing as a world power.