Barack Obama has been more challenging to characterize from a comedic standpoint than McCain, according to JibJab CEO Gregg Spiridellis. Spiridellis spoke on a panel at the TimeWarner Politics 08 Summit last week about politics and comedy on the web. JibJab had the first online video political comedy hit way back in 2004 with “This Land” — a mash-up of George W. Bush and John Kerry. Spoofing the year’s contenders has not been easy, although JibJab has a pretty funny video featuring Bush, Cheney, Hillary, Bill, McCain and Obama.
Back in July, The New York Times television beat reporter Bill Carter wrote about how Obama has not provided good fodder for comedy writers. Seems that the nomination of Alaska governor Sarah Palin has changed the landscape, reports Ad Age’s Michael Learmonth.
Backed by top tier VC Polaris Ventures, JibJab is no joke. It has doubled its subscription membership base to two million in the past year for its personalized video product Starring You. “It’s going great, and we’re selling. I mean it’s really nice. We’re actually developing a nice subscription base with our audience,” Spiridellis says.
—Kelsey Blodget, Associate Producer
