SNL & American Culture

Since 1975, Saturday Night Live has served as a crucial barometer for American life and culture. Beyond its influence on comedy and indeed television writ large, SNL offers a crucial window into American politics, business, music, taste, and more. This course will survey the history of Saturday Night Live, using the show as a prism through which to understand the last fifty years of American life, exploring the program’s triumphs and failures, including: its reshaping of television comedy, engagement with American democracy, depictions of race and gender, intersections with Hollywood stardom, impact on the business of television, and engagement with the medium’s digital turn.



Will DiGravio is a Brooklyn-based critic and researcher, completing his PhD in the School for Cultural Analysis at the University of Amsterdam. His writing has appeared in publications including Time, Paste, and Cineaste, where he is an assistant editor.