‘SNL’ debate spoof more popular than actual debate



It’s official, the vote is in.

The “SNL” season opener starring Kate McKinnon and Alec Baldwin on Saturday night was even more popular than the first presidential debate — on YouTube, at least.

On Wednesday, just three days after airing, the huuugely popular “SNL” spoof of the Lester Holt-helmed political slugfest drew 12.3 million views, topping the 11.3 million views of the real presidential debate at Hofstra University.

The TV audience for the start of the 42nd season of the comedy show was 8.3 million, up 2 million from the prior season’s opener.

The show’s hilarious spoof of the presidential debate is now one of the most-watched comedy clips of this election cycle.

But this season’s opener isn’t the only election-themed “SNL” clip to accumulate big numbers.

One “SNL” clip featuring comedian Larry David as Bernie Sanders during the first Democratic debate won 11.68 million views while “Hillary Bar Talk” — featuring the real Hillary Clinton playing a bartender to McKinnon’s Hillary — has garnered 5.6 million views to date.

The first presidential debate won the biggest TV audience since 1992, garnering some 80 million TV viewers.

The digital views are important since NBC, which airs “SNL,” reportedly splits ad revenue with YouTube. A typical media partner takes 55 percent.

Digital media expert Shelly Palmer said: “You can’t make it up — it’s a pretty substantial group of views in a short period of time. It tells me that we have a bunch of different audiences, and some brands have the power to transcend their original boundaries.” NBCUniversal declined comment.

http://nypost.com/2016/10/05/snls-de...actual-debate/