As the political scene is heating up leading to this year’s presidential election, so is the political comedy on TV. The latest issue of Print magazine offers up an informative and fun article on the making of fake political news spots featured in such popular shows as the The Colbert Report and The Daily Show.

Look Inside >> October 2008

And That’s The Way It Isn’t examines the landscape of political humor on TV and how design is playing a greater role in the genre. From the article:

The explosion of cable news has given The Daily Show, and its contemporaries at The Colbert Report and the Onion News Network, a richer graphics well from which to draw. The classic news desk parody, Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update, for example, isn’t particularly visual.

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Today, The Daily Show’s software arsenal is the same as any network’s: Vizrt for 3D modeling and adding graphics like the “bottom thirds” that display information and branding elements at the bottom of most newscasts; After Effects for animations and compositing; and Paintbox, a lunky Photoshop precursor–also used on the satirical entertainment show The Soup–that can create mock-ups and other 2D stills.

The article also shows a bunch of compelling examples of fake political news graphics, some of which are pretty hard to tell from the real thing. Click on the image above to go to a free preview of Print on Coverleaf.com.