The depiction of Trump and associates engaging in homosexual relationships has understandably roused the ire of several LGBTQ+ commentators, with the frequent outcry that ‘being gay isn't a punchline’. Unlike Saltz’s (admittedly more reprehensible) tweet, The New York Times video is still easy to find.
In the episode, Trump’s ‘not-so-secret admiration for Vladimir Putin plays out in a teenager’s bedroom, where the fantasies of this forbidden romance come to life.’ Their tongues twist together as they ride on the back of unicorn Putin is stereotypically shirtless. The previous month, The New York Times published a satirical animation of pastel sketches, set to twee music and snippets of Trump speeches, titled ‘Trump and Putin: A Love Story’. Saltz later deleted the tweet and apologized ‘for sharing an image that many found offensive and homophobic.’ ‘Hey! What’s doing to King Turd,’ Saltz tweeted. In another, Hannity stands behind Trump, staring down with a tense grimace. In one, an advert for Fox News, host Sean Hannity kneels facing US president Donald Trump’s crotch (identifiable through his infamous red tie).
In July, Pulitzer Prize-winning art critic Jerry Saltz posted two images on Twitter, neither of which were explicitly profane, but both of which carried clear sexual undertones.
