One of The Simpsons’ favorite satirical targets is the media. Since The Simpsons technically is a part of the media, the writers are able to add a self-referential edge to stories about it. In some cases, the show has gone full-on meta to critique the industry that keeps its lights on.
In almost every episode, the writers throw in a jab or two at Fox, the network whose airwaves they’re on, and the network brass has to let it fly because, without The Simpsons, they probably wouldn’t have a network. Some of The Simpsons’ episodes about the media rank among its best.
Homerazzi (Season 18, Episode 16)
When all the Simpson family’s photos are destroyed in a fire, Marge restages them all and accidentally captures a celebrity sex scandal. After making some quick cash from the tabloid media, Homer decides to become a full-time paparazzo.
J.K. Simmons guest-stars as a hilarious spoof of his J. Jonah Jameson character from the Spider-Man movies, while the celebrities’ revenge against Homer is a lot of fun.
The Computer Wore Menace Shoes (Season 12, Episode 6)
Long before the term “fake news” was widely known as a journalistic epidemic, Homer created a website to spread fake news in the season 12 episode “The Computer Wore Menace Shoes.”
The second act of the episode takes a hysterically surreal turn as Homer is abducted and sent to a mysterious island in the style of the cult sci-fi TV series The Prisoner.
The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show (Season 8, Episode 14)
The writers of The Simpsons love making self-referential episodes about TV production. In “The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show,” the producers of Itchy & Scratchy decide to spruce up the show with a third main character, a cool-as-ice dog named Poochie.
Homer is cast to provide Poochie’s voice and gets excited about playing a TV character. However, Poochie is roundly despised by Itchy & Scratchy fans and promptly removed from the show.
The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase (Season 8, Episode 24)
Matt Groening was a little apprehensive about “The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase,” because he feared that a meta commentary on bad sitcom writing would be misinterpreted as genuinely bad sitcom writing. Fortunately, fans were smart enough to get the joke.
The episode brilliantly mocks TV networks’ tendency to milk popular shows for as many spin-offs as they can by proposing three terrible ideas for Simpsons offshoots: Chief Wiggum, P.I.; The Love-matic Grampa; and The Simpson Family Smile-Time Variety Hour.
Radioactive Man (Season 7, Episode 2)
Milhouse learns about the pressures of being a child actor the hard way when he’s cast as Fallout Boy opposite Rainier Wolfcastle in a Radioactive Man movie that’s shooting in Springfield.
Satirizing the film industry is nothing new, but studying it through the eyes of a disillusioned child star offered a fresh take – and a poignant comment on the lives of young celebrities.
Behind The Laughter (Season 11, Episode 22)
The Simpsons wrapped up its 11th season with a parody of VH1’s Behind the Music that posits the show’s characters as actors playing themselves with lives of Hollywood celebrities outside their scripted existence.
This could’ve easily been a horribly gimmicky episode, but against all odds, it managed to be one of the series’ all-time strongest episodes.
Girly Edition (Season 9, Episode 21)
Bart and Lisa are hired to host a new kids’ news show in season 9’s “Girly Edition,” but when Bart proves to be a more charismatic newsman without Lisa’s knowhow and takes the spotlight from her, she instantly becomes jealous and vindictive.
There’s also a sly satirical commentary on the commercialism of news in the episode’s final moments, as Kidz News is replaced by The Mattel and Mars Bar Quick Energy Chocobot Hour.
Itchy & Scratchy & Marge (Season 2, Episode 9)
When Maggie hits Homer on the head with a mallet in season 2’s “Itchy & Scratchy & Marge,” Marge blames her proclivity for acts of violence on the excessive cartoon violence found in The Itchy & Scratchy Show.
She sets up an organization called Springfieldians for Nonviolence, Understanding, and Helping in the hopes of getting the show’s violence toned down, which leads to an incisive critique of TV censorship.
Bart Gets Famous (Season 5, Episode 12)
In the season 5 episode “Bart Gets Famous,” Krusty hires Bart to be his new assistant. When he accidentally destroys a set live on the air and says, “I didn’t do it,” he instantly becomes a huge star, just from that one catchphrase.
Bart tries to use his platform to discuss interesting topics on late-night talk show appearances, but finds that his fans aren’t interested in him as a person, just his catchphrase. It’s a biting commentary on fame’s fickle, fleeting nature.
Homer Badman (Season 6, Episode 9)
After Homer leering at a piece of candy is misconstrued as leering at the kids’ babysitter, he becomes the center of a media frenzy. The news immediately paints him as a sexual deviant, manipulating on-camera interviews to make him look like a pervert.
As his friends and family turn against him, he’s saved by Groundskeeper Willie, who secretly taped the interaction. However, Willie is promptly tarred as a voyeur, and Homer is predictably convinced by the media’s tone that the man who saved him is despicable.