Listen to the article
After President Donald Trump’s name appeared on the Kennedy Center’s exterior and across its official branding this month, the matching domain names were already taken. The domain names trumpkennedycenter.org and trumpkennedycenter.com were purchased in August by Toby Morton, a comedy writer with credits including South Park and MADtv, and a long-running sideline in political satire and online provocation.
The twist is funny on its face, but it’s attached to a real fight. Critics argue the renaming conflicts with federal law, and a lawsuit is already underway.
Morton told The Washington Post he bought the domains after Trump “began gutting the Kennedy Center board earlier this year.” In other words, he watched the pieces move into place and grabbed the URL real estate before the rebrand hit the building.
“I thought, Yep, that name’s going on the building,” Morton said, according to the Post. “The rest followed on schedule.”
It reads like a clever scoop, a comedian beating a major institution to the punch online. But Morton wasn’t making a one-time bet. The Kennedy Center domains fit a pattern for the comedian, as he’s been buying politically “tempting” domain names for years and building parody sites that mimic official pages to make his point and make the punchline hit.
Who Is Toby Morton?
Morton’s entertainment background is legit and specific. He worked on South Park in the early 2000s and later wrote for MADtv. But in recent years, he’s applied the same comedic instincts to something closer to digital street theater, using the mechanics of the web to lampoon politicians, movements, and the language of modern campaigns.
His approach is simple by design. He buys domain names that sound plausible and timely, then builds official-looking sites that reveal themselves as satire once the viewer takes a deeper look. It’s a parody built to travel the same routes as political messaging: search results, social shares, and the natural curiosity of people who think they’re about to land on something “real.”
In a December 2023 Instagram post, Morton described the scope of that operation in blunt numbers: he said he’d purchased over 100 domains for “past and future use,” and built more than 50 websites in four years as part of what he called an anti-fascist project. He characterized the work:
“just me and my laptop,” and thanked donors who, he said, helped fund ads and billboards to push the projects beyond his own social media orbit.
In that same post, Morton tied his efforts to specific targets and campaigns, including opposition to Moms for Liberty, a conservative group at the center of recent book-challenge fights and education battles nationwide. He also teased future projects aimed at Republican politicians.
Seen in that context, the Kennedy Center domains aren’t just a clever opportunistic grab. They’re another entry in a practiced playbook: watch the political weather, reserve the online address, and wait for reality to step onto the stage.
The Fake MAGA Dating Site
Morton has also suggested that his satire reveals something darker beneath the surface of today’s political extremes.
In another Instagram post, he described launching a fake “MAGA dating website” primarily out of curiosity, expecting low-stakes comedy: clumsy taglines, awkward selfies, the usual ideological flirting. Instead, he wrote that he received “truly unhinged responses” from people seeking more than companionship.
Some visitors, Morton said, treated the site like a political recruitment portal, asking about a “running mate” and sounding less like prospective dates than would-be co-conspirators. Morton teased he would share more of what he learned, ending with a warning that felt half comedic, half sincere: “Buckle up.”
It’s the kind of detail that explains why his work lands the way it does. The joke isn’t only the site itself, but also how quickly people treat anything that looks official as a rally point.
The Legal Fight Over the Name
Morton’s domain purchases landed in the middle of a much larger dispute over what the Kennedy Center is allowed to call itself, and who has the authority to decide.
The Trump-appointed board announced that Trump’s name would be added to the institution’s title, and workers later installed new exterior lettering on the building in Washington. Critics and legal experts have argued that the move conflicts with a 1964 law that established the venue as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) has filed a lawsuit seeking to block the change.
The fallout hasn’t stayed in court filings. The dispute has already produced cultural ripples. The American College Theatre Festival ended its long-running relationship with the Kennedy Center, and a jazz musician reportedly canceled a Christmas Eve performance that had become a decades-long tradition.
This is what happens when a national cultural symbol gets pulled into a branding war: the arguments become legal, political, and personal all at once.
What Happens Next
As of now, Morton hasn’t launched anything on trumpkennedycenter.org or trumpkennedycenter.com. He has said publicly that when he does, the sites will “reflect the absurdity of the moment” and include “surprises.” He’s also acknowledged the problem familiar to anyone trying to satirize American politics lately: reality moves fast, and sometimes it’s already so exaggerated that parody struggles to keep up.
Morton also appears to be enjoying a rare shift in the usual internet feedback loop. After the story hit mainstream coverage, he posted that he’s used to hate comments, and the supportive response has felt different. In a Threads post, Morton wrote:
“I’m so used to hate comments that these from the Washington Post article feel downright refreshing. Also, a few longtime heroes of mine are quietly on board now, which helps. PRO TIP: Maybe don’t mess with an institution like The Kennedy Center? The support is growing. Watch this space.”
But the mechanics here are simple. Domain names are small, cheap levers that can pull on big institutions. A lawsuit can take months. Public outrage can burn hot and fade. A sign can be installed in an afternoon. For now, the Kennedy Center can change its signage, but a satirist still controls the “Trump Kennedy Center” domain names.
Morton has proven the point that a domain name, once bought, sits waiting like a trapdoor.
Story Continues
Read the full article here
13 Comments
Morton’s approach to satire is simple yet effective, using the mechanics of the web to lampoon politicians and movements, and his use of domain names that sound plausible and timely is a clever tactic.
Morton’s background in entertainment and his experience working on shows like South Park and MADtv have clearly influenced his approach to satire, and his ability to use humor to make a point is a valuable skill in today’s political climate.
The article mentions that Morton’s work is not just about the Kennedy Center domains, but part of a larger pattern of buying politically tempting domain names and building parody sites, which raises questions about the role of satire in politics and its effectiveness.
The fact that Morton has been able to use his skills to make a difference and bring attention to important issues, such as opposition to Moms for Liberty, is a testament to the power of satire and the impact one person can have.
I’m concerned about the potential consequences of Morton’s actions, and whether they could be seen as cyber squatting or trademark infringement, and how this could impact his future projects and reputation.
I’m curious to know more about the lawsuit that’s already underway regarding the renaming of the Kennedy Center, and how it conflicts with federal law, as mentioned in the article.
The lawsuit is likely to be a long and complex process, but it will be interesting to see how it plays out and what implications it will have for the Kennedy Center and its branding.
Toby Morton’s purchase of the trumpkennedycenter.org and trumpkennedycenter.com domain names in August was a clever move, especially considering he bought them after Trump began gutting the Kennedy Center board earlier this year.
It’s interesting to note that Morton has been doing this for years, buying over 100 domains for past and future use, and building more than 50 websites in four years as part of his anti-fascist project.
The fact that Morton has purchased over 100 domains for past and future use and built more than 50 websites in four years is a testament to his dedication to his anti-fascist project, and his willingness to use his skills for a cause he believes in.
I’m skeptical about the impact of Morton’s satire on the general public, and whether it will actually change anyone’s opinions or behaviors, but it’s certainly an interesting approach to try and make a point.
The fact that Morton has worked on South Park and MADtv and is now using his comedic instincts for digital street theater is a unique approach to satire, and his ability to make official-looking sites that reveal themselves as satire is impressive.
Morton’s use of social media to promote his projects and tease future targets, such as Republican politicians, is a savvy move, and his ability to get his message out to a wider audience is impressive.