Blazing Saddles is a somewhat somewhat modern example of satire. Did Mel spend time as a cowboy in a distant era? No. It's 100% fictionalized to play up the ridiculousness of racism.

Let's look at one more famous example. Gulliver's Travels was a satire about English political parties. Jonathan Swift was also mocking travelers tales, a popular literary subgenre at the time.

The typical, expected, and standard form of satire is fictionalized. That's why exaggeration is such an important part of it.

This is an important discussion because people might believe they're being lied to because they don't actually understand what satire is.

The Simpsons, South Park, and The Simpsons are all satire.