Some people obviously disagree (since satire that I consider to be smug are popular, and because satire does have a broader definition than what I'm saying), but satire works best when an outsider voice has a bit of earnestness and empathy as he punches up. Otherwise, it feels self-indulgent, insular, mean-spirited, or preachy.
He can interview the most self-stereotyping person, mock them mercilessly, and they'll have no idea because he's so earnest.
From Wikipedia on Sardonicism [1]:
To be sardonic is to be disdainfully or cynically humorous, or scornfully mocking.[1][2] A form of wit or humour, being sardonic often involves expressing an uncomfortable truth in a clever and not necessarily malicious way, often with a degree of skepticism
Gen-Z does seem to have a similar dark humor tinged with fatalism and irony. It just somehow works better for me. Perhaps it is mixed there with a kind of earnestness that characterized Millennials that helps to removes the smugness?