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There's hardly a day that goes by that I don't watch a clip from Jon Stewart's Daily Show.
I began this habit years ago after listening to a lecture on The Daily Show's influence with Generation Y. Kathleen Hall Jamieson, who in my mind is the country's foremost expert on communication trends, had done a study showing that a rising percentage of young people get much of their news from Stewart's 30-minute parodies. The comedian's mix of news and comedy matched well with the post-Boomer generations' upbringing in a culture steeped in irony.
While all generations from the Boomers on have been weaned on television, the messages beamed into our living rooms every night were profoundly different. The Boomers had the Waltons and The Dick Van Dyke Show, weekly reinforcements of the American myth of goodness, charity and middle-class happiness and stability. The generations that followed mine were presented with Homer Simpson and Seinfeld, South Beach and now reality television---deeply ironic shows that refuse to bow to someone's vision of what our culture ought to be like and instead told us what it is.
None of this could have happened if we didn't also live in the Culture of Bullshit. We are so accustomed to being spun by politicians, lobbyists, news commentators and celebrities that the blurring of the truth is something we accept as normal. We're so weary of the lies that we don't really even hear them anymore.
My generation tuned into Walter Cronkite every evening, a man who would have submitted to the tortures of the rack before he would have expressed a personal opinion. So legendary was his commitment to journalistic neutrality that his one foray into personal expression---his famous commentary suggesting that the Vietnam War may not be winnable---is credited by historians with turning the middle-class against the war.
All of this brings me back to Jon Stewart, The Daily Show and Jamieson's keen insight.
Last night I watched Stewart's side-splitting comparison of the speeches delivered by Barack Obama and John McCain after Tuesday's Democratic primaries. I came to Stewart's clip after watching 24 hours of commentary on Fox News, CNN, MSNBC and CBS.
Of all the analysis on all the news programs, none nailed it as completely as The Daily Show. By tapping into the culture of Irony, where nothing is what it seems, Stewart has become the real truth teller. His show actually awakens from its slumber what we reporters once called our "bullshit meters," that intuitive sense that we all have when confronted with fakery. It's no wonder that Generation Y gets most of its news from Stewart.
In a world of spin, one comes to trust anyone---even a comedian---with the magical ability to pull back the veil.
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Good list, tho a bit US-centric. The world is full of unmitigated PR gaffes; Renault's F1 race fixing; UK PM Gordon Brow...
Comments (8)
"Is Jon Stewart the new Walter Cronkite?"
Only to idiots who confuse a satire with reporting the news...
Posted by Conwell | June 12, 2008 4:13 PM
Posted on June 12, 2008 16:13
To KJ:
Could you define "true" statements? I think that JS represents an era where truth is a process rather than a state - where finding truth(s) requires active participation and critical thinking rather than consuming a single source of information and opinion.
Debate on bias and truth aside, if there was someone telling the straight "truth" out there how would we find or identify them? The attitude that seeing is believing, and that what the anchor pronounces is "true" (which might have been safer with Cronkite) allowed for an era of manipulation by those who control that anchor. JS shows us why you can't believe anything you see and only half of what you read (half being a generous estimate.)
Teach a man to fish etc. etc.
Posted by MaeganT | June 11, 2008 10:35 AM
Posted on June 11, 2008 10:35
As a culture we've been carfully trained to accept the idea that politicians are going to lie to us. In fact, when they do tell the truth, often the media goes nuts on them, taking their words out of context and blowing the whole thing up into a huge scandal. Fortunately, our comedians are still given the leeway to tell it like it is. Viva la Jon Stewart and Al Frankin!
Posted by Elf | June 10, 2008 10:25 AM
Posted on June 10, 2008 10:25
K.J., if you can't stand the left,move out of Boulder!
Posted by David Murray | June 6, 2008 2:44 PM
Posted on June 6, 2008 14:44
Mark you "nailed it" (as Stewart would say). The Daily Show is my news of choice. Wouldn't have survived the 2004 elections without its Indecision!
Posted by SW | June 6, 2008 1:19 PM
Posted on June 6, 2008 13:19
Love Jon Stewart! However, Jon is still more skewed to the liberal point of view. Walter Cronkite truly kept journalism objective..reported the facts and made true statements. In today's media world it is all about opinions and facts are skewed towards those opinions. On CNN's political nighly panel there is one Republican (in the back row) and one Hillary supporter (also in the back row), all the rest were Obama supporters. All very bright and competent people but truly was that really fair and objective journalism with political coverage..I say no!
I think if we are going to a commentary/humor type news media..definitely entertaining..let's just get both sides of any issue..not just one.
Posted by K.J. McCorry | June 6, 2008 1:04 PM
Posted on June 6, 2008 13:04
Robin,
Many a truth is passed in jest...
It's a line that Stewart reconfirms nearly every broadcast. Stewart is unencumbered by the stiff-necked protocol of network and cable television. This freedom allows Stewart to riff openly about liars and hypocrites better than anyone in traditional media.
And, of course, technology is his ally, his assistant. Armed with a staff of crack video editors, Stewart's entire brand of content consists of showing the duplicity that runs wild in our political culture.
At the end of the posted video above, he brilliantly mocks Clinton for telling her supporters that pundits never believed she could win. First comes the self-pitying soundbite from Hillary, followed by a rapid-succession of quotes from every so-called political commentator in the nation proclaiming her invulnerability.
As outrageous as it seems, Stewart may be the most accurate man on television.
Posted by Mark Ragan | June 6, 2008 10:21 AM
Posted on June 6, 2008 10:21
Our family tapes the Daily Show every night and watches it the next evening with our 13-year-old son (we're too busy to catch it during the 7 p.m. repeat). Some might wonder that we allow our son to see it, as it can be quite racy, but for us it is not only an enjoyable family ritual but a stepping off point for some great family discussions on current events. My husband and I read the NY Times and listen to NPR; our son gets most of his news from Jon Stewart--and I'd say he knows a whole lot more about world events than I did at that age (back in 1970)!
Posted by Robin Hardman | June 6, 2008 9:31 AM
Posted on June 6, 2008 09:31