Stephen Colbert

Fake News Frets About Jon Stewart’s Return

Posted by on January 7, 2008 at 1:00 pm. 1 Comments :

Daily Show

It is the “fake news” purveyors from the likes of Fox News that will be most impacted by tonight’s return of Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show and the Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert. It has been a rough two months while these programs were sidelined by the writer’s strike. But the drought is over and politicians and journalists who have had a free ride will be vulnerable once again to the truthiness of Stewart and Colbert. I have long asserted that The Daily Show is as least as reliable a resource for useful information on current affairs as any supposedly “real” news program (see The Real Fake News).

The Writer’s Guild remains on strike and the many people associated with it are undergoing severe hardship. I would have preferred that these programs returned with their writing staff as did David Letterman’s show, but the complexities of the industry are still presenting obstacles to that scenario. But I also believe that our country needs the insight and analysis that is unique to quality satire, especially in an election year when candidates and reporters are scurrying around like cockroaches in the dark. Now we will get to see what happens when someone switches the light on again.

To be sure, these programs may not return quite the same as when they left. They are much more script-driven than talk shows like Letterman and Leno. Even the breaking news segments covered by a lone host cannot reasonably be expected to be on par with the work of a dozen talented comedy writers. They may attempt to mitigate this handicap by relying more on interviews, but that presents its own set of problems as some potential guests may decline to cross picket lines to appear on the shows. And there will be picket lines.

Although the striking writers have said that their picketing is targeted more at the networks and studios than the program hosts, who have been supportive of the writers, there will be reluctance on the part of some to cross the lines. But we should not overlook another benefit of the return of these programs: the hosts will almost certainly comment on the strike in a manner that is favorable to the writers. In fact, Stewart’s guest tonight is Ronald Seeber, Cornell University professor and associate dean in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) and co-director of the ILR School’s Institute on Conflict Resolution. I don’t think he’s there to discuss the upcoming release of Rambo.

So let’s welcome back Jon and Stephen and wish them well. I, for one will be glued to the set, grateful that the establishment pretenders in the press and the political arena will be subjected to the scrutiny and ridicule they so richly deserve.

Oh…and screw the AMPTP! Support the WGA!

Update: Jon Stewart, as I predicted, delivered an inspired rant ridiculing the AMPTP. He also gave a touching tribute to his absent writers saying that the program “The” Daily Show with Jon Stewart, was the work of a talented team that included the writers. So for the duration of the strike, the program would be called “A” Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Nice touch, Jon.

For the record: David Letterman also offered a tribute to his writers, and those still on strike, when he returned to the air. Here’s a video of Late Show writer Bill Scheft slamming the AMPTP: A Message from the WGA

Celebrity Of The Year: Stephen Colbert

Posted by on December 21, 2007 at 12:40 am. 1 Comments :

Congratulations are in order for Stephen Colbert who the Associated Press has just voted Celebrity Of The Year. Colbert eeked out a well-deserved victory over J.K. Rowling and Al Gore. In his acceptance email he said:

“It is truly an honor to be named the Associated Press’ Celebrity of the Year. Best of all, this makes me the official front-runner for next year’s Drug-Fueled Downward Spiral of the year. P.S. Look for my baby bump this spring!”

Perhaps this will make up for his bitter loss to Barry Manilow at the last EMMY Awards. It’s too bad we won’t be able to see him blow his own horn due to the writer’s strike. However, on that front, there is also news. Comedy Central has announced that both The Daily Show and The Colbert Report will resume broadcasting January 7. A statement from the programs’ host reads…

“We would like to return to work with our writers. If we cannot, we would like to express our ambivalence, but without our writers we are unable to express something as nuanced as ambivalence.”

As I previously said, I truly believe that TDS/TCR are important contributors to our political discourse and that the nation suffers by their absence. Especially during an election season. So I am thrilled that they are coming back. I wish that they could come back with a contract, either through the Guild or independently. But it’s better to have them than not. And I would bet that their presence on air will support those on the picket lines. In fact, it may be the best thing for the writers to have Jon and Stephen pumping up their cause on national TV.

Movin’ on…

Daily Show/Colbert Viewers Most Informed – Fox, Not So Much

Posted by on April 16, 2007 at 10:29 pm. NO Comments :

The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press has published a new study that measures the public’s knowledge of national and international news. The results are not likely to surprise anyone but Fox viewers, who come in at the bottom of the list (they probably don’t know that there is a list – or what a list is). And, although I’m not surprised to see the Daily Show/Colbert Report place high on the list, it is a bit of a jolt to see them at the very top. It would not likely shock Stephen Colbert, and not just because he would have felt it in his gut. While still with the Daily Show he explained why their audience reportedly got much of their news from the comedy program.

“Stephen Colbert, a Daily Show correspondent, has said that he doesn’t believe that viewers learn anything from the show. He contends that, if they weren’t already knowledgeable about political and social affairs, they wouldn’t get the jokes.”

That, of course, is true, and may help to explain these new statistics.

Knowledge Levels By News Source:
News Source High Mod Low
Daily Show/Colbert Report 54 25 21
Major Newspaper websites 54 26 20
News Hour w/Jim Lehrer 53 19 28
O’Reilly Factor 51 32 17
National Public Radio 50 29 21
Rush Limbaugh 50 29 21
News magazines 48 27 25
TV News websites 44 33 23
Daily newspaper 43 31 26
CNN 41 30 29
Google, Yahoo, etc. 41 35 24
Network evening news 38 33 29
Online news blogs 37 26 37
Local TV news 35 33 32
Fox News 35 30 35
Network morning shows 34 36 30

These results confirm previous studies that showed Fox viewers as being, not only the least informed, but also more likely to hold beliefs about news that were demonstrably false. You might think that the quantity and frequency of these studies would have some effect on how the rest of the media deals with Fox. They are simply not to be taken seriously. And their viewers are not an audience that is open to diverse points of view. They are too focused on their fabrications of reality.

While I have not seen a study that confirms this, I don’t believe that Fox viewers are misinformed because of Fox. I believe that they self-select the news source that comports with their prejudices. Anyone who suggests that such an audience presents an opportunity for progressives to convey an alternate view is ignoring the deep-seated, built-in biases that attract an audience to Fox in the first place. Consequently, Democrats would have absolutely nothing to gain by appearing on a Fox-sponsored debate.

The study also makes some good points in support of the position that a decentralized and diverse media universe promotes greater knowledge. The study reports that…

“…people who use more news sources know more than those who use fewer sources.”

Some of this may seem obvious, but the Republican majority commissioners at the Federal Communications Commission still have to be convinced. They are presently conducting public hearings to determine whether media ownership caps should be loosened or repealed. This, despite the fact that numerous studies have agreed with the Pew Center’s conclusions. In October of 2006, the Benton Foundation released a set of studies that…

“…make clear that media consolidation does not create better, more local or more diverse media content. To the contrary, they strongly suggest that media ownership rules should be tightened not relaxed.”

And even the FCC’s own research concurred in a report that was buried, and ordered destroyed, by then FCC Chairman Michael Powell. [You can help persuade the FCC not to allow more consolidation by contacting them through the FreePress-sponsored StopBig Media campaign].

The importance of having varied and independent sources for news has never been clearer. The myopia of Fox and it’s audience is both frightening and depressing. If we ever hope to address the larger issues that face our country and our world, we will need an informed and energized citizenry. But the effect of corporate media megaliths works in diametric opposition to that goal. They are, in fact, producing a nation steeped in ignorance and division, and this study is just another nail in that coffin. Those of us who see through the veil must continue to fight for a truly free press, the keystone of democracy and the only path to true liberty.

The Pew Center has an online version of the survey that you can complete and compare your score with the rest of the survey group.

Fake FEMA Director To Appear On Fake News Show

Posted by on March 27, 2006 at 3:05 am. NO Comments :

Michael Brown, the former director of FEMA, will be the guest of Stephen Colbert on Tuesday, March 28. This is comedy at its finest because what could be funnier than a jovial romp with the man that let tens of thousands of hurricane victims suffer in a crumbling sports arena because he wanted to have dinner before the traffic got bad.

There is probably no better venue for Brown because we don’t have to worry about taking him seriously. Plus, he will be able to delight us with the sartorial magic that earned him renown as a fashion god.

It will be interesting to see if Colbert’s character warms up to him for his service in the administration of his hero, George W. Bush, or if he turns on him for not being an obedient scapegoat. Either way, Colbert’s star is rising and he is entering a peculiar world that doesn’t know exactly what to make of him. He is travelling into territory that Jon Stewart has surveyed before, but is he benefitting Stewart’s experience?

I would not want to see him be exploited by cynical politicos that think they can polish their cool by going a couple of rounds with him. While Stewart remains properly aloof from the Washington party circuit, Colbert may be getting a little too cozy. He will be the featured speaker at the White House correspondents’ dinner next month. Now, that’s not so bad, but he also appeared at a blogging symposium organized by Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA), the Vice Chairman of the House GOP Conference. The purpose of the symposium was to educate Republican members and staffers on the benefits of blogging. After appearing on The Colbert Report himself, Kingston showed a clip of the show at a retreat of House Republicans to persuade them to book their own appearances.

Right now, I think Colbert is mostly interested in getting through the first season and being picked up for another. But he needs to be mindful that, with success, come the parasites that seek only to feast off of his blood. If he allows himself and his show to be exploited by the very people it was designed to skewer, he will lose the appeal that makes the show successful in the first place.

DeadLines

Posted by on March 21, 2006 at 7:33 pm. NO Comments :

Jon Stewart has been selected to host the 65th annual Peabody Awards.
An appropriate choice since he is also the recipient of 2 of them.

Dan Rather touts Jon Stewart as Andy Rooney’s successor.
I hope he’s wrong. That seems to me to be a demotion. But it must be flattering.

Stephen Colbert will be writing a book based on his Colbert Report.
Says Stephen: “This book will have the same noble goal as my television show: to change the world one factual error at a time.”

The FCC says they are ready to fast-track more media consolidation.
Apparrently the media isn’t satisfied that can’t own TV stations and newspapers in the same market.

A.P. Correspondent Ousted From Job in Vermont
Christopher Graff, a 27 year veteran of the A.P. was fired for posting an article by Sen. Patrick Leahy. The article was contributed as part of Sunshine Week, a media event meant to combat government secrecy and bring attention to the public’s right to know.