Comedian journalists and journalists are not the same thing. Just as how "The Daily Show" and "Last Week Tonight" are not actually news programs. The comedian, in general, looks to bring a certain point across to the typical news consumer by making it funny. This determines the line between what is considered news and what is considered comedy.
Despite this, from time to time a comedian may act as a better journalist than an actual journalist. There is a time when the comedian journalist needs to become serious. Usually if they are called out by a news station or celebrity for inaccuracies, the comedian journalist will go to the forefront to defend themselves. Because they are not technically real journalists, a comedian has the ability be loose with what they say. In turn, they are able to change a news channel for the better.
As the former host of "The Daily Show", John Stewart was one of the leading factors into the cancellation of the CNN program "Crossfire". The show consisted of co-host duo Paul Regala, from the political left, and Tucker Carlson, from the political right. The two would argue out a current political story. When Stewart was invited onto the show, Begala nor Tucker were ready for him to be serious. Expecting the “funny” Jon Stewart, Carlson seemed offended when Stewart calls them out for “hurting America.”
“I have privately, amongst my friends and also in occasional newspaper and television shows, mentioned this show as being bad…..I felt that wasn’t fair and I should come here and tell you that I don’t- it’s not so much that it’s bad, as it’s hurting America.”
The live studio crowd reacted with applause. Carlson, in an attempt to control his own show, started commenting about Stewart’s bias towards then Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry. In his response, Stewart is more serious than before.
“It is interesting to hear you talk about my responsibility. I didn’t realize that, and maybe this explains quite a bit, is that the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues in integrity…… You know, the interesting thing I have is, you have a responsibility to the public discourse, and you fail miserably”
Stewart is hinting at the point that on Comedy Central, it is okay to have “fake news stations” like The Daily Show, but on CNN it is so wrong. Neither Regala, nor Carlson is able to even combat with Stewart. Carlson asks him “Wait. I thought you were going to be funny. Come on, be funny.” Carlson goes on to ask “What is it like to go to dinner with you?” This is embarrassing for Carlson and Regala who are getting called out right in front of their eyes.
Stewart’s point was that Crossfire gave politicians the ammunition to discredit the media. It was a show that belong on Comedy Central, but was instead on a major news network. Soon after Stewart’s interview Crossfire was canceled. CNN President Jonathan Klein said that he agrees more with the “Jon Stewart camp.” Needless to say, without Stewart Crossfire may have gone on much and much longer. What it interesting is that Stewart, who is a comedian, is able to point out the differences between what is and what isn’t news worthy. Sometimes it takes a person like Jon Stewart to point out the fallacies that occur in shows like this. After the show ended, Tucker Carlson went on to have shows on both MSNBC and Fox News. He is currently a Fox News contributor and co-edits an online newspaper with Dick Chaney. Paul Ragala has mostly gone private since the ending of Crossfire. He backed both Clinton and Obama during the 2008 election.
In terms of comedic journalists, they can have some importance in determining what is and what is not news. Comedians like Stewart do sometimes report news in actuality, and not just for entertainment. However, it should remain in the public’s mind that these comedians do typically run a show on the grounds of entertaining before objectivity. When these moments like that of Stewart vs. Crossfire do come along, news consumers should listen to these comedians because often times they come with serious points, not jokes.
