It was a tad surreal seeing the final episode of The Colbert Report. I remember turning on Comedy Central the following Monday night at 11 pm, and when 11:30 rolled around, expecting to see Stephen Colbert at the desk, poking fun of anything from the president to Fox News to campaign ads to the entertainment world and everything in between. As the clock struck 11:30, I came to realize the show really was over and the next time I'd see Colbert in such a setting would be on CBS' The Late Show. It was then that reality struck me on the matter and I felt a certain degree of sadness that one of my biggest influences had called it quits on his show to strive for something even bigger and better. While Larry Wilmore has filled in quite well with The Nightly Show, I still miss Colbert's silly demeanor, crazy antics, and comedic wit. Then, just last night, Jon Stewart closed The Daily Show by telling viewers that this was going to be the last year for him on the show. To be perfectly honest, I'm less surprised by this move than by Colbert's, yet when he airs his last episode, I know it will be all the more saddening. While I've kind of noticed over the past year or so that Stewart may have lost a bit of the zest for late-night comedy, especially after taking a temporary break to direct a film overseas, he's the main reason why I started writing political satire, so while I can understand him wanting to leave the show after 17 years, like millions of other people, I'll be very sad to see him go. No matter who comes in to replace him at The Daily Show, it's not going to be the same, and without he or Stephen Colbert on late-night Comedy Central, the changes will feel surreal to many and will definitely take some time to fully get used to.
There have been times I've wondered if Jon Stewart truly knows how big he is when it comes to both comedy and news. He's attempted to walk a very fine line between the two. While polls have suggested he's one of the most trustworthy names in news, he has often laughed at this, saying, "These people do know I host a show on Comedy Central, right? I'm just a comedian..." However, in modern society, the two entities have become more blurred, to the point where many people often times can't discern between them and mistake entertainment for news and vice versa. This too is the case when it comes to facts and opinions. Since most "news" outlets have attempted to garner larger audiences by combining the news with entertainment (infotainment), a growing number of people have started mistaking opinions for fact and facts for opinions. Jon Stewart may very well have been the host of a show on Comedy Central and may have, first and foremost, been a comedian, however, from Monday through Thursday for 17 years, the man has consistently called out politicians and media outlets for their falsehoods. He technically wasn't a "news" reporter, however, the man reported on the lies and exaggerations uttered by members of Congress, members of the media, and beyond, and through these call-outs, himself made news. That's why he was so trusted. He wasn't a news anchor or a talking head whom reported stories and said to his viewers, "Look, you're just going to have to trust me."No, he showed video evidence of powerful individuals' tall tales, and said, "You don't have to trust me; trust this video footage."
Jon Stewart may be left-of-center and align more with the Democratic than the Republican Party, but the man was more progressive and idealist than he was affiliated with any political party. Regardless of the party or the partisan-lean, The Daily Show host tried to keep politicians and media outlets in line. His number one objective may have been to make people laugh, but his number two objective was to try and keep powerful people in line by reporting on their lies and misdeeds. He's called out both Republicans and Democrats, right- and left-leaning media outlets, even himself at times. The man may have been a comedian first and foremost, but as sad as it is to say, he was more honest and reliable than most every other "news" outlet or personality. Without him, less people would know about the extreme partisan bias of Fox News (and other media outlets), less people would know about the failings of President Bush, of President Obama's broken promises, of the crazy circus known as Congress, and of how much the Citizen's United ruling has damaged our "democracy," so much that it has begun to resemble an oligarchy.
For as modest as he'd like to be, Jon Stewart has been incredibly important to both the comedy and news worlds over the course of the past 17 years. He's the king of political satire and it will take quite the effort for anyone to ever strip that title away from him. I'll be incredibly sad to see him go, but for all of his hard work and effort, I also think he deserves a break, deserves to spend some time with his family, and deserves to relax from all the stresses of politics, war, and corruption. Having said all that, I'd just like to sincerely say, thanks, Jon; thanks for these past 17 years, for all of the laughs, and for at least trying to keep people in line and honest. Best of luck with all of your future endeavors. You'll be sorely missed. Cheers!
There have been times I've wondered if Jon Stewart truly knows how big he is when it comes to both comedy and news. He's attempted to walk a very fine line between the two. While polls have suggested he's one of the most trustworthy names in news, he has often laughed at this, saying, "These people do know I host a show on Comedy Central, right? I'm just a comedian..." However, in modern society, the two entities have become more blurred, to the point where many people often times can't discern between them and mistake entertainment for news and vice versa. This too is the case when it comes to facts and opinions. Since most "news" outlets have attempted to garner larger audiences by combining the news with entertainment (infotainment), a growing number of people have started mistaking opinions for fact and facts for opinions. Jon Stewart may very well have been the host of a show on Comedy Central and may have, first and foremost, been a comedian, however, from Monday through Thursday for 17 years, the man has consistently called out politicians and media outlets for their falsehoods. He technically wasn't a "news" reporter, however, the man reported on the lies and exaggerations uttered by members of Congress, members of the media, and beyond, and through these call-outs, himself made news. That's why he was so trusted. He wasn't a news anchor or a talking head whom reported stories and said to his viewers, "Look, you're just going to have to trust me."No, he showed video evidence of powerful individuals' tall tales, and said, "You don't have to trust me; trust this video footage."
Jon Stewart may be left-of-center and align more with the Democratic than the Republican Party, but the man was more progressive and idealist than he was affiliated with any political party. Regardless of the party or the partisan-lean, The Daily Show host tried to keep politicians and media outlets in line. His number one objective may have been to make people laugh, but his number two objective was to try and keep powerful people in line by reporting on their lies and misdeeds. He's called out both Republicans and Democrats, right- and left-leaning media outlets, even himself at times. The man may have been a comedian first and foremost, but as sad as it is to say, he was more honest and reliable than most every other "news" outlet or personality. Without him, less people would know about the extreme partisan bias of Fox News (and other media outlets), less people would know about the failings of President Bush, of President Obama's broken promises, of the crazy circus known as Congress, and of how much the Citizen's United ruling has damaged our "democracy," so much that it has begun to resemble an oligarchy.
For as modest as he'd like to be, Jon Stewart has been incredibly important to both the comedy and news worlds over the course of the past 17 years. He's the king of political satire and it will take quite the effort for anyone to ever strip that title away from him. I'll be incredibly sad to see him go, but for all of his hard work and effort, I also think he deserves a break, deserves to spend some time with his family, and deserves to relax from all the stresses of politics, war, and corruption. Having said all that, I'd just like to sincerely say, thanks, Jon; thanks for these past 17 years, for all of the laughs, and for at least trying to keep people in line and honest. Best of luck with all of your future endeavors. You'll be sorely missed. Cheers!
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