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'Daily Show': the fair and balanced TV news
J. David McSwane
Issue date: 9/8/08 Section: Opinion
Typically, I decry any claims of a liberal bias in media, but with respect to Obama, the favoritism is undeniable. Maybe the failures of the Bush administration and the media's ineptitudes in holding it accountable warrant a little subjective coverage, but I longed for a more holistic and balanced perspective. So, I toggled between CNN and Fox news to end up somewhere in the middle of the 24-hour news continuum.
What I got was a hodgepodge of sickening disappointments in the media industry … until I turned to Comedy Central's hit, "The Daily Show." Somehow, the fake news show and the "Best Damn News Team" seem to be the only true example of fair and balanced coverage of the two conventions. They ask tougher questions, the important questions, and they call the bull. "The Colbert Report" does an excellent job, too.
Both the Democrats and the Republicans are targets on these shows, and no political crime goes unpunished -- something the real journalists haven't been very effective at in recent years. Now more than ever, Jon Stewart's and Stephen Colbert's immaturity and hardcore inquisitions seem to fill the gaps left by a scrambling, converging media. Journalists simply don't have the balls or the audience to do what they do, which is proven by the shows' multiple Peabody awards.
On these shows, the Republicans get the axe more often, I'm sure, but that's more likely a response to their disastrous presidential incumbency and general lack of a sense of humor.
As college students, we're in a unique position to question the status quo, what we're told to think and what we might believe. And believe me, the media, at times, has more influence to shape our perceptions than it should.
Seek a variety of sources for information. Comedy shows are more insightful than the real thing at times. And yes, Fox News is, at the very least, an entertaining avenue.
As this presidential election is sure to fire up, I'll be watching the explicitly fake news shows to counterbalance the implicitly fake news shows … or the real ones with too much time to fill.
J. David McSwane is a senior technical journalism major. His column appears Mondays in the Collegian. Letters and feedback can be sent to letters@collegian.com.
What I got was a hodgepodge of sickening disappointments in the media industry … until I turned to Comedy Central's hit, "The Daily Show." Somehow, the fake news show and the "Best Damn News Team" seem to be the only true example of fair and balanced coverage of the two conventions. They ask tougher questions, the important questions, and they call the bull. "The Colbert Report" does an excellent job, too.
Both the Democrats and the Republicans are targets on these shows, and no political crime goes unpunished -- something the real journalists haven't been very effective at in recent years. Now more than ever, Jon Stewart's and Stephen Colbert's immaturity and hardcore inquisitions seem to fill the gaps left by a scrambling, converging media. Journalists simply don't have the balls or the audience to do what they do, which is proven by the shows' multiple Peabody awards.
On these shows, the Republicans get the axe more often, I'm sure, but that's more likely a response to their disastrous presidential incumbency and general lack of a sense of humor.
As college students, we're in a unique position to question the status quo, what we're told to think and what we might believe. And believe me, the media, at times, has more influence to shape our perceptions than it should.
Seek a variety of sources for information. Comedy shows are more insightful than the real thing at times. And yes, Fox News is, at the very least, an entertaining avenue.
As this presidential election is sure to fire up, I'll be watching the explicitly fake news shows to counterbalance the implicitly fake news shows … or the real ones with too much time to fill.
J. David McSwane is a senior technical journalism major. His column appears Mondays in the Collegian. Letters and feedback can be sent to letters@collegian.com.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Craig Hawley
posted 9/08/08 @ 12:58 AM MST
We have already seen how McSwane handles the Status Quo. Not with wit and fairness but with a F bush.
So McSWane trying to say he wants balance in anything is ludicrous. (Continued…)
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