'Red Widow' Gets The Axe
'Grey's' Isn't Going Anywhere
The Daily Show's first 100 days under Obama
by Danny Gallagher, posted May 6th 2009 12:03PM
When Jon Stewart announced before a studio full of deafening cheers and Stephen Colbert's deafening silence that Barack Obama would become the 44th President of the United States, the show seemed to be in an interesting pickle. Could the show be just as funny as it had been under an administration that didn't blur the line between setups and punchlines? Could Stewart and friends find the funny in a president who inspires more love and fear in people than a teddy bear with a switchblade?
So let's grade The Daily Show's first 100 days under
The show started taking pot shots at some of its most deserving targets: media. Stewart and The Daily Show excel as a smarmy media watchdog, calling the press, particularly the cable news empires, on everything from over-simplifying complex issues to letting public relations and photo-ops run their assignments desks. Here, Stewart jabs a sharp spork in CNN's dull eye for covering the Obamas' move to D.C. with the fervent rabid excitement of a paparazzi photographer discovering Lindsey Lohan at Lilith Faire.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Change of Address | ||||
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Of course, no montage of media cynicism is complete without a few post-emptive strikes from the CNN of the Bizarro World, that is Fox News. Fox's merry band of hope succubi exhibited the kind of rampant fear that would make most paranoid speed freaks tell them to "calm the #*$& down." The Daily Show took just about everyone on the Rupert Murdoch network to task for attempting to spread "fearonayse" (from the makers of "oranage marmalaise") on everyone else's "hope sandwich".
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Fox News Fear Imbalance | ||||
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But what about the big man in the cushy Oval Office chair? Would The Daily Show get in a few jabs against their new Commander-in-Chief even though he had shared a chair in their studio on more than one occasion? Of course, he's the President. Anyone who thinks The Daily Show has a liberal bias or operates as a tool of the underground blue-state movement doesn't really watch the show at all. They take all authority to task for their actions, phoniness and pompousness, and they may not get everyone who has it coming in a 30 minute span, but those who do get a face full of fingers every time the show takes a swing at them.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| The Notorious AIG - Outrage | ||||
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Stewart put himself even deeper into the spotlight by taking on some of the more egregious issues with his own stances during the show's interview segments. His calm anger over issues such as Wall Street's indifference to the lower classes and the CIA's use of torture in interrogations pushed him over the edge and consequently his show into less funnier territory.
They were a welcome diversion from the usual blurred news filter that doesn't take the time to fully flesh out important stories before they are fully digested. But in the case of the debate with CNBC's Jim Cramer, who went right back to his financial sideshow sound effects and all, it didn't seem to accomplish much more than make Cramer look like he was sitting on a bicycle with no seat for 30 straight minutes. The show really shined when they took on the entire cycle of crystal ball gazing and exposed the consequences of their carelessness and self-centeredness.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| CNBC Financial Advice | ||||
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However, Stewart is just one cog in the show's complex machinery, and even if some interviews become debates, he and his guests are well-read and educated enough to have an intelligent conversation that doesn't turn into a screaming match. Yes, certain stories and episodes will illicit a certain raw anger that in these days of want and worry can turn white hot with rage, but those are rare. Humor always comes first, and it has shined this year both in scope and substance.
The Daily Show always is and will be a comedy show, and any attempts to find bias or unfair coverage is futile. So button up, sit down and watch the show. Frankly, you could use the laughs.
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