TVSquad

I was flamed when I made that very statement on this site. They're not news shows, though quite entertaining.

That being said, in light of our 'news' outlets, I can understand why some find it difficult to distinguish the two.

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I'd say its true that people get their news from these shows.
I live in Northern Ireland,
so I have zero knowledge of most Americian news stories,
and I think these shows are bloody hilarious.

You can pick up most of what is going on from the clips they show, from the hosts talking about the news,
and from common sense.

I'm sure I don't get all the info
but its good enough for me.

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People get their mainstream news from the internet and enhance it with the The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. The network news adds little if not nothing to the stories that people read on the internet.

I think that is pretty well understood by most people.

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I gotta agree with Anthony. I'm from Germany and almost nothing that is in TDS or The Colbert Report is being topic in our news. But by just watching these shows I - as sad as it is - am informed about U.S. politics and elections ;) Certainly not balanced, but I get the picture ;)

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I do get my news from Daily Show/Colbert Report. I don't watch the news on tv, so I have no idea what's happening in the world of politcs. Enter Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, who summarize it for me.

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Oh please. News is information about current events. The Daily Show does present news. They tell you what's happening and then they make a joke about it. I suspect the folks who get all their news from The Daily Show are not as well informed as those who read The Economist, but its better than watching cartoons.

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Funny you should mention cartoons. Daily Show/Colbert Report are basically caricatures or humorous interpretations of mainstream news shows.

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While Jon Stewart is very upfront about his show being "Fake News," it's true that he presents stories--albeit for comic effect--that are not always reported, in depth or at all, by traditional news outlets.

I remember 2 or 3 years ago, TDS broke the story about Halliburton being awarded a multi-billion dollar no-bid contract for the rebuilding of Iraq. Stephen Colbert did a correspondent's report on it, and he was very graphic about how nauseating a turn of events this was. The next day, I went online and found the only mention of the story was in a one-paragraph AP squib. By the end of the week it had got major play, but as far as I'm concerned TDS broke it.

And, brother--that's news.

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Frankly, I'd be pretty interested in seeing the breakdown of the political bend of people that get their "news" this way, via other sources. It certainly would explain a lot.

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I wonder if many times, they aren't just asking about news programs and people SAY Daily Show, because they don't watch any other news program on a daily basis. Personally, I get all my news from the Internet, where I don't have to worry about partisan voices or only hearing one side, because I can easily see a thorough examination of ALL sides in about 5 minutes. Some news programs are good, but the majority of them are awful. So while I don't consider the Daily Show to be actual news (it's newsiness), it's definitely the only "news" program I watch on a regular basis.

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Also, deanj, if you want to see the breakdown (for 2004, anyway), look here:
http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=200

Doesn't have Daily Show partisan viewers, but I'm sure they're mostly Democrats. Though I know Republicans who enjoy it as well.

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Forget about the news! What other popular entertainment shows feature so many serious books about politics and culture every week? The young people who are claiming to get their news from the Daily Show and Colbert Report seem to me to be unlikely to be learning about these books anywhere else. In between the laughs both Stewart and Colbert seem careful to let the authors state their basic theses, at least. If only five percent of their audience reads one or two of those books which they otherwise would not then The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are performint a service to our society beyond just comedy.

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It's kind of telling that in a short piece which purports to say that TDS is not news, Bob Sassone made the exact same mistake he's pointing out:

"...especially when they seem to be doing the work of the major news organizations."

"They actually cover stories that the nets don't, and in a way the nets don't."

And this is why so many young people say they get their news from these shows. Bob clearly meant this piece to say "These shows are entertainment" but even while trying to say it, he can't help but to legitimize the news aspect.

This is all part of why I believe that Stewart should be held to a higher standard than "Oops, it's just jokes, sorry." Colbert is clearly satire through and through. No confusing the boundaries there.

Jon is representing both his own political point of view and that of the staff (especially during interview segments), and a large part the show is *not* jokes. The old "It's just comedy" defense is wearing thinner and thinner every time he or anyone else tries to use it.

Own up to it. Admit you're doing biased news with a satirical spin, Jon. Of course when you finally admit it, you're going to lose half your material. Can't really make fun of Fox for their obvious biases if you're admitting to your own, eh?

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I agree with Brian Wiliams that people shouldn't get their election night news from Colbert or Stewart.
I also don't think that anyone should get their news coverage from any of the cable news networks either where supposed fiar journalism means you get a democrat a republican on your show and let them spout talking points that 9 times out of 10 contain falsehoods and mischaracterizations of the truth.

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malren:
Satire is inherently biased. You can't do satire if you don't take a particular position on the subject.

And if The Daily Show seems as much like news as actual news shows, that just underscores the serious flaws in news programs these days. No comedy show should be the only voice on the air pointing out the hypocrisy, thoughtlessness and outright lying that comprise so much of what passes for news shows these days.

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I get about 75% of my news from these two fine gentlemen, and get the rest off the internet. I do not watch network news, and I buy a Sunday paper mostly out of habit. The only things that I think I'm missing is idiotic comments from reporters, and that annoying thread along the bottom that has no relevance to what is being said at the newsdesk. The Daily Show and Colbert Report is informing me of events that I was previously unaware of; therefore they are providing news to me.

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What makes The Daily Show and The Colbert Report SUPERIOR to the "real" news is that Stewart and Colbert assume that the powers that be are trying to manipulate us. The "news" on the other hand is often a collaborator in that manipulation-- White House correspondents in effect act as spokesmen for the White House. Fox is the epitome of that collaboration. It is run by Roger Ailes, who previously was in charge of Republican campaigns.

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listen, people, most kids/teenagers in this country dont watch news, and thats bad, but lets face it, at least thier getting something. stephen on john have real news on this show, but unlike other news sources, people actually ENJOY watching it, so you can watch the boring ass news shows, just be happy people out there are watching the news, funny or not.

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