The Stewart-Colbert Ticket

Normally we avoid posting about politics, but the potential of a new ticket seems worthy of comment, even if only to spread the news that John Stewart steadfastly maintains that he and Colbert are not running for office. In an Oct. 9th Associated Press article, Stewart is quoted as saying, " 'Nothing says "I am ashamed of . . . my government" more than "Stewart/Colbert '08." ' " [Students: on the off chance that any of you are actually reading this, please note the deft use of a quote within a quote within a quote in the previous citation.] The article goes on to quote Stewart as saying " 'There's no way you could get the news from us . . . . I've seen the show. It couldn't happen.' "

Actually, however, it turns out it can. According to a study done at Indiana University, the news on The Daily Show is "as substantive as network coverage." As the Huffington Post's media page Eat the Press puts it, "It may be a fake newscast, but the news it reports and comments upon night after night is all too real." In fact, CNN Entertainment reports in an article entitled "Daily Show viewers ace political quiz" that Daily Show viewers know more about election issues than people who regularly read newspapers or watch television news, according to the National Annenberg Election Survey" and they are better informed than viewers of Leno or Letterman. (Note: you can go to the CNN article and take the quiz yourself.)