Jon Stewart Is Back to Weigh In
“I don’t think [the news media] has ever had a good handle on a political moment. It’s not designed for that. It’s designed for engagement.”
“I don’t think [the news media] has ever had a good handle on a political moment. It’s not designed for that. It’s designed for engagement.”
David Marchese New York Times Magazine Jun 2020 25min Permalink
A profile of the comedian who’s “not so funny anymore”:
Jon Stewart has made a career of avoiding "Whooo" humor. He has flattered the prejudices of his audience, but he has always been funny, and he has always made them laugh. At the Juan Williams taping, however, at least half of Stewart's jokes elicited the sound of Whooo! instead of the sound of laughter. He's been able to concentrate his comedy into a kind of shorthand — a pause, or a raised eyebrow, is often all that is necessary now — but a stranger not cued to laugh could be forgiven for not laughing, indeed for thinking that what was going on in front of him was not comedy at all but rather high-toned journalism with a sense of humor. Which might be how Jon Stewart wants it by now.
A profile of Jon Stewart, who’s now run The Daily Show for more than a decade.
Chris Smith New York Sep 2010 20min Permalink