Mon, August 23, 2004
"...but have you read my book ON WEED?"—11:41 PM
In which we watch The Daily Show in case you're not a Vikings fan.
I admit, I always love The Daily Show. But tonight's piece on the ongoing Swift Boat Veterans for Truth controversy is an especially spectacular coordinated attack on so many of the weaknesses of the current state of journalism. Stewart and correspondent Rob Corddry hit it all, and manage to stay funny while doing it. Incisive, critical, brilliant television. Stewart's next gig shouldn't be taking Letterman's chair; he should be stepping in for Brokaw. How is it that nobody in the "serious" press is asking these questions?
It's all outstanding, but this is probably my very favorite exchange:
Stewart: You've seen [Kerry's military] records, haven't you? What's your opinion?
Corddry: I'm sorry, my opinion? I don't have "o-pin-i-ons." I'm a reporter, Jon. My job is to spend half the time repeating what one side says and half the time repeating the other. Little thing called "objectivity." You might want to look it up someday.
Stewart: Doesn't objectivity mean objectively weighing the evidence and calling out what's credible and what isn't credible?
Corddry: Well, well, well. Sounds like someone wants the media to act as a filter! [...] Listen, buddy. Not my job to stand between the people talking to me and the people listening to me.
The chilling thing is that there are huge portions of our so-called "press" who really believe in Corddry's "equal time" definition of objectivity. You can see it in how many news shows consider the debate of a particular issue complete if they have one person on from each side and let them holler until the commercial break.
Also, Drunken Stateside Sons of Privilege for Plausible Deniability is pure genius. Someone should name their band that.
Update: Enjoy this rebuke from the New York Times:
[A]nchors do not referee - they act as if their reportage is fair and accurate as long as they have two opposing spokesmen on any issue.
Golly, that's exactly what Corddry had to say! (Also in the article, CNN's footage of "[Sen. Bob] Dole complaining that it was hypocritical of Kerry, a former opponent of the war, to run now as a proud Vietnam veteran." What? This is just more of that "if you disagree with the Iraq war it means you hate our troops" hogwash – Kerry can legitimately feel like the Vietnam War was a bad idea and still be proud of the courage and leadership he displayed over there.)
Brandon — Tue, 8/24/04 12:51pm
Caught the rerun of it this morning - fanfreakintastic. So well done, and so bitterly on target. Sigh... and network news execs wonder why so many people prefer the Daily Show to the nightly news?
And Robert Smith - not a good appearance. Yikes. I liked him when he was with the Vikings, and I respect his decision to leave the game on his terms, but jesus, learn some tact, my man.
Bee Boy — Tue, 8/24/04 3:59pm
Yeah, Smith had some weird moments. I got the feeling that he had put a lot of pressure on himself to be funny because it's a funny show, so he was blurting out things without thinking them through first. I thought Stewart handled him deftly, though. Up until the dick joke at the end, when Jon just had to sigh and lower his head.
Brandon — Tue, 8/24/04 5:07pm
Regarding the whole Swift Boat thing, why is John McCain still going around campaigning with Bush? McCain has made his feelings clear about it, that he thinks it's a smear campaign (much like the one that was run against him in 2000) and he wants the Bush camp to denounce it, yet he continues to travel from stop to stop as their dancing puppet. All it would take is for him to tell them "I won't do any more campaign appearances until you denounce this Swift Boat stuff" and they'd be falling over themselves to make a statement to the press. They need McCain much more than he needs them. I just don't understand why he's not taking a stand.
Joe Mulder — Tue, 8/24/04 7:42pm
First of all, if this isn't enough of a denouncement for anybody, then, fuck 'em.
Second of all, I don't remember a whole lot of denouncing on the other side when "Farenheit 9/11" came out.
Third, and most importantly, SSHHHHH! Hey, Republicans: Kerry wants this whole election to be about who did what during Vietnam (and the mainstream media – most of whom are Democrats – are happy to oblige, just as they were happy to endorse the notion that it didn't matter a lick back when Clinton was running against war heroes)! If that's all it's about, Kerry wins, because he fought and Bush didn't! So shut up!
It's like: the Royals won the 1985 World Series. There may have been some questionable umpiring somewhere along the line, but, nobody really cares anymore. The Royals won. Kerry won three purple hearts and a bronze star, and that's pretty much where most people stop caring about it. Making up stuff about Cambodia on the floor of the United States Senate is another matter, yes, but, lay off the purple hearts. Bad tactics, guys. People don't want to hear it.
And the best reason for dropping it is, as I've always said: if anyone should get behind the idea that it really doesn't matter what you did when you were in your 20s and 30s, it's a George W. Bush supporter.
[let the record reflect that the typist made the "drinky-drinky" motion]