Gawker: Jon Stewart

A Definitive Guide To Cable Feuds

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 16:17:57 EDT

Cable news is a hyper-competitive environment full of huge egos fighting with each other for every scrap of a ratings point. And at this time of year, with all the shouting heads descending upon the political convention like a gang of ferrets into a small sack, conflict is inevitable. Plus it's hot, and there's not too much real news anyhow, so everyone is grumpy. After the jump, an illustrated guide to the most vicious feuds in the cable world. Pick your side, demonize your enemies, and play along:

Bill O'Reilly vs. Keith Olbermann
Summary: Possibly the most active ongoing feud in all of cabledom. Cartoon versions of "left" and "right" personified.
O'Reilly's Position: Olbermann is a lying left-wing jerk. The New York Post agrees!
Olbermann's Position: O'Reilly is really the Worst Person In the World. Really, he means it this time.
Winner: Push.

Joe Scarborough vs. Rest of MSNBC
Summary: Repub placed on Dem network, odd couple antics ensue!
Scarborough's Position: Irresponsible liberals who shall remain nameless are giving this network a bad name. And I gets no respect around here!
Rest of MSNBC's Position: Joe Scarborough may be cute, but he's sitting in my chair.
Winner: Rest of MSNBC bound to triumph by sheer force of numbers.

Fox News vs. Jon Stewart
Summary: Fox stands for everything that Stewart opposes, but the target is so obvious that he must parcel out his vitriol with care.
Fox News' Position: Mainstream Americans don't care about Jon Stewart any more.
Jon Stewart's Position: Fox News is "the biggest 'fuck you' to people with brains that I've ever seen in my life."
Winner: Stewart, on the merits; Fox News, on overall influence.

Jon Stewart vs. Crossfire
Summary: The classic moment that put the cable world on notice: Jon Stewart will ass rape you on live TV.
Jon Stewart's Position: Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala are a pair of bullshit-spewing hacks who are a threat to our very republic. I will expound upon this as a guest on their show, to a brave and uncomfortable extent.
Crossfire's Position: Ha, you're just joking, right Jon? Jon?
Winner: Stewart. Duh.

Jon Stewart Vs. Fox News: Media Fighting Fair

Hamilton Nolan — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 10:20:50 EDT

It has been months now since Fox News' PR machine issued one of its trademark slams of a critic, and we, for one, are happy that they have come off their summer vacations and gone back to work. The target this time: Jon Stewart, darling funnyman of the liberal elite. Surprise! The best part about this new spat: the person who comes off looking worst of all is not Stewart, nor Fox's flack, but rather the Washington Post's vacuous conventional media wisdom purveyor Howie Kurtz. A fight to admire, and a symptom of increased media fragmentation and public alienation! A full recap:

The Democratic convention is such a news-bereft wasteland that Stewart was apparently giving a press conference, consisting of him riffing to a roomful of eager reporters. During the course of this, he said that Fox News' "Fair and Balanced" slogan is "the biggest 'fuck you' to people with brains that I've ever seen in my life" and that Chris Wallace is the network's only legit anchor, and that Fox is biased against Obama.

Stop the fucking presses, right? But Howie Kurtz, trooper that he is, put in a call to Fox, and came back with this paragraph for his story:

A Fox News spokesman replied that "Jon's clearly out of touch," citing a Pew study showing the network has the most balanced audience in cable news, 39 percent Repubicans and 33 percent Democrats. "But being out of touch with mainstream America is nothing new to Jon as evidenced by the crash and burn ratings of this year's Oscars telecast."

And we must say, this is completely fair play by Fox! Stewart attacked them professionally; they responded by attacking him professionally; both parties get their say, and the affair doesn't get too dirty. Stewart is perfectly willing and able to respond to Fox's slams, unlike the beat reporters they've gone after in the past. And for connoisseurs of Fox PR's historic public attacks on various media characters, the statement is a beauty—it follows the trademark Fox formula, sliding in an attack on the messenger with a smile.

The asshole here is Kurtz himself, who, as Romenesko pointed out, ran an anonymous attack quote from Fox, in direct violation of the Post's own rules on anonymous quotes.

Funny, though: Stewart actually complimented Fox. Perhaps when they responded, they didn't get this full quote?

"I think Fox does the best job because probably because they have an idea what they're doing. Because they have an editorial perspective, they're able to focus it more. So it's more cohesive and it makes more sense you understand what they're doing. They're putting it through a filter."

Everyone is fighting with each other! The idea that the media is able to stand apart from a larger group called the "audience" and do its job is collapsing. Fox is a media outlet, Stewart is a media guy, and both are sniping at each other—becoming the story themselves—rather than speaking to their own audiences directly (not that we mind, in this case). Even worse, the audience of regular people who are supposed to be the media's consumers have now decided that they are the media itself. As David Carr writes from the convention:

Each time there was a reporting stop — at a small McCain counterdemonstration, a Hillary counterdemonstration, or in the bloggers’ tent — the people formerly known as the audience refused to behave like one. They brandished video cams, iPhones and recorders, doing their own documentation of what was under way.

Somebody has to be the audience. Soon, like slam poetry night at a cafe full of nothing but slam poets, we'll all stop listening because we're too busy waiting our turn to talk.

'Times' Shock: Everyone Still Getting Their News From The Daily Show

Moe — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:10:02 EDT

Did you read Sunday's Times piece about how people are getting their news from Jon Stewart these days? Because I sure as heck didn't! I don't need the Times to tell me to stop reading the Times and turn on my cable box — mainly because I was pretty sure I had read that same exact story in the Times before. But this morning, as the story was still carrying the top of the "Most Emailed List," I decided to go find that old Times story I remembered. Well, it wasn't easy. There are 102 stories listed in "Past coverage" of Jon Stewart (the original Michael Phelps!), about nine of which employ the phrase "get their news from." And yet I could not for the life of me find the one I remembered actually reading. Turns out it is because, like the former "young people" who started this whole "getting news from the Daily Show" trend, I am now very very very old…

Because they've been doing this story since September 2000.

Alexis Boehmler is a junior studying English at Davidson College. At 20, she is bright and well versed, with strong views on the abortion issue and other political matters. Occasionally, friends tease her about her passion for literature; she recalls with some embarrassment speaking in class once about Don DeLillo's novel "White Noise" and being moved nearly to tears. Her opinions do not betray a hint of apathy or intellectual lethargy, and she has every intention of voting in November. And her primary news source — often, her only news source — is "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart," a parody.

Just to make sure the story still holds up, we put a call into Alexis, who now works at BOMB Magazine. Turns out she still gets her news from the Daily Show. "Maybe because he covers a variety of topics and personalities, as opposed to the same thing over and over," she said.

Is Jon Stewart The Most Trusted Man In America? [NYT]
Much, much earlier: The Stiff Guy Vs. The Dumb Guy [NYT]
Related: Colbert, Stewart Viewers More Well-Informed Than Those Watching O'Reilly, Dobbs [ThinkProgress]
Which also isn't exactly news: Daily Show Viewers Smarter Than O'Reilly Viewers [BoingBoing, 2004]

Jon Stewart v. Fox News

Nick Denton — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 10:39:45 EDT

Jon Stewart's jovial yelling and trademark expressions (the Dr. Evil finger-to-mouth is particularly dated) are becoming increasingly tiresome. But Comedy Central's Daily Show does occasionally still perform a useful civic function. Last night, for instance, Stewart skewered Fox News and other cable networks for their delightedly reluctant airing of internet rumors about Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee. The Daily Show's writers came up with an amusingly silly definition of Baracknophobia: "The sickness manifests itself as rumor, most often in the form of the only email your grandmother has ever successfully been able to forward." But look out for an admirable dissection of Michelle Malkin's moronic claim that Obama plagiarized an old speech by Mario Cuomo. After the jump, last night's broadcast. Watch from about minute 5:00.

Steven Colbert And Jon Stewart In High-Definition Web Video

Nick Denton — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 10:21:51 EDT

Good news for fans of Comedy Central's late-night pseudo-pundits: The Daily Show and The Colbert Report are back on the web. The two shows were removed from Google's Youtube when the cable network's owner declared war on the video repository; but now the Viacom-owned shows have reappeared on a management-approved site, Hulu. After the jump, last night's Colbert Report.

John McCain Has Heard of 'The Office'

Pareene — Thu, 08 May 2008 13:01:39 EDT

John McCain's primary qualifications for the presidency are that he's old, he was tortured, and he's been a corrupt Senator for hundreds of years. Also he'd like you to know that he has a sense of humor, which is why he's The Daily Show's most-invited guest ever. On the show last night, McCain once again demonstrated how "hip" and "with it" he is by naming a character on a popular sitcom. One that is currently on-air, even! Not, like, Maynard G. Krebs or something. Jon Stewart desperately tried to get him to appear more presidential by making a joke he knew McCain wouldn't play along with.

Tina Fey Sez Jon Stewart's Not Funny!

Pareene — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:38:21 EDT

Tina Fey "RIPS" Jon Stewart! Where "rips" means "makes a mild joke at the expense of his show." Fey told Reader's Digest (ha! wait, really?) that laughter is preferable to applause, in comedy. Breaking! "You can prompt applause with a sign. ... My friend Seth Meyers coined the term 'clapter,' which is when you do a political joke and people go, 'Woo-hoo.' It means they sort of approve but didn't really like it that much. You hear a lot of that on [whispers] 'The Daily Show.' " You know, she's 100% right, if depressingly, completely un-self-aware. [NYP]

Daily Show Finally Unloads On Spitzer

Ryan Tate — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 23:07:41 EDT

The late-breaking news about now former Gov. Eliot Spitzer's sex scandal caught the Daily Show and some of its late-night compatriots short of jokes, and Daily Show host Jon Stewart admitted as much on Monday night's show, when he had to cut from a few brief Spitzer jokes to a package on Wyoming's Democratic primary. One night later, the political comedy show was ready to feast on the news, as shown in the thumbnail at left. The result lacked the impressive same-day turnaround of David Letterman's Monday night performance, but had its moments, as show in the excerpt after the jump.

Longer video: Comedy Central

Related: Colbert on Spitzer

Another Way Vanity Fair Could Respect Writers

Nick Denton — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:39:41 EST

"'Course, there's still obviously some collateral damage leftover from the strike — emotionally, economically, perhaps worst of all, the cancellation of the legendary Vanity Fair Oscar party. They said they did it out of, quote, respect for the writers. And um, oh! You know another way they could show respect for the writers? Uh, maybe one day invite some of them to the Vanity Fair Oscar party. They would enjoy it. They won't mingle, don't worry." [Jon Stewart, host of last night's Academy Awards telecast, ribs the Conde Nast magazine's notoriously snobby party planners, via Mixed Media]

Jon Stewart Won't Let Letterman's Romney Joke Die

Ryan Tate — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 22:11:33 EST

David Letterman developed an awesome cottage industry repeatedly tweaking his "Mitt Romney looks like..." joke before the animatronic, amazingly lifelike demagogue dropped out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination earlier this month. But Jon Stewart just won't let the gag die. Speaking to Larry King tonight, Stewart worked in two digs about Romney, one of which actually began with the words "he looks like..." Letterman's ownership of the meme is so complete Stewart will probably have to cut a royalty check tomorrow morning, but it will be so worth it:

A Daily Show With Jon Stewart Returns

Joshua Stein — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 04:08:31 EST

Comedy Central's Daily Show followed in the footsteps of the other late night show hosts and returned on air last night despite the absence of its writers. Just as we thought, Jon Stewart's humor is mostly unaffected since the majority of it consists of making kind of funny "Jewy" noises and knitting his brow. In a nice touch he insisted on substituting an indefinite article for the definite one in his show's title. Watch video here.

Late-Night Scabs Fold!

Maggie — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 10:00:28 EST

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, both members of the striking Writers Guild, will go back on the air January 7. In a statement yesterday, Comedy Central said they were still hoping for a "swift resolution to the current stalemate that will enable the shows to be complete again." The implication is that Stewart and Colbert are reluctant to go back to work—so why the hell are they? Other late-night hosts like David Letterman, Jimmy Kimmel and Carson Daly (okay, in his case, "late-night host"), are also heading back to the airwaves. [NYTimes]

Ben Karlin, who was an executive producer ...

Choire — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:49:13 EDT

Ben Karlin, who was an executive producer and head "Daily Show" writer for eight years, comes out to talk about how jealous "mainstream" journalists are about the Jon Stewart show. "They would always come up to us, everyone without fail would say, and especially like the big on-camera people, would come up to us and say 'God I wish I could do what you do.' Really? Do it! You have a camera, you have a microphone, you have a television show.... It was a prison of their own construction." [Huffington Post]

It seems Howard ("waiting for Drudge to post ...

Maggie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 17:22:28 EDT

It seems Howard ("waiting for Drudge to post more about his new book") Kurtz might have every idea that Jon Stewart hates him! According to Gawker commenter sumgiushoodno, who attended the taping of last night's Daily Show, the last ten minutes of the interview, when Kurtz and Stewart really had their claws out, were cut in editing! Transcripts anyone?

Howard Kurtz Has No Idea Jon Stewart Hates Him

Maggie — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 14:47:38 EDT

The most engaging part of Howard Kurtz's appearance on The Daily Show last night was Jon Stewart's introduction of the Washington Post media critic: "My guest tonight, Howard Kurtz, known of course... as the inventor of the curtsy." Heh. Kurtz was on the show promoting his new book about the protracted and bloody conflict that has occupied the hearts and minds of the American people for the last four years: The deadly battle for network news ratings. He made his first mistake by saying, without a hint of the irony required to survive on-camera with Stewart, "Well, you've heard of Katie, Brian and Charlie." Stewart, we think, thought Kurtz was a Big Three suck-up whose book didn't so much analyze the networks as adulate them. You can see Kurtz reinforce that impression in this clip, where he extols the bravery, the responsibility, dammit, the independent thinkers, of network news journalists. Stewart, for his part, dealt Kurtz his special brand of passive-aggressive napalm by calling his book "interesting." Twice.

As part of its defense of Viacom's billion ...

abalk — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 18:10:12 EDT

As part of its defense of Viacom's billion dollar lawsuit against it, YouTube wants Viacom employees Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert to testify. Also "that guy who says 'git 'er done' all the time, what's his name? He's so funny!" [CNet]

Jeff Zucker meets with Jon Stewart in case ...

abalk — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 11:40:22 EDT

Jeff Zucker meets with Jon Stewart in case NBC sticks with Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien bolts the network, possibly to replace David Letterman or Jimmy Kimmel. Got it? [B&C]

Angelina Jolie Had Children Out Of Wedlock

abalk — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 16:10:27 EDT

Angelina Jolie went on The Daily Show last night to talk about her new movie, A Mighty Heart. Jolie addressed the recent exclusion of Fox News from her - yeah, you know what, we don't care either! We just want to know how many more lucky tykes from the Third World are going to join the crew. Host Jon Stewart obliges by asking the question, but chooses a rather unfortunate term to describe her brood. Memo to Brad Pitt: We know you're "waiting for the gays" before you put a ring on that finger, but sack up: They're talking about your kids.

Revelation! 'Daily Show' Crowd Smug, Knee-Jerk

Choire — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 15:08:14 EST

Radar interviews former Daily Show correspondent Rob Corddry, and obtains an exclusive and shocking tidbit. That show's audience is composed of "college kids and NPR listeners" who "just applaud at every reference to some right-wing guest being taken down. Or anything slightly to the left of center." This surprises us, as our favorite thing about the show has always been the seemingly complete political and lifestyle homogeneity of its in-studio cacklers. But apparently the show's host, a guy named Jon Stewart, doesn't feel the same way we do, according to Corddry: "Jon absolutely hates it when people will just applaud at anything remotely liberal. It's a knee-jerk audience. It's so easy."

The Blunder Years [Radar]

Media Bubble: Y'All Hear About This 'Radar' Mag?

abalk2 — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 08:34:16 EST

Maer Roshan, the "battle-scarred veteran" of the "buzz-intensive media hothouses" that are New York and L.A. is back, and this time "the buzz seems to be moving back in his favor." That picture can't hurt. [WSJ]

Post says: "The Tribune Co. board of directors is considering an offer from real-estate magnate Sam Zell to take the company private..." [NYP]

Post also says: "Tribune Co.'s board will stick with plans for a "self-help" restructuring deal despite the 11th-hour offer from Chicago real-estate guru Sam Zell..." [NYP]

David Carr: The David Geffens and Ron Burkles of the world have no business choosing the next president; that's the job of newspaper editorial boards. [NYT]

Financial Times doing good numbers, at least. [Guardian]

Is Dominick Dunne out at Vanity Fair? We have no clue; we didn't know he was still in the Above Ground club. [WWD]

Tough times for teen mags bring books to the web. Seventeen's Ann Shoket: "Every page will have a nonprint component." [Mediaweek]

Newspapers' big problem: the decline in single-copy sales. [E&P]

Meet AdAge editor Jonah Bloom. [Independent]

Will Tila Tequila's MySpace success translate into song sales? If this means nothing to you, ask your kids. [NYT]

Rodale buys main running mag competitor. [NYP]

Andrew Cuomo: Likes to keep the public informed. [NYM]

Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert help move books. [NYT]

London is almost as infested with culture e-zines as New York. [Guardian, second item]

Bob Woodward: Godfather of celebrity journalism. Does anyone remember how much crap he got for Wired, or is it just us? [MarketWatch]

Vacationing Simon Dumenco better watch his ass: Fill-in columnist Nat Ives is good. [AdAge]

Media Bubble: It's The Papers That Got Small

abalk2 — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 09:02:34 EST

The secret to Headline News' success? Bloviators, and plenty of 'em. [NYT]

Meredith Viera is doing just fine on Today, thanks. [NYDN]

Departing Daily Show/Colbert producer Ben Karlin's exit could not be more amicable. Really. He and Jon Stewart are still totally trading one-liners and stuff. [NYT]

Speaking of Colbert, he's the I Want Media Media Person of the Year for 2006, which is like winning a Pulitzer except, you know, the whole "award from a website no one's ever heard of" thing. [IWM]

Field guide or no, we still have no idea who Louise McBain is, or why we should give a shit. In any event, she stiffed avant-garde director Robert Wilson's Hamptons museum (read that phrase again, isn't it incredibly ridiculous) to the tune of $50,000. [NYP]

NBC Universal ad chief Keith Turner is hitting the road, possibly because Jeff Zucker's a dick. [THR]

The shrinking Wall Street Journal worries employees, who will now be forced to blog and stuff. [NYP]

The highly-anticipated relaunch of the CNBC happens today. Let us know how that one turns out. [Guardian]

Donny Deutsch, babydaddy, might make a good target for Evan Bayh or some other Dem presidential hopeful with no other shot at the nomination. [Kausfiles]

Personality-driven daytime TV shows losing ratings. Yes, Oprah too. [B&C]

"Kent Brownridge is no Ron Galotti when it comes to being a gentleman farmer." If this sentence means anything to you, you either work in the media industry or are stalking one of the gentlemen in question. [WWD]

Maureen Dowd Will Not Be Ignored

abalk2 — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 12:10:43 EST

Rush & Molloy tip us off to a profile of Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert (because, really, we need another one of those) in this month's Rolling Stone. What makes this one extra-special is that it's written by Maureen Dowd! Yes, MoDo! Here's how it starts:

I thought Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert might be a little nervous to meet with me. I was the real news commentator, after all, and they were the mock. They threw spitballs at presidents; I interviewed presidents before throwing spitballs at them. I had crisscrossed the globe to cover news stories, while these guys just put on dark suits and threw up imported backgrounds on a green screen. No doubt they would try to impress me with some weighty discussion about world affairs or the midterm elections. But when I walked into Colbert's office at The Colbert Report, just off Tenth Avenue in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen, the two barely acknowledged me.

We'll let you savor that one. MoDo's a big fan of the shows ("I read about ten newspapers a day and three newsmagazines a week, and I have my TV tuned to cable news all day, and I still find myself taking notes from The Daily Show."), which is nice, considering she's appeared as a guest on both of them.

America's Anchors [RS]

Fake News Helps Friedman Hit His Stride

Jessica — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 11:20:05 EDT

Talented media reporter/secretary Jon Friedman plays it close to the vest this week with a cagey, contemplative piece on an oft-overlooked player's comments at a classified event: Jon Stewart's chat with David Remnick at the New Yorker festival. (God only knows what sort of deep cover Friedman had to undergo to nab that score.) The intrepid reporter goes out on a limb, declaring that Stewart has "an uncommonly sophisticated understanding of journalism" — but it takes one to know one. Friedman's so sophisticated that he effectively conveys Stewart's impact within only the first few words of every paragraph! You don't even need to read a whole sentence to get the point:

• "Stewart dispelled..."
• "Stewart lamented..."
• "Stewart probably* surprised..."
• "Stewart, who answered questions..."
• "Stewart professed..."
• "Stewart noted..."
• "Stewart will continue..."
• "Stewart jumped over the lazy dog..."

The Media World According to Jon Stewart [Marketwatch]

*"Probably!" We're in awe of his dogged style! Like any great reporter, Friedman always questions the obvious before he states it.

Anderson on the 'Daily Show': Giggling Like a Little Girl

Jesse — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 14:17:36 EDT

Oh, dear Jon Stewart. Oh, dear fearless progressive gay-rights-loving Jon Stewart. How many questions, we wondered yesterday, would Jon ask our beloved Anderson Cooper, his guest last night, about the quasi-mysterious "Julio"? The answer: Zero. But Jon did talk Anderson up for a while on the topic of just how hot Angelina Jolie is — while the Coop held up his end of the conversation by giggling like a little girl and shifting nervously in his chair.

Convincing performance, that.

Earlier: Anderson to Visit Jon Stewart, Face Bill Bennett-Like Grilling

Anderson to Visit Jon Stewart, Face Bill Bennett-Like Grilling

Jesse — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 18:59:40 EDT

We just want make sure you know that our beloved Coopie will be Jon Stewart's guest on The Daily Show tonight. This is, in itself, not terribly newsworthy, as Anderson has long been willing to appear on just about any talk show or magazine cover that will have him, and that habit has become even more pronounced now that he has a book to promote.

But here's the thing. The Daily Show juggernaut has recently placed itself as strong advocates of gay rights and gay marriage. Recall Jon's extended attack on Bill Bennett two weeks ago over the gambling moralist's opposition to gay marriage. And consider Stephen Colbert's mockery last night of Wall Street Journal deputy editorial-page editor Dan Henninger's comment that, "A woman in India last week married a snake. I would like to ask the proponents of gay marriage—which violates, after all, traditions going back through all of human history—to now absolutely, positively guarantee that the next movement is not going to be allowing people to marry their pet horse, dog or cat." And then wonder: So how many questions do you think do you think Jon will ask about Julio?

Anderson Cooper Pays a Visit to Jon Stewart [The Book Standard]
Related:
Jon Stewart Tears Open Bill Bennett On Gay Marriage [Boing Boing]
Wall Street Journal Opinion Editor Says Gay Marriage Could Lead to Marrying Snakes [Raw Story]

Remainders: Life After 'Dharma & Greg' Is No Picnic

Jessica — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 19:09:45 EDT

• Jenna Elfman defends Scientology by screaming in public and asking people if they've raped babies. If only she were allowed to take her medication, these outbursts could be prevented. [TMZ]
• If you watch that Thomas Friedman video again carefully, you just might notice a young lady in the background, swilling champagne. Apparently, she's his daughter — and she just graduated high school. But who doesn't booze their way through Daddy's big night? [Fishbowl NY]
• Lower East Side stinkpit Rothko shuts its doors — but where will the little hipsters dance now? [Brooklyn Vegan]
• The mathetmatical formula for Bridget Harrison. [Julia Allison]
• Andrew Hearst — the man just hired to edit Vanity Fair online — brings you Sementeen, for adolescent and teenage boys everywhere. [Panopticist]
• You kind of knew Jon Stewart would be a good tipper. [New York Hack]
• The rights to John Steinbeck's works have been awarded to his son and granddaughter, neither of whom will have to lift a finger ever again. [AP]
• Surprisingly enough, wearing your Anderson Cooper fan shirt to Anderson Cooper's book signing does not scare the silver fox. [Understandish]
• Our worldly brother Gridskipper is in desperate need of interns in New York and Los Angeles. Come join our abusive family, won't you? [Gridskipper]

Remainders: Art Imitates the Sexiest Man Alive

Jessica — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 18:50:58 EDT

• George Clooney eats hot dogs! Let's sabotage hot dogs! [Gallery of the Absurd]
• And another one bites the dust: Hachette says it'll shut ELLEgirl after the June/July issue, leaving it as a web- and wireless-only brand. [WWD]
• Folio: announces its list of the 40 most influential/ successful / annoying / evil people in magazine publishing. The Daily Show's Jon Stewart makes the list — it's a long fall from the Oscars, ain't it? [Folio:]
• Meanwhile, Daily Show correspondent Rob Corddry begins his long climb up the special events ladder by hosting the Webby awards. [PR Newswire]
• Why we prefer the foreign press: They know we want to read about a dude who took 40,000 hits of ecstasy. [Guardian]
• Death Row Records head Suge Knight may have declared bankruptcy, but he's never too poor to pop a cap in your ass. [TMZ]
• Rosie O'Donnell is back in our good graces. According to her profile in New York, she shares our love for the Schtick Intuition. And last night on Leno, she called herself a 200-lb. lesbian. Good, clean fun — Rosie's back! [Fish Drink Water]
• Someone has stolen Jerry Garcia's toilet. Authorities believe the priceless porcelain may have been traded in for Big Gulp, Doritos, and two packs of Twinkies. [CNN]
• Ben Smith launches his Daily News political blog — complete with a sexy picture. Too bad he hasn't left the Observer yet. [Daily Politics]
• Drudge reports on Couric's move to CBS by reprinting the Mary Tyler Moore song. The Gay never lets us down. [Drudge]

The Metropolitans Pretend That People Actually Like Them

abalk2 — Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:17:56 EST

Adfreak reports on the new campaign by New York's woeful National League franchise: The Mets have a series of radio ads in which celebrities claim that the team's skyrocketing popularity has cost them their seats at Shea. The first two ads have starred envelope-opening presenter Jon Stewart and stretching-the-definition-of-celebrity John Leguizamo. While Adfreak seems somewhat dubious about the campaign's efficacy, we're slightly more upbeat: Anything that guarantees us we'll be somewhere that Leguizamo isn't certainly gets our attention.

Meet the Mets, and their angry celebrity fans [Adfreak.com]

Jon Stewart Also Does Weddings and Bar Mitzvahs

Jesse — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 14:20:44 EST

This press release arrived in our inbox a bit ago:

JON STEWART TO HOST 65th ANNUAL PEABODY AWARDS

Winners to Be Announced April 5 from The University of Georgia

Athens, GA — Jon Stewart, host of Comedy Central's award-winning, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, will host the 65th Annual George Foster Peabody Awards ceremony on Monday, June 5, 2006 at the Waldorf=Astoria in New York City.

Now, we like Jon Stewart. Quite a lot. We really do. We thought he was pretty good at the Oscars, even. (Although we only really watched his monologue before we stopped paying attention.) But even so, when we received this release, we couldn't help but think: Christ, Jon, are there any invitations you turn down?

After the jump, the full press release, flacking Stewart's descent into self-parodic overexposure.

March 20, 2006

Contacts:
Stephanie Baumoel/Josh Gross, 212.983.XXXX, xxxx@ferencomm.com
Noel Holston, 706.542.XXXX, xxxx@uga.edu

JON STEWART TO HOST 65th ANNUAL PEABODY AWARDS

Winners to Be Announced April 5 from The University of Georgia

Athens, GA — Jon Stewart, host of Comedy Central s award-winning, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, will host the 65th Annual George Foster Peabody Awards ceremony on Monday, June 5, 2006 at the Waldorf=Astoria in New York City.

Stewart, awarded two Peabodys for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2000 and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2004, was praised by the Peabody board for providing the kind of cathartic satire that deflates pomposity on an equal opportunity basis. Somehow this sharp commentary makes the real issues more important than ever.

The winners of the Peabody Awards for original broadcast, cablecast and webcast programs presented in 2005, will be announced via webcast and satellite on April 5 from The University of Georgia.

Jon Stewart will provide a refreshing combination of journalistic smarts and comic genius to our ceremony, added Horace Newcomb, director of the Peabody Awards at The University of Georgia. He has an enormous respect for the Peabody culture, so who better to host our landmark 65th anniversary celebration?

Stewart has transformed The Daily Show into one of America s most influential and popular television shows. Stewart and the writers of The Daily Show also authored America (The Book): A Citizen s Guide to Democracy Inaction at the end of 2004. The book, which was recently awarded the Thurber Prize for American Humor, was a staple on The New York Times bestsellers list for 46 consecutive weeks, including 15 consecutive weeks in the number one position.

Prior to taking over The Daily Show in 1999, Stewart s television credits included a one-hour HBO comedy special, Jon Stewart: Unleavened, and a recurring role as himself on HBO s series-within-a-series, The Larry Sanders Show. He also hosted The Jon Stewart Show on MTV, which went on to be nationally syndicated.

Offering biting political satire, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2000 and Indecision 2004 had something droll and amusing to say about almost everything and everyone associated with American politics and the presidential elections. The highly original pieces covered the campaigns, conventions, election night and recounts with exceptional insight.

The Peabodys, the oldest award in broadcasting, are considered among the most prestigious and selective prizes in electronic media. The Peabody Awards recognize excellence and meritorious work by radio and television stations, networks, webcasters, producing organizations and individuals. The 15 member Peabody Board is a distinguished panel of television critics, industry practitioners and experts in culture and the arts. Selection is made by the Board following review by special screening committees of University of Georgia faculty, students, and staff.

The Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at UGA administers the Peabody Awards, as it has since the program s inception in 1940. Established in 1915, the Grady College provides seven undergraduate majors including advertising, broadcast news, magazines, newspapers, public relations, publication management and telecommunication arts. The college offers two graduate degrees and is home to the Knight Chair in Health and Medial Journalism. For more information, visit www.grady.uga.edu.

For more information regarding the Peabody Awards program, the Peabody Awards Collection, and the Peabody Center for Media and Society visit: www.peabody.uga.edu.

##

Media Bubble: And If You Think You Understand His Book, He Miswrote

Jesse — Tue, 07 Mar 2006 14:42:04 EST

• Penguin wins auction for Alan Greenspan memoir with an offer believed to be nearly $9 million. Obligatory question: Irrationally exuberant? [NYP]
• The dude behind the allegedly forthcoming mags Everything for Men and Everything for Women is a con artist and a felon. Unlike most mag people, who are merely con artists. [WWD]
• Arthur S. holds his State of the Times meeting; reporters question why he gets paid so much and they so little. [Media Mob/NYO]
• ABC's Bob Woodruff reportedly now conscious and talking, though heavily medicated. [ABCNews.com]
• Air America could lose its New York affiliate on April 1. We'd be bummed, if we ever listened to it. [NYP]
• The Jew and the gays brought Oscar his second-worst ratings since 1987. [WP]
• Does Diane Sawyer want to anchor World News Tonight? One gossip site says so. [TMZ]
• Candace Bushnell to launch weekly Sirius Satellite Radio show giving advice to women. First piece of advice we'd like her fans to hear: "They're just cupcakes. Stop waiting on a line around the corner for them." [NYDN]
• Will Nick Sylvester be a Stephen Glass, a Mike Barnicle, or a Janet Cooke? [Media Mob/NYO]

Today on Today: Jon Stewart Validates Your Prescription Drug Habit

Jessica — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 08:55:58 EST

A uncharacteristically spastic Jon Stewart was just on the Today; he eschewed any real questions about his gig hosting the Oscars and instead chose to mock most of America by acting like a crack-happy tourist outside of the empty Rockefeller Center studios. As he climbed around the fencing normally used to corral inanely giddy Today fans, a slightly irritated Katie Couric (interviewing from Torino) asked if Stewart was nervous about the Oscar ceremony. When he explained that Xanax would get him through it, she warned against mixing the pills with cough syrup. She would know, of course.

The Alessandra Stanley Watch: Maybe She's No Worse Than Her Peers

Jesse — Mon, 06 Feb 2006 12:42:59 EST

Daily News TV Editor Richard Huff doesn't like The Daily Show, and he doesn't understand why it gets so much attention when so few people watch it. So how many people do watch it, Richard?

"A Dislocated Hipster," Jan. 31: "Take a look at the Nielsen figures for the show, and the numbers are startling. This supposedly terrific program, with its high hipness factor - people actually say they get their only news from 'The Daily Show' — is averaging 1.3 million viewers in January, most of them men between the ages of 18 and 49."

"A Daily Does of Fans and Foes," Feb. 3: " Moreover, the audience for 'The Daily Show's' four daily telecasts is just north of 2.3 million viewers, or not enough to make Nielsen's rank of the top 40 programs on cable."

"Inner Tube," Feb. 6: "Correction: Richard Huff inadvertently omitted the 8 p.m. audience for reruns of Comedy Central's 'The Daily Show.' The show's combined estimated daily audience for five telecasts is 3,084,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research."

If nothing else, that's one nice trend line.

A Dislocated Hipster [NYDN]
A Daily Does of Fans and Foes [NYDN]
Inner Tube [NYDN]

Media Bubble: Prognosis Postive for ABC Newsmen

Jesse — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 14:56:12 EST

• ABC anchor, cameraman show improvement after surgery. [ABCNews.com]
• Ted Koppel is a sucky op-edster, says Jack Shafer. [Slate]
• Even Dave Barry thinks newspapers are dead. [SFChron]
• Daily News TV editors doesn't get Jon Stewart's jokes, care much for the guy, or, it seems, care much for Stewart's fans. What was that, Dave, about newspapers being irrelevant? [NYDN]
• Syd Schanberg has misty water-colored memories of covering Donald Trump. [VV]
• Unsurprisingly, Pinch thinks everything at the Trib is just fabulous. When you're a scion, there is no rain on your parade. [AJR]
• Live like Anna: Vogue Living is on its way. [WWD]

Gawker's Week in Review: Lohan Moves From Punchline to Tragedy

Jessica — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 18:50:23 EST

• Lindsay Lohan admits to Vanity Fair that she's used drugs and struggled with bulimia. When we blow rails and boot our brunch, we usually go to Graydon Carter for confessional, too.
• Zeta Graff sues Paris Hilton for being a big, fat liar — but, as it turns out, her paid liar/publicist Rob Shuter might be just as bad.
• Peter Braunstein pleads not guilty to charges of sexual assault; guilty on all charges of looking incredibly frightening.
• Left befuddled by the state of the odd-amounted Metrocard, we fall victim to the strange intricacies of the card machine, only to find eventual redemption.
• Jon Stewart attempts to save the Oscars from total irrelevance.
• Dow Jones CEO Peter Kann and his wife, Wall Street Journal publisher Karen Elliot House, leave the company, but not without a handsome payoff.
• Marc Kramer is hired as CEO of the Daily News. Les who?
• Observer editor Peter Kaplan looks to save the precious pink paper with the power of Bruce Wasserstein.
• West Virginian miners die in tragic explosion; media runs inaccurate, opposite story in tragic miscommunication.
• And in more bad news: the health of Israeli PM Ariel Sharon is not looking good .
• But cheer up, because Real Simple will soon suck on a tv near you!

Jon Stewart to Host Oscars and Act Boring

Jessica — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 09:24:13 EST

Last night, the Los Angeles Times' Oscar Beat blog (part of its Academy Awards OCD project, The Envelope) broke that Daily Show host Jon Stewart will host this year's Oscars. Um, yay? Were you actually planning on watching? Or at least staying awake and pretending to watch while you work on your knitting? And, if not, does the presence of Stewart actually change your position on the whole matter? Doubtful. If last year's host Chris Rock couldn't raise an eyebrow after the first 10 minutes, we doubt poor Stewart will be able to support your heavy eyelids.

We may be too late, but: Don't do it, Jon. Do NOT go to Los Angeles, not even for one fancy night. Nothing good happens when you go west of the Mississippi. The Oscars might be a big deal, but movies are not your friends, Jon, and you can't just go to go back to Hollywood and act like The Faculty never happened.

And the Mike Goes to... [Oscar Beat]
Jon Stewart to Host Oscars [Defamer]

Media Christmas: Beware of Andre Leon Talley, Plus Tonight's Parties

Jesse — Wed, 14 Dec 2005 17:49:26 EST

• A few additions to the Big List, including Rodale tonight at Django. (Will Dave Zinczenko permit beer? So many carbs!) Full, updated list is after the jump.

• A delicious report from last night's Marc Jacobs party, which, while not technically Media Christmas, certainly featured a jolly, fat Media Santa Claus:

Was at the outrageous Marc Jacobs Holiday Hoedown last night. It was tough to tear my eyes away from the go-go cowboys in assless chaps, until the enormous Andr Leon Talley walked by. He was wearing what looked like a 10-foot-long wildebeest skin around his neck and had a bag over his shoulder in a matching pelt; it looked like a papoose. Between his height, the volumnious skins, and the huge bag, he must have taken up like 500 cubic feet. He was ushering Naomi Campbell (looking sort of lame in Pocahontas pigtails and headband) back and forth around the large space. They must have been looking for the VIP room but there wasn't one apparently (ha! ha!) since I later saw La Campbell sitting on a bale of hay, shoveling down creamed spinach from the buffet.

• And tonight's lineup:

The Daily Show, Movida
Gourmet (sales), The Hotel on Rivington
HBO, Marriott Marquis
Rodale, Django

Maybe someone can snag a pic of Jon Stewart in a Santa suit? We've still got that onion tart, you know.

The Big Media Christmas List is after the jump.

Monday, December 5
Daily News, Copacabana

Tuesday, December 6
~~Alfred A. Knopf, Punch~~
Lucky, Hotel QT
Playboy (editorial, etc.), Providence
~~SourceMedia (nee Thompson Media), Cipriani Wall Street~~
Teen Vogue (edit), La Esquina

Wednesday, December 7
Cookie, EIC Pilar Guzman's apartment
The New Yorker, Pastis
Village Voice, The Canal Room

Thursday, December 8
~~Bauer Publishing (all), Rockleigh Country Club, Rockleigh, N.J.~~
~~Cablevision, B.B. King's~~
~~CBS, the chairman's floor at Black Rock, the CBS Building~~
~~Disney/ABC, Roseland~~
~~Hearst Magazines (all), Tavern on the Green~~
LHJ, Avra
~~MTV Networks, Hammerstein Ballroom~~
~~Simon & Schuster, The Supper Club~~
Time Out New York, Stitch Bar & Lounge
Today show, Fresco by Scotto (brunch) then The Falls
Travel + Leisure (edit), 60 Thompson

Friday, December 9, 2005
CBS Evening News, Eugene
~~Fox News Channel, Rosie O'Grady's (in addition to next week's big News Corp. party)~~
~~Good Morning America, Rock Candy~~
~~Google, Skylight~~
Metro New York, Encore
~~Scripps Networks (Food Network, HGTV, etc.), SAPA (afternoon)~~

Monday, December 12
Departures (edit), Double Seven
Glamour (edit), Aspen
House & Garden, Fred's at Barneys
~~Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, The Waterfront~~
~~Mediabistro, Obvia~~
~~Slate, Bubble Lounge~~
Teen Vogue (business), Employees Only
Vice, Fat Baby
~~VNU Business Publications, Capitale~~
Vogue and Men's Vogue, La Esquina

Tuesday, December 13
Esquire, the Esquire apartment at The Sculpture for Living
Fast Company and Inc., Blondie's
Forbes (editorial), Arte's
~~Hearst Magazines(all EICs and publishers), Le Bernardin (lunch)~~
PR Week, Bed
USA Today (NYC staff), Osteria Stella

Wednesday, December 14
The Daily Show, Movida
Gourmet (sales), The Hotel on Rivington
HBO, Marriott Marquis
Rodale, Django

Thursday, December 15
Allure, Paladar
AMI (business), Rock Candy
Cargo, Centrico (lunch)
Court TV, Pressure
Forbes (business), Jazz Standard/Blue Smoke
Gourmet (edit), EIC Ruth Reichl's apartment
Glamour (sales), Roxy
GQ, La Esquina
The Nation, Pravda
New York, Encore
Wenner Media (all), N/A

Friday, December 16
Financial Times (New York staff), editor Lionel Barber's apartment
Lifetime Networks, Dodger Stages
News Corporation, Hilton New York
(plus New York Post afterparty at Siberia)

Monday, December 19
Dennis Publishing, Glo
FHM, Gypsey Tea
Meredith shelter books (all), Via
W, Astra

Tuesday, December 20
Jane, R&R

Wednesday, December 21
Harper’s, Pravda
The Forward, Mo Pitkin's

No dates known
Food & Wine (business), Club Pegu
Food & Wine (edit), Spotted Pig
Departures (business), The Modern
Fitness, Otto (lunch)
Modern Bride and Elegant Bride, EIC Antonia van der Meer's apartment
Travel + Leisure (business), publisher Ellen Asmodeo Giglio's apartment

Jon Stewart: Very, Very Offside

Jessica — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 07:45:47 EST

As it turns out, before Daily Show host and fake news darling Jon Stewart was funny, he was a soccer jock. Too gentle for lacrosse and too petite for football, Stewart played kickball at William & Mary from 1981-1983 — until he realized that no Jew should have quadriceps like that.

Jon Stewart Named NSCAA Honorary All-America [NSCAA]