From Punditry to Comedy

Really?

D.L. Hughley as political satirist? Looks like someone at CNN has been enjoying his "Daily Show" lately. The cable news channel has tapped the R-rated comedian to host a primetime weekend show where he'll do some stand up, talk to some newsies and perform some sketch comedy.

CNN told the NY Times that it"is not trying to re-create" Jon Stewart's emmy-winning program, but expects the show to more closely resemble "The Tonight Show." What that says about the state of cable news is the subject of another post. Let's just got with it for now...it has me thinking, what could other TV stations do to match CNN?

Fox News' Deadpan Hour with Ben Stein: The comedian spends 55 minutes explaining the economy and the creation of the universe using silly putty; finishes the show with a roll call....Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

MSNBC's Larry David Variety Show: The "Curb" creator and "Seinfeld" mastermind vents about the state of politics. "What's with the lapel pin? Why is Barack Obama expected to smile during the debates when the camera's not on him? I'd be picking my nose."

C-SPAN's...uhhh, uhhh....

Bull On Parade

Much as MSNBC's Keith Olbermann found his editorial voice attacking right-leaning politicians and their policies, CNN anchor Campbell Brown is making her name calling out campaign leaders and other newsmakers whose comments sound fishy.

Brown isn't relying on hyper-partisan rhetoric. In fact, she's making a painstaking effort to claim neutrality as her network seeks to find a middle ground between MSNBC and Fox News. Her YouTubular-rant directed at Sarah Palin's handlers for shielding her from the media? More of a show of solidarity with spurned reporters than anything else.

In Brown's "Cutting Through the Bull" segment that points out overstatements and debunks campaign ads, it's a Democratic tit for a Republican tat. It's setting the record straight on John McCain's role in the savings and loan scandal and explaining Barack Obama's relationship with violent antiwar protester William Ayers.

Brown's show is fairing well in CNN's 8 p.m. slot. According to The New York Times, the program drew an average of 826,000 viewers a night from March 10 through Sept. 28.

There's nothing wrong with a little fact checking on cable news. Pointing out absurdity has become a nightly ritual on The Daily Show. But Brown and CNN reporters don't use Jon Stewart's brand of satire -- or any humor for that matter. And therein lies the potential problem.

By rehashing the smear campaign of the day in such a serious setting, CNN runs the risk of perpetuating falsehoods. As The Washington Post reported last year:

"The conventional response to myths and urban legends is to counter bad information with accurate information. But the new psychological studies show that denials and clarifications, for all their intuitive appeal, can paradoxically contribute to the resiliency of popular myths."

It's not as if Brown invented the "fact checker" feature (newspapers have long run such columns around election season) or broke new ground by responding to puzzling sound bites. It's just that by adopting the "no bull" theme for her show, she is promising evenhanded public interest journalism in a format that rewards partisanship and quick-hitting reports.

Only time will tell if Brown's show has enough meat.

Big Pundits on Campus: 24 hours til Palin v. Biden

Took a stroll through the Wash U campus on a nice fall Wednesday. The media frenzy hadn't yet begun but it was Super Tuesday for the tech guys, truck drivers and producers. I'll have plenty to say tomorrow night about the big show, but for now I'll let the pictures tell the story.


Setting up the MSNBC set, a.k.a. making sure Chris Matthews looks pretty.

If this doesn't get you pumped about the campaign season
I don't know what will.

Now we're talking. The best political love bus on television.

In case you're wondering, the Kappa Sig bros support Obama...

... While the Theta Chi boys are in the tank for McCain

Mmmm. Will the media feast on Palin? Ba da bing.

Division III football players dream of having this kind of
media attention.

Tough choice: Debate watching party or arcade night with
the cute pink dude.

Going green. Something both parties can agree on.