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For those of you that didn't see this last night:
I'll tell you what, this was a little uncomfortable to watch. For those that are not aware, Stewart and Cramer have been going back and forth on their respective networks over the last week -- notwithstanding the clips that get played of their back-and-forth, it seemed to me from watching the full interviews that they were both still just doing their job, and that there was no actual animosity. I still think that, actually, at least personally.
I'll give you the Cliff's Notes version for those that don't want to sit through the interview: after some quick pleasantries, Stewart, sans jokes, absolutely eviscerates Cramer, and Cramer just sits and takes it. There's no yelling, it's not mean-spirited, but it is frank and very direct.
Two takeaways from this interview, for me at least:
1. John Stewart > Jim Cramer in terms of media clout. No way does Cramer go on The Daily Show, especially if he had any sense of what the interview would be like, unless he realized that he was getting the worst of this daily back-and-forth and wanted to stop the bleeding. I guess he did that, if exsanguination counts as "stopping" the bleeding.
2. To call The Daily Show a comedy show or a fake news show, although accurate, understates the role it plays in "serious" news. I can think of multiple situations where The Daily Show was the only place where politicians and other public figures would get called out on blatant hypocricy. Also, I think that sometimes humor and satire can deliver a message better than "straight" news/commentary can, and both Stewart and Colbert make this apparent on a nightly basis.
I wonder if Cramer didn't set himself up for this decidedly unfunny interview last night by deriding Stewart as a "comedian" -- almost as if Stewart took it as a challenge and was replying "yes, I'm a comedian, but at times there is a serious message behind what I do, regardless of how it may be delivered, and I can hold my own in the realm of the 'serious.'"
One final takeaway -- don't fuck with Jon Stewart.
I'll tell you what, this was a little uncomfortable to watch. For those that are not aware, Stewart and Cramer have been going back and forth on their respective networks over the last week -- notwithstanding the clips that get played of their back-and-forth, it seemed to me from watching the full interviews that they were both still just doing their job, and that there was no actual animosity. I still think that, actually, at least personally.
I'll give you the Cliff's Notes version for those that don't want to sit through the interview: after some quick pleasantries, Stewart, sans jokes, absolutely eviscerates Cramer, and Cramer just sits and takes it. There's no yelling, it's not mean-spirited, but it is frank and very direct.
Two takeaways from this interview, for me at least:
1. John Stewart > Jim Cramer in terms of media clout. No way does Cramer go on The Daily Show, especially if he had any sense of what the interview would be like, unless he realized that he was getting the worst of this daily back-and-forth and wanted to stop the bleeding. I guess he did that, if exsanguination counts as "stopping" the bleeding.
2. To call The Daily Show a comedy show or a fake news show, although accurate, understates the role it plays in "serious" news. I can think of multiple situations where The Daily Show was the only place where politicians and other public figures would get called out on blatant hypocricy. Also, I think that sometimes humor and satire can deliver a message better than "straight" news/commentary can, and both Stewart and Colbert make this apparent on a nightly basis.
I wonder if Cramer didn't set himself up for this decidedly unfunny interview last night by deriding Stewart as a "comedian" -- almost as if Stewart took it as a challenge and was replying "yes, I'm a comedian, but at times there is a serious message behind what I do, regardless of how it may be delivered, and I can hold my own in the realm of the 'serious.'"
One final takeaway -- don't fuck with Jon Stewart.
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