this post was submitted on 07 May 2025
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Even if they're not a right-winger and don't claim to be a centrist, "both-sides"ing things is a waste of time, at best.
Like, when Jon Stewart came back to the Daily Show. I think it was his first show back, but it might have been his second... And his main talking point was about how both Biden and Trump were old. I know he's just a comedian on a comedy show, but it still felt like a betrayal. At the very best, it was a waste of a chance to say something that could have actually made a difference.
He pointed out that they are the oldest candidates ever to run, beating the previous record of…the same two old white guys 4 years prior. Seemed pretty germane to mention that we have a serious lack of younger and diverse representation
I agree 100% with everything you said. Just like you said, it was a good point and definitely worth a mention. My problem is that it was the main segment of his first show back. Just like I said, a waste of time when there were much more important things to talk about.
I mean, they are both old, I don't think that's a perspective that should be discounted. That's not a discussion on policy or who one should vote for as much as it is the understandable concern about whether either of them would still be alive for their entire second term.
I like Jon, but TDS has done more harm than good for the left.
It just normalized the Republican CRIMINAL behaviour by making fun of it and laughing, like it was no big deal
It made an entire generation complacent becuase people though watching TDS and jucking along was actually doing fuck all to actually fight Republicans or help Democrats.
And finally, like you said they'd frequently have both sides segments that the right loved to echo on their propaganda networks
Tbf, you shouldn't take news from a comedian.
They are meant to entertain, not inform. If they side with one party too much, they lose viewers.
They need views from "both sides" which is the precise reason why they have to "both sides" everything.
Comedians and court jesters have always been some of the most honest and straight forward. They don't bite their tongue or fret over access. You shouldn't discount them. Entertainment is one of the best methods of informing. You will spend infinitely time more learning in an entertaining way. Then beating your head against a dry impenetrable text that you struggle to comprehend.
The comedian in question is Jon Stewart, though. Do you really think that Jon Stewart has to "both sides" everything so that he doesn't alienate his conservative audience? I doubt that you're saying that. I don't think he has ever done that.
It doesn't make sense to try to generalize how comedians act when we're talking about how one specific comedian acts, and it's already clear that he doesn't act like the generalization presented.
I have no doubt that Jon Stewart simply did the segment because he thought it was funny, and he didn't care about alienating people.
The reason I'm so sure is that he predictably alienated a lot of left leaning people with his "both sides are old" segment. I say "predictably" because there's simply no way that somebody didn't talk to him before air and say something like, "You know, this is going to irritate the people who like you the most."