Just how important are those monologues trashing McCain?

[babylonsister]

Just how important are those monologues trashing McCain?

By Aaron Barnhart | Kansas City Star


When David Letterman spent 40 minutes of his show ripping John McCain for cancelling his appearance on the show at the last minute -- and then gradually expanding his personal, peevish complaint into a brilliant critique of the McCain campaign, it brought to the fore once again an argument I made here a couple of weeks ago: that trusted talk-show hosts can introduce ideas into the mainstream that the MSM can't, or with greater force than the "on the one hand, on the other" MSM can muster. (You can see some of that here.)

But not everybody gets it. CNN's "Showbiz Tonight" asked viewers whether they were going to base their vote on something they heard on "The View." I've also heard from readers that my point is moot because right-wing talk show hosts have much larger audiences than Jay Leno. Both miss the point.

I'm not arguing that "The View" (or Leno or Letterman) makes the difference in an election. I'm arguing that these shows get ideas into the MSM and with additional force than the MSM can bring. I hear constantly from people on one side or the other of a political topic that "the news media isn't covering this." They discount the role of talk show hosts, forgetting the fact that they can have a tremendous effect on public discourse. Their monologues are quoted in political roundups. Their news becomes entertainment news becomes front-page news, as with the Letterman story that's raging today. Look, even Canada's CBC Newsworld covered the Letterman riff.

Yep, it's international news.

I mean, c'mon, would CNN do a poll of viewers asking them if they are planning to vote based on something they saw on CNN? That's such a silly question.

more...

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/election2008/story/53132.html

[shadowknows69]

1. Comedy cuts to the truth of things

And with a laugh a person who normally has a guarded mind, may learn a thing or two.

[Warren Stupidity]

2. When a candidate becomes a household joke it is totally over.

See Dukakis.

[FiveGoodMen]

4. Dukakis didn't have Diebold or Fox News.

[redqueen]

3. M$M makes its money asking silly questions.

That's what they do.