Probably no surprise that Jon Stewart is leaving now that Colbert has moved on. Over the period that both of their shows were running back to back they sort of became the Siskel and Ebert of the cable news shows. I was less enthusiastic about watching one without the other.
Not very long ago, "the discourse" on news and politics was so limited that it seems stifling to even conceive of now. But the last 10 or 15 years have really seen media criticism flourish as new platforms allowed for a much broader and more robust conversation than had been previously possible. I wonder sometimes if people take that for granted now. Stewart and Colbert were able to tap into and really focus that dissenting energy and give it a voice on corporate television. That it happened at all is remarkable in its own right. That it happened for almost two decades is revolutionary.
But, as some smart people have observed, maybe this was a revolution that has run its course.
Anyway, I'm sure there will be plenty "best of" Stewart clips posted around for the next few months. Don't think many will top this, though. And it wasn't even something that happened on his own show.
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