Maurice Tamman at Reuters put spin on the latest Reuters online poll in a blog headlined “Fake newscaster, real credibility: Jon Stewart stands at the peak of American punditry poll.”
Tamman reported:
As Jon Stewart winds down his 19-year stint as host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, he and Stephen Colbert sit at the peak of American punditry despite their left-leaning view of life, the universe and everything.
In an era of diffused voices and divided politics, they are well known, widely admired, and speak to Americans in ways that no one else does, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll. No one on the right of the political spectrum comes close; not Rush Limbaugh or Bill O’Reilly.
On the admiration numbers Colbert drew a 47.4 percent admiration number to 32.5 percent who said they do not admire him. Stewart came close with 46.9 admiration and 32.6 who did not admire him. By contrast, Rush Limbaugh drew a 26.7 percent admiration number and 53.8 percent checked “do not admire at all.” Ann Coulter came close to that (29.2 percent admire/ 44.3 percent do not admire).
Bill O’Reilly had better numbers (35.3 percent admire/45.1 percent not admire). MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow wasn’t as popular as her Comedy Central heroes (31.3 percent admire /38.5 percent do not admire). Obviously, comedians build admiration by making people giggle.
In a more objective report, Lisa Lambert at Reuters wrote O'Reilly "was fifth on the list of most admired pundits behind Stewart, Colbert, [Bill] Maher and Briton John Oliver, another Daily Show veteran who now anchors a similar program on HBO."
I'm briefly mentioned in the story. I tried to argue that liberals may not understand that Limbaugh's show incorporates humor and satire, but also has a more serious side than the Comedy Central shows. I also tried to suggest it's fascinating that the most admired and trustworthy voices on the Left are comedians, not serious pundits.
