Jon Stewart had Chris Matthews, host of MSNBC's Hardball, on The Daily Show last night to talk about Matthews' new book "Life's a Campaign." It is one of the funniest book discussions I have ever seen. Why? Because Stewart was absolutely honest with Matthews regarding his view that the book's values are misplaced and wrong.
At one point, Matthews invites Jon to come on Hardball, to which Stewart responds, "Can I say this? I don't troll." Matthews ends up calling the encounter: "...the worst interview I have ever had in my life."
I have enjoyed watching Matthews and his fellow NBC pundit Tim Russert over the years. I find them to be, on the average, fair, fairly impartial and knowledgeable. Lately, however, I have learned to watch and mentally notate the nuance that they introduce into their interviews that they don't even know they are adding... things like physically characterizing political candidates versus actually weighing their words and the substance of their message.
On the face, since these pundits work from a visual medium [TV], it is understandable. But I hope for so much more. Matthews and Russert et al. are supposed to be journalists, right? Everyone knows politics is a popularity contest first and foremost (don't they?). But it doesn't have to be, and it most definitely should not be. The questions we face today are too serious to leave to the most photogenic candidates. We need substance.
Perhaps that is why Stewart's Daily Show has gained such popularity. Yes, it is a comedy show first and always. But time and again, he has a way of showing how serious topics are being mishandled by traditional media. I applaud his honesty.
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