35 Comments Add your own

• 1. Dan Noland  |  November 13th, 2010 at 3:11 pm

  Has anyone seen NBC’s ad for their new show, “Outsourced”? I’m talking about the ad where the Indian customer service rep has mastered our “regional dialects” and proves it by saying, “Grits is just ground up corn,” with an embellished southern drawl. Hilarious. This show does the same thing that Stewart is doing in the attached clips: use humor to communicate how our societal norms are as strange to others as theirs are to ours. Funny show…

  I felt convicted after listening to Stewart’s monologue about the age controversy of China’s gymnasts. I know that I’ve criticized China in the past for the way they force youth into sports programs. But now that I think about it, I’ve watched American parents do some embarrassing things when it comes to their kids and sports. Just a few weeks ago I was down in OC at a youth soccer game and I was blown away by the way the parents were yelling at the ref over blown calls. And the kids were seven years old! We, as a nation or as individuals, do not deserve to accuse others of using children and athletics to play larger roles in society than they should.

• 2. Robbin Forsyth  |  November 15th, 2010 at 10:07 pm

  The videos are good, Stewart is definitely a god among men. It is however, sad that a comedy channel has the best editorial commentary here in America.

  The whole 2008 Beijing olympics were a bit TOO much for me. The whole “coming out” theme in the media was tiring.
  I’m not bothered by the obviously underaged gymnasts. Stewart’s remark about getting them back into the factories made a really good point. To be an underaged world champion athlete is great in comparison to the millions of Chinese people that are fortunate enough to have menial, (by our standards) factory jobs. The ugly truth is that there are much worse things happening to people than being “forced” to be olympic champions.
  Seeing the Chinese take the most gold medals in 2008 was a metaphor for all future competitions with America. Ultimately we took more medals overall, but the Chinese on the gold. A vision of the future in other areas of competition? I think so.

• 3. J Hurley  |  November 27th, 2010 at 8:12 pm

  Those were some funny videos. I often find myself in trouble from poking too much fun at others and their ways; I personally couldn’t care less what people say or think about be and sometimes I make the mistake that others are the same way. It is good to be able to find humor in things, especially if you are laughing at yourself. However, I only kid with people I know and try to be as respectful as possible when in unfamiliar environments.
  That being said, Jon Stewart can pretty much poke fun at anything and make anybody laugh.

• 4. Amanda Podesta  |  December 14th, 2010 at 5:43 pm

  I am all for wit and satire … Jon Stewart is a fine comedian. What I have a problem with is how he is reportedly a primary news media source for 20% of Americans (source: Pew Research Center). I believe that Jon Stewart’s comedy encourages complacent, apathetic cynicism and a penchant for trivializing current events and public figures for the sake of entertainment.

  Watch any old broadcast covered by yesterday’s vanguard (e.g. Walter Cronkite, Frank Reynolds, Edward Murrow) and be depressed with how far we have fallen from a serious discussion of the news and honest presentation of the facts. In fact, a fun game while watching American news is to keep track of how long you wait between raw statistical/situational facts (i.e. not a “the sky is blue” statement).

  While the video clips were entertaining and comic, I thought the topics and discussions were trivial. Throwing egg in the face of the media’s inanity or the general public’s hypocrisy now has the novelty of falling on a banana peel… Redundant and trite, I’d applaud these “gods” much more if they stopped hiding behind being “comedians” and actually turned the news media on its head and started reporting the news. I’d watch.

• 5. Cassie Bettencourt  |  December 19th, 2010 at 2:19 pm

  I am a firm believer in being able to laugh at yourself and Jon Stewart does a fantastic job at helping America laugh at itself in a very relevant and eye-opening way. I agree with Robbin that it is a little sad that our best editorial commentary originates on a comedy channel. However, I think that this commentary probably reaches more people through this medium, which is very powerful.

  My favorite of the videos was the second one on the “special olympics.” Stewart illustrates hypocrisy in American and China in a very effective way. One example that stood out to me was the little girl lip-synching scandal. Yes, it is a little off putting and superficial that China didn’t let actual singer sing because she wasn’t cute enough. However, isn’t it also superficial that we airbrush the models in our magazines? This also reminded me of how Susan Boyle, the British singing sensation who was not as aesthetically pleasing as the norm, received a complete makeover after her rise to fame. Case and point: other countries are just as guilty of “superficiality.” Also, Stewart’s poke at Gossip Girl and twenty-something’s playing high schoolers on American TV in relation to the gymnast age controversy was pure genius.

  I think that these hypocrisies best relate to the second part of Professor Carr’s advice for studying in China - things in the world happen for a reason. Before being too judgmental of other countries, it is necessary to reflect on some of our own idiosyncrasies. There is usually a method behind the madness.

• 6. Tara Millard  |  December 29th, 2010 at 1:47 pm

  Jon Stewart, although a comedian that mocks modern society, remains a god in various regions of the world. Based upon seeing him on American television and watching these clips referencing the Beijing Olympics, he succeeds in making cultural tendencies a comedy without offending those that live there.

  Chris states that it is important for us to not behave as strong minded Americans whilst in China. Rather than comparing everything to our way of life, it is important to see this country as a separate entity and approach it as such. We do things in America the way we do for a reason, China is no different. We can only hope to grow as individuals and get the most from this experience if we approach it with an open and non-judgmental mindset.

  With this said, Jon Stewart succeeds because he does not alienate a country in his comedy. He is not poking fun at the Beijing Olympics from a judgmental standpoint as an American, but rather he gives the sense that he is part of the culture he is parodying as much as anyone else. In relating to cultures and understanding their inner-workings, he is able to create hilarious skits that entertain rather than offend the intended audience.

• 7. Jessica Shayler  |  January 2nd, 2011 at 2:42 pm

  First I just have to say,Colbert is more god-like than Stewart. Ok, moving on….

  “It is what it is.” One of my husband’s favorite phrases. Drives me nuts. Especially when I’ve had a bad day and I’m venting. “It is what it is. *shrug ” Argh! I just want someone to say “Boy that sucks!” But he’s right. I’d like to think I’m becoming a calmer person because of him. Accepting others and what they do as they are (like accepting personal failure) is almost impossible, but very rewarding. Sometimes we need help seeing things as they are minus our personal biases. That’s where satire (or my husband) comes into play. Zinsser (remember him?) said it best: “Today the outlandish becomes routine overnight. The humorist is trying to say that it’s still outlandish.” While Colbert does this better than Stewart (*smirk), I feel they both fulfill a necessary role in information transfer and reality check.

• 8. David Hart  |  January 3rd, 2011 at 9:57 pm

  The Daily Show has been one of my favorite shows for years. Jon Stewart is a great comedian who gets people to think about issues through his humor.

  I think it is so important to keep an open mind. Sometimes we think that our opinions are the right ones. Then we don’t try to understand opposing points of view. In Dr. Coget’s OB class we talked about this. To better understand other people and cultures, we need to withold judgement and try to understand where they are coming from. We should challenge our old perceptions and try to expand our own worldviews.

  It seems like one of the main themes we keep encountering in our study of China is that China is not as simple as some people would have you believe. I liked how Jon Stewart said at the end of his interview with Philip Pan that “[he] seem[s] to be making the case that China is a complex country of 1.3 billion people.”

  The more we try to study China with open minds, the more we will be able to understand why it is the way it is. As we we begin to understand its people,culture, and politics we will then have a better foundation to understand how business works there.

• 9. Anthony Kallioinen  |  January 5th, 2011 at 8:53 pm

  Jon Stewart is a god. These clips are fantastic illustrations about the daily show’s theme of satire in America all the while showing that no one is above the “absurdity” (even Spain gets a little). What these clips best illustrate though is that all of the things that China is accused of doing wrong are things that we do wrong in our country. In this way we are alike and are treated as such. What’s surprising to me is that these other people, reporting these occurrences (lip-syncing) was actual news. Who cares? What was more interesting to me was that the Chinese government went so far as to choose another girl. The underage gymnasts issue was slightly more serious to me, being that an unfair advantage comes with youth in the gymnastics arena. That being said, it is great that these athletes were given and pushed towards such an opportunity.

  Another great clip is the one I found while doing research on the managerial crisis of the toy company Mattel. http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-august-16-2007/great-recall-of-china. China is apparently our best friend poisoning us with lead!

• 10. Chris Bruns  |  January 5th, 2011 at 10:08 pm

  Classic John Stewart, he gets me every time…..
  This type of humor is amazing because Stewart can show us how silly we can all be. As a somewhat ‘realist’ I understand that the news stations need to create excitement and sensationalism with the stories they report. At the time of the Olympic, it is my opinion that it was easy for the American public to be amazed by the mystic and culture of China. I remember watching the opening ceremonies and watching the news, and then discussing these events shown with friends and classmates. Everyone, especially myself, was quick to have an opinion and to judge, recognizing differences and assuming that since it wasn’t the way we did things in the States, it must be wrong. As reported stories of things happening in Beijing continued to pile-up and become even more exaggerated, I believe they added to the fear and misunderstanding of China in the US.

  I had never been outside of the US, so after my under grad I took it upon myself to see the world and try to learn by experiencing cultures first hand. And while I am still a huge beginner at traveling and visiting new places, I am able to recognize the validity of the points that this blog post makes. I constantly need to remind myself that I am a guest, and that I should be patient and observe to try and understand what is going on in a new place with new people. I know that there is room for all types of opinions and ideals and ways to do things, so I need to sit-back, relax, and just roll with it.

• 11. Brady Haug  |  January 5th, 2011 at 10:10 pm

  Jon Stewart does an exceptional job at exposing some absurdities in both our culture and China’s. It is remarkable what has become acceptable in different cultures, including our own. I personally couldn’t believe the picture of the Spanish basketball team creating slits in their eyes. I am a huge Lakers fan and Pau Gasol is one of my favorite players. I’m embarrassed that he was part of the Spanish Olympic team. After viewing Jon Stewart’s monologues, it reminded me of a picture that I saw in my father’s college year book that followed the same ideas. I won’t expose which school it was, but when I was scanning through his college yearbook one time, I came across a picture of the German Club. The club photo consisted of all its members performing the Nazi salute. I was astonished that the picture somehow was allowed to be printed. The absurdity of this picture reminded me exactly of the basketball add.
  In reading through Professor Carr’s advice, I would certainly agree with all three parts. It’s important to observe and not interpret what we see to extreme degrees. What lens we look at other countries through, we must also apply that same lens to ourselves. I think these bits of advice tie into the “Avoid Cultural Gaffes” article, in that we must always remember while traveling, that we are entering into a world, that despite what we may think, we really know very little about.

• 12. Katie Moeller  |  January 6th, 2011 at 5:26 pm

  The video I found most interesting was the second one – both for its humor and how absurd some of the stories were. The government getting together to decide not to use the young singer, the debate on the age of the gymnasts, and Spain’s basketball ad. The first and third video did not provide much reaction. I did enjoy the fourth video as it discussed the power the government wants to continue to control on its people.

  My thoughts in general about this blog is that a lot of what people know about countries and cultures are from media stories. We see videos such as these and make judgments that the government is full of crazy, power-hungry, irrational people. However, there is probably a whole other side to the story that we don’t get exposed to. This is why I believe it is important for people to travel, learn about the world, and expose themselves to another way of life. This way we better ourselves, our knowledge, and reduce our ignorance. I take this to heart and I hope that after our China trip, it sparks this same mentality in other people.

• 13. Tim Easton  |  January 11th, 2011 at 7:43 pm

  I am a big Jon Stewart fan, and a frequent viewer of the Daily Show. I often agree with Jon Stewart’s take on many of the topics, but I like to be able to form my own opinions before hearing his. I thought the second and third clips were extremely funny and provided a pretty accurate view of how absurd both our cultures can be. The fourth clip was extremely intriguing, and I would like to read Phillip Pan’s book as you have recommended. Jon Stewart on Crossfire was unbelievable. His argument about how Crossfire had the potential to be a great show was spot on. I don’t watch Crossfire that often, but every time I do I never seem to get enough out of it to make me want to watch again.

  Dan had a great comment about the show “Outsourced” and the crazy soccer parents. I actually have seen a couple episodes of Outsourced and was laughing for the majority of the show. The show does a great job at revealing the differences between our cultures. As for the crazy soccer parents, I used to referee youth soccer and I was blown away by the things that I heard parents yell to their kids or me. It was unbelievable how mad some of the parents got during their 5 year olds soccer game. The difference between the U.S. and China is that most of the time in the U.S. parents sign their kids up to try a sport, but are able to quit after a season if they really dislike it. In China, as far as I understand, kids are sent to academies at young ages to train for a sport and there is no opportunity to quit.

• 14. Ashley Ogden  |  January 18th, 2011 at 9:05 am

  The most important thing about the second clip that Stewart is portraying is that we try to pin something on the Chinese as bad, when the US does the same thing. I thought the lip-syncing joke was really funny, especially when he compared it to the Super Bowl. I think it is also true with the young gymnasts; even though they might be young, think of the other possible outcomes for these girls. Americans have a tendency to think that our way is the right way and that everyone else is below us, so we easily dismiss them as wrong. I am going to make a conscious effort to look at things the way they are and try not to compare them to the American way while we are in China.

  I also think that Stewart was right when he implied that American don’t know Chinese history, furthermore that Americans don’t know World History. In school, I had two history classes: one semester of World History and one semester of Hawaiian History. I feel that if someone wants to know what is going on in the World and was has gone on in the past, the information will not come to you, you need to search it out. Stewart was getting at this point in the Crossfire interview. I thought it was really interesting that he called these “news reporters” out as “partisan hacks”. I think that that is true a lot and that you need to get your news from many sources so that you can get a complete understanding of the issue.

  Even in America, where we have free press, it is a chore to get the real news. I can’t imagine how hard it is to get the real news in a place like China. It is interesting the point that Mr. Pan stated that even though they are a Communist Party, they are delivering Capitalism. They have been able to survive this way, Pan states, but how long can it last?

• 15. Jason Jay Sharma  |  January 23rd, 2011 at 8:24 pm

  I’ll be honest—I’m not really a Jon Stewart fan. That being said, I can appreciate his take on the news and current events.

  As I watched these clips, the one on Olympic controversies was particularly interesting to me. This was mainly because I thought to myself “Here we go again,” when Jon Stewart ran clips of the “problems” Olympians would face while in China. I believe it might just be the news media or maybe the general mentality of American society to always look at the glass half empty when they discuss other countries. Sure, many people could tell me otherwise, but if America started looking the positives of other nations around the world, they might be willing to incorporate more of those positives for the betterment of our society.

  I agree is very important for visitors to any country to not take judging stand-point, but a learning one. If you have no interest in understanding new cultures or societies, you really shouldn’t be entering them to being with. This is particularly important when we, as graduate students, will be entering a nation so different than ours and what we would expect at home. If you want everything to be like home, why bother leaving home in the first place.

  When it comes to humor and satire, I think it’s great that if more people are willing to hear and understand when news is made humorous, go for it! It’s better than only having a smaller portion of our society keep up with current events. While I agree that Jon Stewart is a god when it comes to being a news source to more Americas, at the same time, I found it quite sad that traditional or “real” news outlets have lost such creditability in our “open society.”

• 16. Sarah Weinzapfel  |  January 24th, 2011 at 5:08 pm

  These videos were great. And a comment regarding people getting their daily dose of news from a comedy show; if that’s what it takes to get people informed and interested, so be it…

  Has anyone seen the show Toddlers and Tiaras? How do we have a show like that and then judge China for having underage gymnasts attend the Olympics? Seriously, before you ever have another judgmental thought about another culture, watch that. And Stewart makes a good point about their factory life alternative.

  When I read this post and watched these videos, my media stereotypes class that I took during my undergrad comes to mind. Stereotypes exist for a reason. They’re somewhat true. But not about everyone. And this is where our society and almost everyone else gets lazy. We have been trained from the beginning by our families and the fast paced media to make quick judgments of people based on their gender, race, appearance, etc. We continuously start potential relationships on the wrong foot. If something does develop, we are usually quick to find out that we were wrong, but if nothing does, you go on thinking it’s another someone placed in another certain category.

  The advice given here is extremely valuable. I think it is very important to go into this adventure and foreign culture with an open mind and be accepting. Sometimes it’s hard for us to understand why certain cultures do certain things or say or think certain things, but before we judge, we have to realize that there is something behind it. Just like our Organizational Behavior class touched on. Everyone has their own world view and this, in turn, is why everyone thinks, says, and does certain things. We have to realize there is something else there and try and get behind that to understand (not agree with) it.

  On sort of an unrelated note, the Chasing the Dragon video made me think of China: A Fragile Superpower. The book (and even Philip Pan in the other video) talk about how much more free the government has become and the theme of the Chasing the Dragon video was their authoritarian presence; the level of security, the restricted press, and the continued power of the government. It makes it hard for me to get a sense of how the government really operates and how repressed the Chinese people actually feel.

• 17. Will Moeller  |  January 27th, 2011 at 7:38 am

  Honestly, I’ve never laughed out loud at anything Jon Stewart said. The last time he was funny was in the 2000 movie Big Daddy with Adam Sandler. Usually, I do appreciate good, sarcastic humor. Jon Stewart, however, is way too over-the-top with his delivery, and his funniest moments are when he’s screaming obscenities. Anyone can do that.

  That said, I do appreciate what Jon Stewart does. He applies some simple common sense to ridiculous situations. That, in and of itself, is funny. When people take themselves too seriously, Jon Stewart takes them to task.

  I will admit, the part about lip syncing the ode to the motherland song at the Olympics was pretty funny…”the government got together and decided you were ugly.” Imagine what the parents of the little girl in that situation had to tell her… Furthermore, I remember seeing this on the news when it happened in 2008. In this case, China tried to make itself look good on the international stage, and it backfired. This is not a new story to those of us preparing for the trip. James Fallows talks about how the CCP can be too focused on what happens within China’s borders to be able to know how it will come off on the international stage.

  One big shocker in the same video was the Spanish players’ “salute” to China. This caught my attention because I’m a big basketball fan. I’m not sure how I missed this the first time it was in the news, but that was pretty unbelievable. I’m surprised that someone, somewhere in the organization didn’t put the kibosh on it. I mean, knowing that you’re about to compete in an international event, why would you go out of your way to offend the host country? Why would you do that ever?

• 18. Kristine Spencer  |  January 27th, 2011 at 6:53 pm

  Like almost everyone else, I am a huge fan of Jon Stewart and his view on politics and the world. I use his show as a primary new source, along with online news sources. I trust Jon Stewart and feel like he gives an accurate report of the news from his perspective. Because he is a comedian, I feel like he is capable of speaking more freely and honestly about issues and news. All of these videos are great and express a lot of peoples current frustration with the hypocrisy of politics. There is a reason why the video of Jon Stewart on Crossfire had almost 3.5 million views; people appreciate Stewart’s sincerity and honest criticism of politicians’ idea of “debate,” or theater that produces little results. In regards to the Olympics, it seemed as though everyone was watching and waiting for something to go wrong in China, more specifically, for their government to mess up. Any mistake, such as the gymnast ages, seemed to be a taken as “Capitalism is better than Communism, we would never do that!” And on the other side, China saw the Olympics as an open stage to show the world that they can be elaborate, futuristic, and deserving of being a world superpower.

  Obviously whenever you travel to another place, one should respect the country, people, and culture. It is important to take in the surroundings and lifestyle as the locals do, and not compare apples to oranges by comparing one culture to another. I believe that personal growth can come from seeing different cultures and appreciating them for what they are. That is one reason why I am excited to travel to China, because I have never been to that area of the world and I assume that life is completely different than what I have ever experienced.

• 19. Matt Streiter  |  February 5th, 2011 at 1:50 pm

  Jon Stewart is awesome. Especially in these four clips, he is not making fun of the Chinese really, he is making fun of Americans stereotyping the Chinese. The controversy of having another “cuter” girl sing another girl’s song may seem unfair and insensitive to Americans, but in actuality it is not far from what occurs in this country. Public figures are covered with makeup followed by enhanced photos to a point where you don’t even recognize them when seen outside of the spotlight. And who knows how many talented people haven’t been given the same opportunities as their more attractive counterparts.

  Pan’s interview also shed a different light on China’s society than expected by most people. From the U.S. standpoint, China is seen as inferior partly due to their Communist government, but Pan tells us that there is great unity among the citizens in China. Furthermore he describes that the one party government allows for the benefits of a capitalist society with little interference in exchange for the people allowing them to stay in power. This differs from the perception of most people who view the Chinese government as one who dictates every aspect of the Chinese citizens.

  I enjoy watching his show because it is informative and informal. You are able to gather news, although it may not be as informative as other channels, from a different perspective. He points out the absurdities and the contradictions in the news that are relevant, mostly. Unlike another political news reporter who shall remain nameless (Glen Beck) who makes numerous outlandish Nazi references in today’s society, I believe Jon Stewarts opinions are more grounded and relevant.

• 20. Tyler Sereno  |  February 8th, 2011 at 6:33 pm

  Jon Stewart is hilarious. I enjoyed watching these video clips. Shows like The Daily Show and Colbert Report are a great way to inform people about what is going on in America while keeping their attention with humor. They also attract a younger audience with their political humor. This is good because it is important for them to be aware of what goes on in the country. I learn more about politics and get more news from the Daily Show than any other news source.

  I thought the segments on the Beijing Olympics were great. The clip on the Chinese girl gymnists regarding their ages was good. They talk about what a lot of people were thinking, “there’s no way those girls are sixteen.” Then their reference to the girls being the same age as the young girls who work in the factories was informative of the Chinese culture. Many people are unaware of this and the Daily Show and Jon Stewart used humor and current events to inform people of Chinese culture.

• 21. Jessie Wilkie  |  February 13th, 2011 at 7:02 pm

  The video on the Olympic gymnasts made me laugh out loud. Especially at the end when he went on his tyrade about how we aren’t mad that they got the gold, just that they are exploiting these young girls for athlete sweatshops and that we’d rather see them in normal sweatshops making apparel for American children who will just quit the sports they do because they’re hard. I thought that this bitingly sarcastic rant was brilliant. It pointed out the fact that Americans are hypocritical and terrible and that American children are lazy. And it made the American audience laugh. It would have made Oscar Wilde proud because “If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they’ll kill you.”

  I thought the video clip with Riggle was hilarious too. Once again it made me laugh. But it also provided a lot of information on the authoritarian state of China in less than five minutes–all the security, the lack of free press, the monitoring of its citizens, etc. It was amazing how they started it in Tinamen Square too, referred to the opening ceremonies and how we’re “f***ed”, and how he got a pocket translator at first. All so funny, but then they transfer over to Epsteen who is an actual expert and the one who elaborates on the authoritarian state. It educates and entertains. Riggle and Epsteen made a great team.

  Phillip Pan’s interview with Stewart was good and informative. There was some humor mixed in with it, but it mostly focused on the serious material. China’s mixed system of government and economy, whether or not China is a threat to the US, etc. I might even go grab Out of Mao’s Shadow to read.

  Yes, Jon Stewart is still amazing.

• 22. Kyle R.  |  February 13th, 2011 at 10:07 pm

  I agree with Professor Carr in that we should watch and observe when we are in China, or any other country for that matter. I can’t stand it when I meet people claiming to know something when they really don’t or when somebody tries preaching their way of life as being better than others’. I believe other countries share this logic as we have been labeled annoying and disrespectful Americans. It seems as if there are too many people nowadays that don’t have respect for others. I hope our class can experience China in a respectful and appreciative manner.

  The John Stewart videos definitely point out some major issues that exist in China. The whole thing about the child singer being too ugly… that’s crazy. Aren’t there more important things in the country that need the attention of the government? Even though I don’t agree with some of the policy and way of life in China, I never plan on pushing the importance of democracy and capitalism when I visit. It is not my place to make those statements, nor is it respectful. I plan on watching and observing everything I can in China, while trying to experience and learn as much as possible.

• 23. Ben Raymond  |  February 16th, 2011 at 9:29 pm

  As usual, Jon Stewart made me laugh while at the same time bringing to my attention pertinent information. I am pretty familiar with the Beijing Olympics and remember the controversy over the pollution, lip syncing, and the Spanish basketball team. Although pollution was a huge issue heading into the Olympics, I never really heard any complaints during of after. I think that shows the Chinese governments ability to take action and meet demand. Their ability was also clearly demonstrated in the Opening Ceremony. The coordination and precision was very impressive to the whole world and the Chinese people must have been very proud. I think Stewart’s guest Phillip Pan was very informative and well educated on the issue. He made very valuable points about capitalism and how it is influencing China. I think a lot of Americans are paranoid that China has some grand plan to take over the world but it is clear that they are still focusing on keeping their own people happy. Pan raised another good point about the Chinese people’s expectations rising with their wealth. It will be very interesting to see how their expectations grow and how the government will accommodate them.

• 24. Randy Camat  |  February 18th, 2011 at 11:16 pm

  I would rather watch The Daily Show than almost any news channel, especially Fox News. The fact that the news can be distorted to make things seem more serious than they should is one reason I don’t like watching the news and would rather have Jon Stewart bring the issues back down to earth and entertain me at the same time. The second and third clips were very entertaining. Jon Stewart points out how ridiculous some of the “important” issues can be. One particular example was the controversy over the little girl lip singing during the opening ceremony. “How dare China do something we do at the superbowl every year!” was hilarious, but true. It gives us a moment to step back and ask ourselves, “Do we actually have a say in this? Do we do the same? If so, why should we be talking?” The third clip showed the reality behind the whole strict censorship and gave a the-government-is-always-watching sort of feeling. Rob Riggle did a great job portraying what seemed to be a common tourist naïve/ignorant attitude saying, “Oh! Is that this Tiananmen Square? I just told the camera man to set up in some place that looked Chinesey.”

• 25. JP Salazar  |  February 26th, 2011 at 10:04 pm

  I love Jon Stewart. I have always been a fan of his use of satire and irony and the smugness he exhibits on The Daily Show. I was very pleased to see him become the new anchor for that program. The greatest skill Mr. Stweart posesses is the ability to bring to light important and relivant topics through the use of humor. He is able to readh an entire generation/demographic of people who are normally not really connected with what is going on in the world around them. He uses humor to hook people and get them to begin to think about topics that they would otherwise ignore. This is an important role to carry as there is a certain level of responsibility that he muct adhere to. He is responsible for imforming and shaping the opinions of millions of people, despite the fact that he is on a comedy show. His appearance on Crossfire proves to me that he takes that responsibility seriously. He understands that while his program’s goal is to entertain, he is often seen by the public as an educator (including by the hosts of Crossfire). As such, I really appreciate his ability to poke fun at both sides fo an issue. While Jon Stewart is an outspoken liberal, he does not let that keep him from joking about the absudity from both parties. A great example of this is in his “Special Olympic” segment. While making fun of the Chinese decision that the origional signer for the opening ceremony was not cute enough, Mr. Stewart made sure to reference the absurdity of how bad the American media was looking for a problem to exploit. His ability to constantly challenge both sides of the issue is what brings me back to his program, time and time again.

• 26. Chris Fung  |  March 8th, 2011 at 1:32 am

  Yes, Jon Stewart has a way of poking fun at us and our own American idiosyncrasies. As noted above in some of my peers’ responses, Jon Stewart does a good job of showing how hypocritical we can be. With the videos on the Chinese Olympics, he is able to show the American people that while what the Chinese were doing might not have been the ideal way to handle situations, we as Americans are just as guilty at making those mistakes. Take for example the little girl singing the Chinese anthem. While I was disappointed after finding out she was lip-syncing, I don’t think it is fair to bash the Chinese for it. After all, we Americans think about image too – think about all of the supermodels and actresses that grace the magazine covers at the news stand. Also, some American singers have been caught lip-syncing too: recently Usher at a concert in Germany and Ashlee Simpson on Saturday Night Live.

  Also, people have complained about the female gymnast being too young to compete. However, I believe if I had a daughter with that much talent and can beat out the world’s best, I would be proud and have pushed her too. You don’t become great by just being pushed; you have to have the drive from within too. I’m pretty sure those girls were proud to represent their country just as every other athlete was proud to represent theirs. Overall, I thought the Chinese Olympics were among the best that I have seen and the Chinese deserve a lot of credit for making it a success that it was. And thanks for Jon Stewart for not jumping on the “bashing China” bandwagon and showing how silly us Americans can be when squabbling over such insignificant matters.

• 27. J Vail  |  March 14th, 2011 at 12:55 pm

  I regularly watch the daily show, so I have seen these clips before. The interview with Philip Pan was particularly interesting, because it was a lot more informative and detailed than the majority of the guests on the Daily Show (and definitely more so than the Colbert Report). Pan’s perspective on the Olympics themselves were personally thought provoking; I would have never thought that the grandiose opening ceremonies were for the country itself, but in perspective it makes a lot of sense. He also made a good point in rebutting Stewart’s point that the Chinese people are ‘fat and happy’ with the economic state like the government seems to be, but Pan mentions they as people get richer they still desire more from their government in terms of the environment and education, something the one-party system hasn’t accomplished.

  The Daily Show is a good counterpoint to accompany watching actual news, which far too often casts international in a serious, Americanized perspective. While I believe everyone should be respectful towards other cultures and that America as a nation has a massive problem with ethnic and political ignorance, it is also important to be able to laugh at one’s self and the implications of stereotypes. It also becomes even funnier when Fox News (which can barely be considered ‘news’, I guess ‘Fox Propaganda’ doesn’t roll off the tongue) tries to refute these observations. We all have superstitions, fears, and prejudices, but if we all consider ourselves equal human beings, I think we have the right to laugh at ourselves and common archetypes.

• 28. Omar Pradhan  |  May 9th, 2011 at 3:58 pm

  Philip Pan’s interview peaked my interest in his book…not because I have a shortage of things to read / occupy my time but because I’m trying to address an understanding gap. And I trust, along with many in my generation, that the people Jon Stewart interviews on his show are going to offer something of value… From what I can gather, the China I was taught to know (public school text books, mass media, military peers & mentors, etc.) and the China I am now learning about are seemingly two different entities… Again, when given the task to understand which reality maps most accurately, it is helpful to know that Jon Stewart, generally, (Rob Riggle, specifically, as displayed by his interview of Chinese social critic Gady Epstein) is there to cast a satirical light on both truth and fiction.

• 29. Grant  |  October 11th, 2011 at 3:57 pm

  First things first. Jon Stewart is a amazing. His ability to use humor and sarcasm to convey his message is genius because he can get away with saying something that he could never do in any other context. OK, enough about him.

  Other than entertainment, I got the most out of his interview with Philip Pan. Philip seems to grasp of the complexities of China. If I am understanding him, it seems like he is saying that the people want capitalism and they are embracing it, since communism has technically died, but the government still seeks control. So it appears as though they are giving the people just enough leash in terms of allowing capitalism, but not so much as to threaten the establishment. He said its as though the government made a deal with the people, ” You can have capitalism as long as we stay in power.” I think that sums it up well.

  He also said that the government was using the Olympics to say that a one party system is as effective as a democratic one. To me, that communicates that the government feels threatened that the people are thinking that a democratic system may be more effective, which affirms the first point above.

  It makes sense that a government that feels threatened by its own people would make its highest priority unity,as we saw in the earlier blog readings. If the masses can ascribe to that call to Unity, then it would make a person who would feel resistant to that unity feel guilty and may fear being considered an outcast. Quite powerful from a sociological perspective.

• 30. Kevin K.  |  December 19th, 2011 at 2:37 pm

  I am always amazed at how much I laugh and learn while watching the Daily Show. The third link that profiled the press in China during the Olympics was hilarious. As a former journalist it was great insight into the difference in values of the two cultures. In the US we have freedom of speech and freedom of the press. In China, as seen with the Great Firewall, all this information is regulated.

  In the Pan interview, he states the main dilemma of China as being communism vs. capitalism, most notably he said that communism as an ideology is dead. This is not something we hear when speaking about China — it’s always about how China is thriving despite communist beliefs. Another point I found to be true is how the US is using capitalism and trade as a way to assimilate ourselves with China, in a sense making buddies with them before they become the world’s economic bully.

  In regards to Prof. Carr’s list above, I completely agree with the whole non-preaching mindset. China is China, we have to accept it. We also must observe it — and as Jon Steward points out, it’s okay to make fun of it as well.

• 31. Vladimir  |  December 19th, 2011 at 9:34 pm

  I’m not much of a Jon Stewart fan. He’s not that funny, but he provides a nice comedic supplement to the regular news programs. While he’s more entertaining than Fox News, MSNBC, or CNN, I think a person will learn more by watching those channels, preferably a combination of them to get exposed to multiple sides of the issues. Then watch Jon Stewart for dessert.

  There’s a difference between the lip synching in the Olympic opening ceremony and that in the Super Bowl. The singer and lip syncher were both children. If officials wanted the world to see a girl who was “flawless in image, internal feeling, and expression”, they should have found a girl who had the visual as well as the vocal qualities they wanted. As for the allegedly underage gymnasts, world class gymnasts commonly start training by kindergarten anyway.

  Though I differ on Jon Stewart’s godness, I agree about keeping an open mind on the trip. It would serve me better to observe, figure out what is going on, and try to understand why it is how it is, than it would for me to simply judge what I see against American standards. This will be easier said than done, since I’ll have an internalized American life experience and not be a blank slate.

• 32. Charles Dornbush  |  December 20th, 2011 at 5:04 pm

  I thought of all of the video clips the interview with Phillip Pan was the most revealing. The first three clips did touch on American stereotypes of the Chinese; not only in the advertisements but also in assuming that China is going to take over the world. It was also notable to see that they wouldn’t allow journalists to film on the streets and not even at Papa John’s.

  The interview with Pan struck me because it helped me realize how the government has kept such a tight hold on its people. As long as rapid economic growth and prosperity envelop China, there will not be enough discontent to cause the uprising America is expecting. China’s government has realized that communism is a dead system, but instead of clinging to it like the USSR, they have given the people what they wanted, capitalism. The Chinese government has expertly used capitalism to maintain their power and because of the new prosperity, few in China want to change the status quo.

• 33. Daniel Fleek  |  December 23rd, 2011 at 4:51 pm

  The sarcasm around the age of the Chinese gymnasts was hilarious. I love how Jon Steward breaks it down to basically say the USA is jealous that they are better than us. In fact, it they were younger than 16, who cares and the “forensics” evidence seemed like an extreme stretch of proof that they were younger than 16.

  Philip Pan’s analysis on China today was the most interesting part of the video. I liked the comment on how the Chinese government is using the Olympics to help convince its people that a one party system is just as efficient as multi-party governments which was symbolized in the perfect synchronization of the elaborate Olympic ceremonies. Also, Pan brings up a good point that today most Chinese people will allow for a one party system as long as the government allows capitalism since the government has delivered its promise on economic growth. In fact, the clip “chasing the dragon” showed the totalitarian side of the government where they were not even allowed to film in front of Papa Johns. However, Pan also brings up the point that as the country advances economically, their people will expect more out of the government such as environmental awareness and human rights. I believe the Chinese government proved to the world and its people during the Olympics that it has evolved to be more caring of its peoples demands which was shown when the air was actually clean enough for athletic events, which many people doubted would happen.

• 34. Jeffrey Brown  |  January 23rd, 2012 at 12:24 am

  The part that really made me think in those segments was at the end of the last one, when Phillip Pan was describing the expectations of the growing wealthy population in China. How will the government keep up, is it even possible, and what happens when/if they cannot?

  I did enjoy the other segments as well and Jon Stewart definitely has a gift when it comes to putting things into perspective. It is interesting to look at the flip side of the coin and wonder what China thinks about us - do they have a Jon Stewart equivalent?

• 35. Ashley Tyra  |  January 24th, 2012 at 11:49 pm

  Jon Stewart never fails to make me laugh. I love that he isn’t afraid to make fun of anything, including his own show. The Daily Show has a unique opportunity to criticize opinions expressed in the news in a funny way. The controversy over the ages of the gymnasts shows how we see the bad only when we are looking for it. Jon Stewart points out that if these young girls weren’t gymnasts they would be in sweatshops making shoes for our athletes. We can’t accept a gymnastics sweatshop because it allowed China to win the gold medal, but we can ignore the existence of real sweatshops because they benefit us in the end.

  I agree that we need to keep an open mind about China. Like Pan expressed in the interview, China is different from what Americans believe it to be. The government is not planning a great scheme to pull the table cloth out from under the United States, nor is it trying to take over the world — the government is, at the moment, just trying to maintain power.

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