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Maria Cosma
Cynthia Mazzant
CAS 137H
30 November 2012
Newspaper, T.V., Internet, and…Infotainment?
From the first few moments of the show, you know you’re in for a good time. Upbeat and
jazzy rock music plays in the background, while a deep voice announces, "October 31st, 2012!
From Comedy Central's World News Headquarters in New York, this is ‘The Daily Show’ with
John Stewart!" Fun introductory graphics play across the screen, and then camera zooms in on a
man furiously writing his last set of notes, while a live studio audience goes wild in the
background. The noise is unbelievable, and Jon Stewart eventually looks up, takes notice of the
camera, and starts cheering along with his enthusiastic fans, “BOOM! BOOM! Wow…” With a
rapid but subtle change in intonation, he quiets his loving crowd in a heartbeat. He then adopts a
comical expression of sincerity, and asks, "Did you ever have one of those days where
everything you loved as a child is...underwater?" This quirky question launches a hilarious skit
about the effects of Hurricane Sandy in New York, which according to Stewart, has left one part
perfectly all right, and the other, akin to “a little North Korea.” The rest of the show is filled with
such satirical humor, as he weaves clips, pictures, and segments (like the “Tribute to Institutional
Competence”) into a never-ending stream of jokes. Stewart moves through topics at a rapid pace,
and no joke stays on for longer than fifteen seconds. But despite the seemingly haphazard tone of
this clip-frenzy, every piece is carefully planned, and every joke is knowingly crafted for a
specific audience that is growing in number. Over the past decade, young adults and adolescents,
approximately between the ages of 18-29, have been tuning in with a growing frequency to a
different form of media: infotainment.
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In order to understand this recent trend, we first need to look at the progression of media
trends in general, in particular the effects of the Internet during the past few decades.
Newspapers, technologically the most traditional source of news, have seen a general decline in
readership among all age groups; however, there exists a visible generation gap in readership of
print newspapers, and especially in the comparison of print and online readership. A 2009 study
by the Pew Research Center found that “those in the oldest age cohort -- the Greatest/Silent
Generations (born before 1946) -- were more than twice as likely as those in the youngest
generation at that time (Generation X) to read a newspaper yesterday (65% vs. 31%).” Today,
while 55% of the Greatest/Silent Generations stated that they read the newspaper yesterday, that
number was only 27% for Generation Y (born after 1977). Additionally, 16% of those born after
1977 stated that they read the print version, compared to 14% who read them online; for those
born before 1946, those numbers are 55%, and 4% respectively ("Newspapers Face a
Challenging Calculus”). Newspapers can no longer capture and maintain the interest of young
readers, and print sources have become comparatively inconvenient with the advent of online
media.
This trend can also be seen for television media, specifically the nightly news broadcasts.
A 2000 Pew Research Center study found that “Many more college graduates under the age of
50 go on the Internet every day than regularly watch one of the nightly network news broadcasts.
And generally, the survey finds that people who are interested in the news and go online tend to
watch less network TV news.” Once again, there is a generational divide: Only 44% of those
under the age of 30 said that they watched TV news yesterday, compared to 51% among those
aged 30-49, and 67% for people aged 50 and over. The study also states, “While younger people
don’t like the news so much, they do like having a wide variety of information sources from
which to choose. Older Americans, who have a greater affinity for the news, often feel
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overwhelmed by the increasingly crowded media landscape” ("Internet Sapping Broadcast News
Audience”). However, television still remains incredibly popular, especially among Americans
aged 12-34 (Stelter, “Youths Are Watching, but Less Often on TV”). But the nature of television
has drastically changed with the addition of a seemingly unlimited number of channels, and the
availability of TV shows online around the clock. We have access to anything we want to watch:
reality TV, soap operas, traditional news channels, historical channels, sitcoms, cartoons, etc.
And as Dolf Zollman keenly puts it, “Choice is the issue, if not the problem, because there is so
much that must be passed up” (16). In other words, we choose what we watch, and as a result,
shows have become increasingly tailored for micro-audiences. This snowball effect is eroding
the idea of a mass media, as shows cater to specific age, gender, ethnic, racial, and
socioeconomic groups.
Infotainment shows (i.e., “The Daily Show,” “The Colbert Report,” and “Saturday Night
Live”) have seen a spike in young adult viewers, and an increasing amount are turning to these
shows instead of the big broadcasting networks for their news. In 2000, 9% of people aged 18-29
cited "The Daily Show" and "Saturday Night Live" as a place where they regularly learned
presidential campaign news; however, that number jumped to 21% in 2009, and it is still
growing (Bauder, “Young Get News from Comedy Central”). A 2012 Los Angeles Times poll
found that, “among those age 18 to 29, almost 1 in 5 said they got news daily or more often from
Comedy Central hosts Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert” (Rainey, “Voters Still Tuned in to
Traditional News Media, Poll Finds”). A 2011 study found that while audiences of Fox News
Channel, CNN, and MSNBC are aging, and their number of viewers is stagnating, Comedy
Central’s shows have a growing viewership. According to data released by the network, “The
Daily Show” audience rose by 7%, while “The Colbert Report” rose by 2% (Powell, "New
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Comedy Central Ads: ‘You Can Trust Us for Political Coverage’”). Statistically, the trend is
glaringly obvious, but this of course begs the question: Why is this shift happening?
At the heart of the answer is the idea that adolescents and young adults have different
psychological predispositions, and this is becoming increasingly pertinent as the “Internet
generation” comes of age. Kathleen Arendt explains:
Adolescents have a different, broader and more functional concept
of information. Even though formats like talk shows and
infotainment news do not provide sufficient coverage of political
issues, adolescents consider them relevant information sources
since these formats serve their informational needs concerning
topics they consider important. (60)
In other words, while broadcasting networks cover a wider variety of news (both political and
not) in order to reach an older and more diverse audience, infotainment shows have the freedom
to focus on more specific topics. As such, though they are riddled with satire and humor,
adolescents are more willing to watch these shows for political coverage. Arendt also states that,
“different from adults, adolescents are characterized by a distinct entertainment-oriented media
use focusing heavily on audio-visual media” (58). Though today’s news broadcasts are typically
riddled with clips, sound bites, and infographics, they pale in comparison with the heavilysaturated and more rapid-paced infotainment shows. This succeeds in capturing and maintaining
young viewers’ attentions, allowing them to feel more engaged while watching “The Colbert
Report” than “Meet the Press.”
Of course, the most striking and compelling feature about infotainment is the fact that it
is primarily entertainment. In his article, “‘The Daily Show’ Revolution,” Michael Cornfield
states, “Stewart and company have taken political humor into new territory… ‘The Daily Show’
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has pioneered and perfected three new ways of making people laugh about politics.” The first
way Cornfield lists is the perfection of presenting and incorporating the latest video clips;
Stewart will often use a clip as a set-up for a joke, and then his reaction will serve as the punch
line. Additionally, Stewart not only satirizes politics and politicians, but also the media coverage
of politics. As Cornfield explains, this tactic “feeds off the objectivity and credibility crisis
besetting mainstream media.” Given the large amount of distrust in our culture for yellow
journalism and “the first to the post” campaign coverage, cynical young viewers will find it
equally entertaining to poke fun at this major flaw in our society. The third way Stewart
entertains his viewers is through his “shambush” interviews. Rather than asking difficult or
hostile questions, he attempts to make the interviewee look foolish through clever wordplay and
humorous reactions. This ultimately forces Stewart’s distinguished guests to adopt his tone and
sense of humor, and willingly acknowledge the more foolish parts of politics with a light heart.
Though Cornfield focuses on “The Daily Show” as an example, these tactics are characteristic of
other infotainment shows, such as “The Colbert Report” and “Saturday Night Live” (which,
instead of interviews, asks its celebrity guests to participate in skits of self-deprecating humor).
Needless to say, this form of comedy hits the funny bones of adolescents and young adults. By
watching these shows, they can express their dissatisfaction with politics through laughter, while
simultaneously gaining political information.
In the past decade, there has been a considerable increase in the amount of adolescents
who use infotainment as a news source, as oppose to traditional media such as broadcast news
networks. But this trend asks more questions than it answers. The biggest concern is that
infotainment fans are not adequately informed about politics, and will therefore make poor
electoral decisions. Another big concern is that these comedians will only generate cynicism
about the system and lower voter turnout, and it is already so difficult to get young adults to the
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booths. Though it will take more time and studies to accurately understand the effects of this
shift, one thing is seems certain: This is only the beginning. Perhaps in ten more years,
infotainment will be as prominent and influential as broadcasting news.
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Works Cited
Arendt, Kathleen. "Adolescents and Politics – a Match Made in the Media? On the Role of
Entertainment-Education for Political Education." Journal of Social Science Education 7
(2008): 56-73. Print.
Bauder, David. "Young Get News from Comedy Central." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 11 Feb.
2009. Web. 23 Oct. 2012. <http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-207_162-603270.html>.
Cornfield, Michael. "'The Daily Show' Revolution." Campaigns and Elections (1996) 26.8
(2005): 34. EBSCOhost. EBSCOhost Industries, Inc., Sept. 2005. Web. 27 Oct. 2012.
"Internet Sapping Broadcast News Audience." Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center for
the People & the Press, 11 June 2000. Web. 25 Nov. 2012. <http://www.peoplepress.org/2000/06/11/internet-sapping-broadcast-news-audience/>.
Kim, Young M., and John Vishak. "Just Laugh! You Don’t Need to Remember: The Effects of
Entertainment Media on Political Information Acquisition and Information Processing in
Political Judgment." Journal of Communication 58.2 (2008): 338-60.Wiley Online
Library. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 9 July 2008. Web. 25 Oct. 2012.
"Newspapers Face a Challenging Calculus." Pew Research Center. Pew Research Center for the
People & the Press, 26 Feb. 2009. Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
<http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1133/decline-print-newspapers-increased-online-news>.
Powell, Tracie. "New Comedy Central Ads: ‘You Can Trust Us for Political Coverage.’”
Poynter.org. The Poynter Institute, 21 Sept. 2012. Web. 23 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/making-sense-of-news/188480/new-daily-show-adcampaign-pitch-you-can-trust-us/>.
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Rainey, James. "Voters Still Tuned in to Traditional News Media, Poll Finds." Los Angeles
Times. Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2012. Web. 23 Oct. 2012.
<http://articles.latimes.com/2012/aug/24/nation/la-na-media-poll-20120824>.
Stelter, Brian. "Youths Are Watching, But Less Often on TV." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 09 Feb. 2012. Web. 26 Nov. 2012.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/09/business/media/young-people-are-watching-butless-often-on-tv.html?pagewanted=all>.
Zillmann, Dolf. “The Coming of Media Entertainment.” Media Entertainment : The Psychology
Of Its Appeal. n.p.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers, 2000. eBook Collection
(EBSCOhost). Web. 25 Oct. 2012.