The Shawn Report

Colbert, Stewart, and Moore: Who is The Most Effective?

When it comes to these three political satirists, it is hard to compare because all three have unique styles. Colbert has his mock ,right-wing news show "The Colbert Report" where he blends political and wacky humor. His mentor ,John Stewart, has ‘The Daily Show" where he blends actual news, political humor, and mocking Fox News every chance he gets. Michael Moore is the more politically direct of the three. While he is not a comedian, his body of work including movies and a talk show are no less notable of the three. So when comparing to see who is the most effective political satirist, I am compare by seeing who is funny, engaging and insightful.

Stephen Colbert is the most effective of the three. The character he plays is perfect for the political climate we live in. It allows him to be funny as possible while still mocking inane politicians, talk show hosts, and pop culture. Colbert character allows him to mock The Bill O'Reilly’s of the world while still relating something to Miley Cyrus. Colbert can talk about any subject on his show and still reference political humor, as his character of a right wing political commentator, allows him to express views in a humorous way. For political humor to be accessible to the political novice, who does not know all the ins and outs of politics, being able to make jokes that relates to both, is something Colbert does all the time and does it superbly. What also makes Colbert so effective is that you can see he loves what he does. He’s having fun and that makes you enjoy watching him. He does not take himself seriously at all, so the material that can sometimes be weighty, with topics such as a plane crash can be the most hilarious of material in Colbert’s hands. Colbert is in his prime and clearly the best in late night TV and political satire.

I think Michael Moore is easily the most politically focused of three. He is less "jokes" and more showing why something is stupid. I think that the character that he sometimes invokes in his movies as a seemingly uneducated oaf who goes to great lengths to get answers is genius. When he interviews people who are doing wrong things to people, he gives up the act and makes these people he’s mocking look like utter fools. It’s a great political satire style. It’s funny, engaging, and thought provoking. The only issue with Moore, is that he himself is not truly funny. He is not being goofy or wacky with his material. That is what sets him and Colbert apart for me in terms of who is the most effective. I feel a great political satirist’s should not be so reliant on just politics but relate politics with American society’s views on pop culture. Moore does not do that in a way that Colbert and Stewart does. But Michael Moore has a different goal than just being funny. His goal is not to make you laugh; it is to entertain you but to also educate you about what is going on in the world. His various movies like "Sicko" and "Capitalism: A Love Story" are tales of bad people in politics doing bad things and Moore shining a light and getting us to care. So while Moore is not "funny", the reaction he gets, from despicable people when their acts come to light, is.

John Stewart is the least effective. When I watch any of these three men work, Stewart is the only one that is background noise. He just does not perform at a great level anymore. Stewart is not bad; he just is not great anymore. He is just average and that’s the problem. His time has passed, and maybe he knows it. From 2000-2008, Stewart was the best in late night TV. Every night felt interesting, and every night he brought it. His humor was always excellent because of his timing of jokes and his chemistry with guests. Stewart’s style of show of showing just how real news is disgustingly biased, dull, and vapid was original, especially when he went after Fox News. But now, it just feels like he is going through the motions. This summer, it certainly felt like that when John Oliver took over for Stewart; As Stewart went to go shoot a movie. A movie he wrote and directed. This move shows that "The Daily Show" is not Stewart’s number one priority anymore. With the same writers, Oliver felt like a breath of fresh air. He felt energized. He felt like he actually liked his job. Because of this, Stewart has to be the worst. His style and show is ripe with potential for great political humor. The writing is still good and material still has zip, but the man saying the jokes has lost his.

While all three may have some faults, they all have done great work in the past. While Stewart is past his prime, there is still hope that he can get motivated to do the great work he is capable of. Michael Moore has not made a movie in four years but when he does, it’ll sure to be direct and engaging. Making big corporations, politicians, and anybody else who is doing wrong to the American dream, Michael Moore is sure to get on their bad side. Colbert is doing great work, and as long as he does not end up like his mentor and get bored, he should make quality satire for as long as the right wing gives him material.