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Stewart Proves O'Reilly Wrong
28-Sep-2004
Written by: Brenna Boyce
O'Reilly's claims unfounded, Stewart's audience well-educated.
Those who watch Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" get the joke. The show, which runs five nights a week, masters the art of sarcastic and biting coverage of real news, mixed with over-the-top interviews and goofy think pieces. The highly acclaimed, Emmy-Award-winning stronghold of the comedy-fuelled station, "The Daily Show" masters the coveted 18-35 year-old demographic. That's why, in a September 17 interview with conservative talk show host Bill O'Reilly where O'Reilly called the viewers of Stewart's program "stoned slackers" and "dopey kids", the executives at Comedy Central took offense.
O'Reilly opened the short interview by saying "You know what's really frightening? You actually have an influence on this presidential election. That is scary, but it's true. You've got stoned slackers watching your dopey show every night and they can vote."
Not to be outdone, Stewart (known as a king of comebacks) was not phased by the comment, and added "This election is going to rely on the undecided.". "And who is more undecided than stoned slackers? Ice cream or pretzels? Ice cream or pretzels? What's it going to be?"
But the heads at Comedy Central were still concerned by the statement, knowing that "The Daily Show" attracts a smart audience, not a group of "stoned slackers". In a press release issued today, the Daily Show fought back with ironic evidence.
The press release broke dramatic evidence that not only proves that Stewart's viewers are far from "dopey", but reveals the real audience behind the accusatory O'Reilly. The data was collected by a National Annenberg Election Survey and revealed that "Research conducted by COMEDY CENTRAL reveals that the viewers of "The Daily Show" are 78% more likely than the average adult to have four or more years of college education and 74% more likely than the average adult to have a household income of greater than $75,000 and an occupation of 'professional, owner or manager'." With respect to "The O'Reilly Factor", "viewers of the Fox News Channel's signature show are only 24% more likely than the average adult to have four or more years of college education and, amazingly, are 15% less likely than the average adult to have a household income of greater than $75,000 and an occupation of 'professional, owner or manager'."
O'Reilly has not yet commented on the press release.
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