On Oct. 30, thousands of Americans will flock to our nation’s capital to attend a joint rally held by Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Stewart’s ‘Rally to Restore Sanity’ and Colbert’s ‘March to Keep Fear Alive’ promise to walk the line between comedic satire and legitimate political concern.

In a continuously changing media world, Stewart and Colbert have succeeded in finding a way to get their voices heard by a growing number of people who are interested in politics, but bored by the conventional network coverage. The dedicated and loyal followers can bring reason to Washington, D.C. Political debate that tries to unite a nation, instead of tear the country apart.

Stewart said the rally is for Americans who think, ‘I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore.’ Americans ‘who feel that the loudest voices shouldn’t be the only ones that get heard.’

The rally was planned in response to Glenn Beck’s ‘Rally to Restore Honor,’ which took place on Aug. 28. Although it’s unclear exactly how many people attended Beck’s rally, estimates have gone as high as 500,000. The rally, which took place on the 47th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, drew both rampant criticism and media attention.

The anticipated popularity of this event represents a fundamental change in the way people receive their news. Both ‘The Daily Show with Jon Stewart’ and ‘The Colbert Report’ have amassed huge followers, and more and more people are turning away from traditional news sources to get their information.

‘The Daily Show,’ according to an Indiana University study, ‘is just as substantive as network coverage.’ In 2003, ‘The Daily Show’ garnered national media attention when presidential candidate John Edwards announced his candidacy on air. Political humor shows suddenly became a platform for legitimate news and political developments.

The Comedy Central hosts look to attract an audience of people who are politically minded, first, and fans of comedy, second. While the rally will undoubtedly have some of the same antics as the late-night television shows, the event will also discuss and debate real political issues as well.

The rally has the potential to attract hundreds of thousands of people to the National Mall. More than 145,000 people have said they will be attending Jon Stewart’s rally on Facebook, while Colbert has tallied over 70,000 already confirmed.

The rise in popularity of both ‘The Daily Show’ and ‘The Colbert Report’ is indicative of another important trend in politics: young people getting involved. In the 2008 election, there was an increase in voters who were 18 years old to 29 years old. Both Stewart and Colbert try to attract this demographic, and while announcing the rally, Colbert said, ‘This is the time to be heard, young people.’

The rally has been planned just five days before midterm elections on Nov. 4. According to a CBS report, Stewart has always claimed that ‘his show is only about comedy.’ But the timing of the event provides ‘evidence that his ambitions are far larger.’

The midterm elections have the potential to swing the power pendulum either way in Washington, D.C., and only time will tell if the rally has any effect on what party prevails come Election Day.

Stewart and Colbert have made a living combining comedy and politics, and this rally is sure to warrant a lot of national attention. With expected numbers of attendees in the hundreds of thousands, Stewart perhaps said it best when he announced, ‘The rally is fo’ realzz.’

Benjamin Klein is junior political science and magazine journalism major. His column appears weekly, and he can reached at btklein@syr.edu.

 

Published on September 29, 2010 at 12:00 pm