September 1, 2008
Yes We Can Make Fun of Obama
Daily DNC Coverage Proves Me Wrong--But Also Right
Kudos to The Daily Show for creating watchable Democratic National Convention coverage. I have to admit I liked the choice to go light on interviews in favor of correspondent-heavy coverage. In fact, one of my favorite moments was Friday's sequence recapping the correspondent escapades during the convention. In normal weeks, the reporters don't get to interact with the outside world; Friday's clips showed that the comedians hadn't lost the ability to do guerilla improv in public.
John Oliver tried (unsuccessfully) to infiltrate the BBC security based solely on his accent. Rob Riggle and Jason Jones hassled a young, enthusiastic Obama supporter. Samantha Bee rode on Jason Jones' shoulders one moment; the next, the two engaged in a screaming match in front of a surprised delegate then fell passionately into each others' arms. Aasif Mandvi asked Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha what he hoped not to get done. Sadly, Murtha revealed an entirely absent sense of humor, asking indignantly, "What kind of question is that?" and storming off. My guess is that most of these moments were unscripted, which is why they were a beautiful opportunity to see the team in action. Their presence at such a serious political event challenged the attendees' expectations, and it was clear from some of the angry responses that the DNP was just as capable of taking itself too seriously as the GOP.
The crew also made good on the voiceover's threat to show the "24-hour 'snooze' networks" how it was done. At one point, John Oliver waved a '"wrap it up" sign up at ABC's broadcaster, provoking another angry outburst. In another scene, three DS correspondents stood in front of another on-air reporter, banging a pot and chanting "Choke! Choke! Choke!" Rob Riggle challenged Jim Lehrer to a staring contest at Lehrer's own desk. And of course, the intro sequence, in which Jason Jones accompanied Anderson Cooper to a "meeting" with the rest of the team, who were clad in gangsta attire and playing craps. The scene ended with Riggle picking up Cooper and shaking him a little. It was disorienting but hilarious to see real news and fake news so closely intertwined.
The in-studio coverage, on the other hand, brought another moment of victory for me. As readers will recall, I noted back in July that Samantha Bee's disappearance and Wyatt Cenac's appearance eerily mirrored the actual political scene after Hillary's loss and Obama's victory. On Wednesday's show, the writers made a joke explicitly acknowledging the Cenac-Obama/ Bee-Clinton parallel.
