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Fake News
"Rather than being bored by the anchors on CNN, MSNBC, or Fox News – comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert keep us up on current events through comedy – with a grain of truthiness."
By Natalie Streiter
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Youth Radio's Natalie Streiter says more and more, young people are turning to political comedy like Jon Stewart's The Daily Show for news updates. And these comedy shows' influence is starting to show up in the polls. This year, ten of thousands voted on one word to describe the year 2006. Voters picked the word "truthiness", a word coined by political comedian Stephen Colbert. Natalie tells us why. (January 13 on WABE)
If you could pick one word to describe 2006, what would it be? War, scandal, corruption? Well, according to the tens of thousands who voted for the “Word of the Year” on the Merriam-Webster website, none of these words quite captured the essence of 2006 like “truthiness,” a word coined by political comedian Stephen Colbert.
Many teens already know the definition of “truthiness”: truth that comes from the gut, not books. The popularity of this term successfully proves the influence that the fake news shows on Comedy Central exert.
Young Americans, including myself, are often choosing to get their daily dose of political information from programs like The Daily Show. Rather than being bored by the anchors on CNN, MSNBC, or Fox News – comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert keep us up on current events through comedy – with a grain of truthiness.
Although The Daily Show clearly states that it is not the most reliable source for political info, the teenage demographic that tunes in is politically astute.
These comedians slash newscasters have gained the confidence of young watchers, helping them look beyond conflicting facts presented from news networks, by showing them the truthiness.
- Youth Radio Atlanta is produced in cooperation with WABE and funded in part by The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
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