I’m trying something a little different today. In between working on other things, I thought I’d pop out a few shorter blog posts about items in my current stack of Safari tabs. I know this is actually how a lot of other folks blog, but it’s a new concept for me. In the past, I’ve saved up things to link to with the idea that I’d actually write something pithy and insightful about each one. If you’ve ever visited this site, you know how well that’s turned out. So…

The first little tidbit for today is this NPR interview with The Daily Show’s Stephen Colbert. I saw Colbert perform at Second City in Chicago years ago, before he did Strangers With Candy, and well before his Daily Show appearances. He was one of those standout performers who stuck in my memory even though it would be years before I saw his face again. His Daily Show segments are some of my favorite bits on the show.

Terry’s Gross’s interview is well worth a listen, though there is an understandable caginess with all great comedians, a reluctance to dissect their humor for fear of killing it. Colbert does manage to touch on a few things about the news business that are bugaboos of mine as well and may inspire a separate post (though don’t… no, stop it… don’t hold your breath).

One of the most resonant bits of the interview for me was when Colbert told Gross that John Stewart encouraged the writers at The Daily Show to make “passionate comedic choices.” I love that phrase, because it does embody what makes the Daily Show so sharp: these are not just comedians making jokes. These are funny people with clear points of view talking about things they believe in deeply.

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Thursday, January 27th, 2005 @ 2:13 pm Humor and Comedy Matters
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