Jon Stewart Blasts MSNBC & Says it Needs to Be More Like Fox News
Jon Stewart thinks MSNBC needs to take a page out of the Fox News playbook. The Daily Show host argued this during the latest episode of his podcast The Weekly Show. It came up during a discussion with guest Jen Psaki, a former press secretary for President Joe Biden who now has her own MSNBC show. Their conversion centered on the intersection between media and politics.
Stewart spoke about the aggressive lengths Fox News executives went to help get President Donald Trump back in office. Where the right succeeded is in his eyes where the left failed in efforts to get Kamala Harris elected. “This is absolutely corrupt, but this is how the f—ing world works,” were strong words laid down by Stewart, who acknowledged Fox News’ success and influence.
“They’ve certainly created a machine, and nobody is building that machine [on the left] as far as I can tell,’ Stewart said of the difference between the two networks. Stewart used the opportunity of having someone on the MSNBC payroll to gain insight on the inner-workings at the news organization. He asked if the people there come to her to provide their opinion on what they think is “important to preserve and fight for.”
Psaki revealed the hosts determine “here’s what I’m going to cover today, and here’s what I’m going to talk about, and here’s what I think is important.” She continued, ‘There is an independence-ish of that, and…you’re not waiting to be told what to say about anything. You’re going to say what you think.”
She then turned the tables on him asking Stewart what MSNBC should do as they find their footing in this new MAGA administration. The opinionated host called for a more cohesive message among the programming.
The two did come together when Fox News under the late Roger Ailes emerged a mouthpiece for the Republican party. That said, Stewart made sure to clarify he didn’t think MSNBC should be that for the Democratic Party. He explained, “it should be a check on the excesses. It should be muckraking in the best sense of the word. But effective muckraking needs organization and a leader. And it can’t just be left to everybody’s random show.”
Stewart did not hold back and went in with a criticism where he found the shows “wildly redundant and to not really have a macro view.” He added, ‘I think it can stand for something more coherent and be more effective in its execution of that by doing so.’ He found the only way to turn the tide for the “progressive” is to better organize their think tanks and media apparatus.
Psaki began hosting Inside with Jen Psaki in March 2023. She has also served as a contributor for CNN for a few years prior. Along with Biden, Psaki worked under President Barack Obama.
What did you think of Stewart’s thoughts on MSNBC? Let us know in the comments section, below.
Conversation25 Comments
Please read the TV Insider Community Guidelines.
Comments are closed on this story.
-
P
Mica & Joe need to follow up on the news coming out everyday not just tariffs & immigration. Haven't heard a word about the Safe Act voting rights legislation affecting mainly women.
8
-
O
Jon Stewart needs to put his money where his mouth is. Rather than being an outside critic, why not launch his own show where he can use his wit & satire to counter & ridicule what Fox puts out without becoming anyone's mouthpiece.
6 1
-
G
Fox should ridicule you.
You make it so easy to do.
Your screaming and singing and threatening is childish.
George Washington would drum you out.
Read history and find out what that means.
He wrote in his papers there's evil afoot from within.
He was talking about u.
-
-
R
I think Stewart is absolutely correct. The shows on MSNBC have become talking heads with the same framed excuses. Watching the shows is painful because they lack direction and clarity.
3
-
G
Pre 2016 I found msnbc so boring. But along came Trump 1.0 and their weeknight prime time line up became must see tv to me. Once again, Biden elected, a democrat in the oval, msnbc felt like a snooze fest. But with Trump back for 2.0, it’s happening again, must see tv. But it could just be me, lol.
-
-
P
Hard to watch MSNBC since the majority of their anchors have zero personality. They basically have great contributors and lousy anchors. I love Nicolle and Rachel and Lawrence, but the rest of it is off time!
3 1
-
G
So none of you still don't get it.
If you watch fox you'll find they do show both sides.
Do they lean right yes.
Why, because all of you dispise the right.
That's what makes you wrong.
Everything that's happening is because of you.
You can't force people to think.
When you do that you lose the people.
With out the people your irrelevant.
Change happens.
Find a way to go with it or be left behind.
It's on you to decide.
The majority decided.
Now make your choice or don't.
It's on you.
4 3
-
O
Stewart sometimes is a blathering know it all.
His critique is vague and abstract. There is no left equivalent of Rupert Murdoch who plays a Wm Randolph Hearst role in Republican politics.
1
-
P
He's not wrong. Cohesive messaging is needed to articulate who the democratic party is, undo and push back on the negative propaganda (they're all welfare moochers and bums), and how to operationalize progressive goals such as universal healthcare and the savings and benefits of that, as well as exposing the lies from the right about who they are. Democrats suffer from an image problem going at least as far back to the Rush Limbaugh era, and Fox leaders. Time for damage control. We have Godly, family oriented, educated, business owners, etc too.
3 2
-
G
No you don't. Thier on the right now.
You pushed politicians on your side away to our beliefs.
U pushed a guy that couldn't talk or walk, when finally you took your head out of the corral trough you installed a new candidate with out a required voting process.
You don't learn with your mouth.
You learn with your ears.
You haven't been listening for years.
1
-
-
B
It wasn’t Fox that got him elected per se, it was Biden’s dementia, and Harris’ inability to articulate a response to questions.
Fox’s involvement in that was showing the actual interviews, before they were edited to make he appear coherent during the interview.
And Fox shared the truth behind the town hall where Harris didn’t allow the audience to ask questions that weren’t reviewed prior, so she could have the script of responses in pace beforehand.
9 8
-
G
Obsessed much?
1
-
G
U r.
-
-
-
O
Maga didnt win playing by the rules. The rules no longer matter. Gloves need to come off and its time to fight dirty. In this election dems where the red coats and maga was the guy behind the tree wearing camo. Dems handed this country to maga because they didnt want to be mean. This country will get what it deserves for forgetting what it means to be strong americans.
7 6
-
G
Didn't want to be mean??
Really! 😆
Open your eyes, your calling for fighting in the streets.
Your still doing your lawfare.
Explain why biden could ignore SC rulings but little judges can and should stop what the majority voted for??
You have no standing.
-
-
G
Jon Stewart was spot on.
4 3
-
G
LMFAO! 😂 sure...
-
G
Sure...🙄
-
C
Agree with Stewart. Dems and Dem leaning media need to stop being mealy and start playing hard ball in the news. How are Trump’s/Republican actions affecting people? Seriously, it’s time to take the kid gloves off and fight like hell. problem is, we don’t have a Dem leader at the helm to follow. Think about how pathetic that is…
-
G
Yes but even with the kid gloves off, it’s difficult to keep score when half of the people are basically living in a completely different world. One where lies and lying reign supreme.
1
-
-
P
Fox didn't get Trump elected. 4 years of Democrat disaster assured that.
8 9
-
R
Msnbc spent 2 years promoting the election of Biden, the last 4 years covering up his cognitive decline and the past 6 months trying to elect Harris. They were and are the mouthpiece for the democrat party as much as FOX was and is pro Trump. So not sure what Stewarts gripe is
12 14
-
P
I don't think any network should be the mouthpiece for the democrats because the democrats mouths brought them failure and alienation from the working classes.
I think a network that is the mouthpiece for the working classes, a demographic that the democrats abandoned over 20 years ago, is what is needed. A network that highlights working class needs while ripping both the democrats and republican failures to meet those needs coupled with how the agenda of the 1% is meant to subjugate them, would have a lot of credibility.
Incidentally, none of the current hosts at msnbc have any credibility with the working classes. So, the network would need a total identity revamp.
3 10
-
G
President Joe Biden focused an inordinate amount of his efforts on strengthening unions. The teamsters can suck it after how they did him.
1
-
G
The union bosses swore by him.
The members didn't.
The members are the union.
The bosses are the politics.
Welcome to the working class world.
-
-