Big-name publications have always had typos, long before digital publication. When you’re pushing out tens of thousands of words a day you’re not going to catch them all, especially at the pace that news operations work.
Of course, digital publishing has made things worse by killing newspapers’ biggest sources of income, resulting in their basically eliminating copy editors in their staffs.
So, the industry is sorry that you are bothered, but this is what society has collectively decided it’s not going to pay for.
Jon Stewart is unique but The Daily Show is more than just him. They have a terrific stable of writers and a SnapStream DVR that records Fox News, CNN, MSNBC, etc.
Stewart put a lot of energy and care into developing the Daily Show staff, both on- and off-screen. To say that there’s nothing there to go on without him is actually to miss much of the value of what he did.
Not an excuse, but the cause. My local paper (which I’ve stopped getting) is owned by a cheapo company. They used to subscribe to the NY Times service. They didn’t have room for the whole article, and they didn’t have staff to edit them, so they cut to fit sometimes in the middle of a paragraph and at least once in the middle of a sentence.
Policing for typos takes time, which means money, and it takes “fresh” eyes that haven’t already seen the copy.
If you are proofreading or copy editing, then you’re not pushing out fresh copy.
In the old days, an article might get in the range of two to five rounds of review, each by a new set of eyes. And that process might go on for half a day, for a routine story in a daily publication.
Now, those multi layers of eyes don’t exist, and copy is expected to go up within minutes.
The market has decided that it doesn’t want to pay for preventing typos from being published, in terms of money or time.
And, indeed, elite publications in all fields of factual reporting are being eliminated by competitors who are sloppier but are faster and free. “Good enough” is what the market will bear.
Apparently Brian Williams has comedic hosting aspirations: He threw his hat in the ring for the Tonight Show when Leno announced his second retirement, but wasn’t taken seriously by the suits at NBC. So then he wanted Letterman’s seat. No-go on that too.
From the Salon piece I linked to above:
I can’t help but think a six-month suspension coming at the same time Jon Stewart announces his retirement is the perfect opportunity for Williams to throw his hat in the ring for a show that he would really be spectacular at. He’s a news guy with a passion for humor and pop culture and being a celebrity. He would *nail *TDS!
In one of the 30 Rock live shows there was a misogynistic reporter skit. It was played by different actors in the two time zones, Brian Williams and Jon Hamm. I saw both, and noticed Williams was funniest in that scene.
Brian Williams guest-hosted SNL a couple of years ago and did quite well, I thought. He’s also done comedic appearances on TDS and other places and also been quite funny. But I think there is an unknown person out there who can best fill Jon’s shoes.
The appeal of Jon Stewart’s TDS is, and has been for years, far greater than merely 'it’s funny.’ A large part of the show’s success comes from the trust that viewers put in the host’s integrity.
There would be no such trust if Williams were host.
Oh please. Jon’s an unapologetic liberal and a comedian who I’m sure has told some whoppers in his past. Speaking as an unapologetic liberal myself, his his position hasn’t first and foremost been about integrity. Sure, TDS calls out hypocrisy in media, but who says TDS even has to continue in the same manner Jon led it? We’re not talking PBS Newshour here. The show is about entertainment at its core.
When I watch, I want to be entertained. Brian Williams entertained me whenever he was on TDS or Tonight Show or Letterman and even Nightly News at times.
Williams is a funny guy, he has the aura of a newsman, and I honestly couldn’t give a flying fig if he bullshitted his way through a few interviews anymore than I care that Papa Bear O’Reilly bullshitted his way through some books. O’Reilly and Stewart are both entertainers and commentators, and Williams could be too-- a good one. Williams fibbing about his presence on a helicopter in Iraq a decade ago in no way compromises his ability to be funny, call out hypocrisy on Fox News, skewer himself, skewer the media, interview guests or entertain.
Williams may have a hard time returning to straight news, but something like TDS would be perfect for him. Again, it doesn’t even have to be a carbon-copy of what Jon did.
I wouldn’t worry about the Daily Show’s integrity. Stewart has run into controversy before, and his way of dealing with it is to just put the clown nose on and fall back on the fact that it’s a comedy show. The show keeps its integrity by backing down immediately when it gets into trouble. Continue that strategy and there won’t be a problem. All you have to avoid is a host who will keep digging if he says something dumb. Just say it was comedy and move on.