# The Daily Show Correspondent Problem **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 21, 2013, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411 "2013-11-21T05:33:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/21 "2013-11-21T17:28:06Z")
Colbert handles the field interviews better because he’s a disembodied voice not being dickish to someone’s face. I can’t stand that. Even when it’s deserved, they look like bullies. Jason Jones and Samantha Bee don’t have personalities, or at least a comic personality that automatically transforms what they say and do into laughter. You either have one or you don’t. John Oilver does and Jon Stewart does. The rest have schticks, mostly playing off their ethnicities, which work when the subject calls for it and fails when it doesn’t. Larry Wilmore absolutely kills whenever he’s on because he has an ethnicity and a personality. Maybe Bee and Jones should always be paired together and use their marriage as the schtick. At least that would be something to play off of. Or they could clean house with Oliver leaving and get some funny people on. ---
**Author:** ![Oedipus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Oedipus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oedipus)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/22 "2013-11-21T17:39:25Z")
I don’t know if I’d point it to the writing for her segments and the topics they’re able to bring up when she’s reporting, but I really think Jessica Williams is killing it. She did great in her stop and frisk segment ([The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - TV Series | Comedy Central US](http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-august-13-2013/frisky-business---jessica-williams)) Plus, next to Samantha Bee on their “R-Word” segment together, she looks like a comic genius. [The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - TV Series | Comedy Central US](http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-august-6-2013/the-r-word) PS: That black dude summed up my thoughts perfectly when Bee was doing the fake sweating and he’s just like “Where’d they find this lady?” ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/23 "2013-11-21T17:42:16Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Colbert handles the field interviews better because he’s a disembodied voice not being dickish to someone’s face. I can’t stand that. Even when it’s deserved, they look like bullies. It seemed to me that Colbert, Helms, Corrdry, and maybe a couple of other late 90’s/early 2000’s correspondents were better at it. Somehow they weren’t being dicks, but they got the interviewees to say the most amazingly stupid stuff. It’s an unbelievable skill. ---
**Author:** ![Oedipus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Oedipus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oedipus)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/24 "2013-11-21T17:44:23Z")
I also just loved this segment for some reason back during the RNC. [The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - TV Series | Comedy Central US](http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/fri-august-31-2012/rnc-2012---the-road-to-jeb-bush-2016---the-best-f--king-news-team---republican-outreach) ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/25 "2013-11-21T17:45:22Z")
I think the talent is there for the correspondents, they just need better writing. There are too many bits that are so unfunny that even the in studio audience does’t laugh. That doesn’t happen on The Colbert Report. That said, I did like the recent bit when the black lady (I forget her name) went to Ontario and basically called them all a bunch of pussies. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/26 "2013-11-21T17:57:07Z")
The only reason Bee has become less disliked by me is the realization how hard it is to work into that show. Olivia Munn(other than being smoking hot) is normally talented and funny. But her work on that show was so bad and painfully uncomfortable to watch, it gave me a new perspective. ---
**Author:** ![Randolph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Randolph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randolph)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/27 "2013-11-21T18:18:31Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > There are too many bits that are so unfunny that even the in studio audience does’t laugh. That doesn’t happen on The Colbert Report. Though to qualify that a bit, Colbert’s audience practically worships him to the point of annoyance. Not that he doesn’t deserve a lot of it, but geez. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/28 "2013-11-21T18:34:23Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Anyone remember Frank Decaro’s movie review segment? Even though he only had one joke (I’m gay.) with many variations, it was a fun bit. Eww. You could see Stewart’s disgust at those segments, a disgust I shared. Obvious and unfunny. I was glad to see them go. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/29 "2013-11-21T18:39:22Z")
Black, Hodgman and Wilmore are more guest commentators than correspondents, and all great. Wilmore is amazingly funny. I actually think the field reports have improved lately. For a long time they consisted of the correspondent making fun of him or herself as the interviewee looked on confused, which I figured was the result of everyone being in on the joke. Now, perhaps thanks to the Tea Party, they have found more clueless morons out there. I like the panel discussions if the writing is good. It isn’t always. The big problem with TDS is that anyone good gets jobs elsewhere. I’d hate to be the person scheduling talent for that show - it must be a nightmare working around movies and series. And it is nice that they could afford to send Jessica Williams (who is improving rapidly) to real as opposed to green screen Toronto. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2013, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/30 "2013-11-21T20:35:57Z")
Wilmore is great, Madrigal is good and the rest aren’t very funny at all. Jason Jones is the worst of the lot. He went to Iran during their elections when they were on the verge of a revolution and he made jokes about their toilets. Imagine if Colbert or Ed Helms has still been on TDS and given that opportunity. I think TDS’ correspondents problem is that don’t really have any good ones any more and Stewart has to carry the whole show. As a result, his smarmy mugging gets old night after night. That’s why John Oliver was such a breath of fresh air. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/31 "2013-11-22T07:09:25Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > Yeah, Samantha Bee hate is not uncommon on this board and I don’t understand it. I so want to service that woman. Oh man, I would so ruin her if I ever got the chance. Something about that dour school-marmish look of hers drives me wild. Anyway, I’ve never been a big fan of the desk segments, for most of the reasons mentioned in this thread, in particular the fact that most of the correspondents just don’t have the comic timing to pull off these scripted bits. Al Madrigal and Jason Jones are especially painful to watch sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/32 "2013-11-22T10:42:42Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > And it is nice that they could afford to send Jessica Williams (who is improving rapidly) to real as opposed to green screen Toronto. One of my favorite bits was where they appeared to have both Aasif Mandvi and Rob Riggle in Iraq…only to reveal that Mandvi was standing in front of a green screen and was obscuring the view of Riggle who was actually _in_ Iraq. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/33 "2013-11-22T11:40:26Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Sam Bee’s not terribly funny, but she’s fucking George Carlin next to Jessica Williams. Jesus Christ. I’m with you. I was happy to see another woman as a regular correspondent, but most of her bits are awkwardly over-acted. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/34 "2013-11-22T14:34:13Z")
As much as I love Olivia Munn, she was the worst correspondent. Which is why I think she only had two or three segments and was never seen on the show again. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/35 "2013-11-22T22:21:54Z")
Yeah, Olivia Munn sucked on TDS. She’s been surprisingly good as a comedic actress on _The Newsroom_, though. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/36 "2013-11-22T22:23:30Z")
Oh, and I think Jessica Williams is the funniest current correspondent. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/37 "2013-11-23T22:48:04Z")
I’m with the OP on this one. Field work is great, table talk is weak. Here’s the table model: Jon: Say, isn’t it true that [some obvious thing]? Corresp: Haha! No, Jon, you poor, misguided fool. In fact, [opposite of that thing]. Deranged Millionaire and Lewis Black consistently have me in stitches. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2013, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411/38 "2013-11-24T00:22:16Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by Snarky\_Kong > she’s fucking George Carlin next to Jessica Williams. > [@bienville](#): > > If I were Jessica Williams, I would demand my own dressing room after an incident like this. If anyone is going to fuck a dead guy, they should do it in private. You get my vote for Post of the Month. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-daily-show-correspondent-problem/674411.md?page=1)