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==== ''Crossfire'' appearance ==== {{Main |Jon Stewart's 2004 appearance on Crossfire}} In a televised exchange with then-CNN correspondent [[Tucker Carlson]] on ''[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]]'' on October 15, 2004, Stewart criticized the state of television journalism and pleaded with the show's hosts to "stop hurting America", and he referred to both Carlson and co-host [[Paul Begala]] as "[[Partisan (political)|partisan]] hacks".<ref name="CNN041015" /><ref>{{cite video |people=Jon Stewart, Tucker Carlson |title=[[Crossfire (U.S. TV program)|Crossfire]] |medium=Television |publisher=CNN |date=2004}}</ref> When posted on the internet, this exchange became widely viewed and was a topic of much media discussion.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=aFQFB5YpDZE Jon Stewart on ''Crossfire''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211208034124/https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=aFQFB5YpDZE |date=December 8, 2021}}, October 15, 2004, Youtube</ref> Despite being on the program to comment on current events, Stewart immediately shifted the discussion toward the show itself, asserting that ''Crossfire'' had failed in its responsibility to inform and educate viewers about politics as a serious topic. Stewart stated that the show engaged in partisan hackery instead of honest debate, and said that the hosts' assertion that ''Crossfire'' is a debate show is like "saying [[professional wrestling|pro wrestling]] is a show about athletic competition". Carlson responded by accusing Stewart of hypocrisy, stating that Stewart's interview of [[John Kerry]] was primarily "softball" questions, though Stewart criticizes news organizations for not holding public officials accountable (Stewart had stated that he had voted for Kerry in the [[2004 United States presidential election|2004 presidential election]]).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/08/25/ST2008082503384.html |url-access=subscription |title=No Joke: Jon Stewart Takes Aim At 24-Hour Cable News 'Beast' |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 25, 2008 |access-date=September 17, 2010 |first=Howard |last=Kurtz |archive-date=September 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120901070725/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/08/25/ST2008082503384.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Stewart responded that he didn't realize "the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity". When Carlson continued to press Stewart on the Kerry issue, Stewart said, "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is [[Crank Yankers|puppets making crank phone calls]]! What is wrong with you?" In response to prods from Carlson, "Come on. Be funny." Stewart said, "No, I'm not going to be your monkey." Later in the show when Carlson jibed, "I do think you're more fun on your show", Stewart retorted, "You're as big a dick on your show as you are on any show." In response to Stewart's criticisms, Carlson said, "You need to get a job at a journalism school", to which Stewart responded, "You need to go to one!"<ref name="CNN041015" /> Stewart discussed the incident on ''The Daily Show'' the following Monday: {{blockquote |We decided to go to this place, ''Crossfire'', which is a ''nuanced'' public policy analysis show ... named after [[Crossfire|the stray bullets that hit innocent bystanders in a gang fight]]. So I go to ''Crossfire'' and, let's face it, I was dehydrated, it's the [[Martin Lawrence#Arrests, lawsuits and health problems|Martin Lawrence]] defense ... and I had always in the past mentioned to friends and people that I meet on the street that I think that show ... um ... blows. So I thought it was only the right thing to do to go say it to them personally on their program, but here's the thing about confronting someone with that on their show: They're ''there!'' Un''com''fortable! And they were very mad, because apparently, when you invite someone on a show called ''Crossfire'' and you express an opinion, they don't care for that ... I told them that I felt their show was hurting America and they came back at me pretty good, they said that I wasn't being funny. And I said to them, "I know that, but tomorrow I will go back to being funny, and your show will still blow."<ref name="serious"/><ref>{{cite web |last=Stewart |first=Jon |title=Your Show Blows |publisher=[[Comedy Central]] |date=October 18, 2004 |url=https://www.cc.com/video-clips/mr122o |access-date=June 12, 2019 |work=The Daily Show with Jon Stewart }}</ref>}} In January 2005, CNN announced that it was canceling ''Crossfire''. When asked about the cancellation, CNN's incoming president, [[Jonathan Klein (CNN)|Jonathan Klein]], referred to Stewart's appearance on the show: "I think he made a good point about the noise level of these types of shows, which does nothing to illuminate the issues of the day."<ref>{{cite news |last=Kurtz |first=Howard |author-link=Howard Kurtz |title=Carlson & 'Crossfire,' Exit Stage Left & Right |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=January 6, 2004 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52274-2005Jan6.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=July 26, 2006 |archive-date=January 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070111060200/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52274-2005Jan6.html |url-status=live}}</ref> On March 18, 2009, Carlson wrote a blog entry for ''[[The Daily Beast]]'' criticizing Stewart for his handling of the CNBC controversy (see below). Carlson discussed the CNN incident and claimed that Stewart remained backstage for at least "an hour" and "continued to lecture our staff", something Carlson described as, "one of the weirdest things I have ever seen".<ref>{{cite web |first=Tucker |last=Carlson |author-link=Tucker Carlson |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-03-18/how-jon-stewart-went-bad |title=How Jon Stewart Went Bad |website=[[The Daily Beast]] |date=March 18, 2009 |access-date=March 19, 2009 |archive-date=March 20, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320222422/http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-03-18/how-jon-stewart-went-bad/ |url-status=live}}</ref>
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