A True Measure of Power

I wrote back in June about a study that suggested that the Daily Show makes people cynical about the political process. As if turning on any news program doesn't leave you feeling cynical about the political process. Then Stephen Colbert got a bridge named after him. So I started to wonder, what if in the month or even just the week before the election, Stewart and Colbert encouraged people to go vote? It's one thing to get people to go online and vote to name a bridge in Hungary after you as a gag, but a true measure of their power would be to get out the kind of vote that matters. Of course, if the youth vote (supposedly their demographic) did go up, would the MSM even give them credit? Probably not, but it would be an interesting experiment. How could they do this? Well, they could mock college students who go to protests but aren't registered to vote (you took how many days out of your life to come to D.C. to protest? Wouldn't it be easier to take an hour of your time to cast a ballot on Election Day?). They could joke about how all the old people who do vote will suck away all the young people's hard earned money with Social Security and Medicare if the youth vote doesn't get out there and make itself a more significant (and harder to ignore) voice (and then we can have government subsidised spring break and tax deductions for childless singles). Or John Stewart could just ask America to meet him at camera three every day and beg them to please, please vote. And if Elmer Fudd replaces Rick Santorum as the Senator from Pennsylvania, you'll know who to blame.