Jon Stewart Dismantles Chris Matthews (unbelievable)

If you have ever bemoaned the turn Matthews -- a former newspaperman -- has taken in recent years, you have to check out what happened on "The Daily Show" on Tuesday night. Matthews called it "the worst interview ever."

(October 03, 2007) -- You may find this hard to believe, but there was a time when TV gasbag Chris Matthews was a respectable hard news reporter. He worked in Washington, D.C. for the San Francisco Examiner from 1987 to around 2000, and also wrote columns for the San Francisco Chronicle and others. But if you have ever bemoaned the turn his career took as an interviewer/talk show host – or if you just hate the inside-the-beltway mentality of many of our leading press and TV pundits – then you would have loved Jon Stewart’s dismantling of Matthews on “The Daily Show” last night.

I have no idea if there is a back story to this epic confrontation beyond Stewart’s known hatred of loudmouth TV bullying (remember his famous attack on “Crossfire” a few years back?). But what was on the screen right in front of our noses was shocking enough, not to mention long overdue. Matthews, growing angry, called it “the book interview from hell” and his "worst interview ever," adding, "You are the worst."

Matthews accused him of "trashing my book." Stewart said he was actually "trashing your philosophy."

The "Hardball" host was there, like so many others before him, simply to hype his new book, “Life’s a Campaign.” Stewart was after him right from the start. He described the book as claiming that “people can use what politicians do in political campaigns to help their lives. ... That strikes me as fundamentally wrong.” Rather than a self-help book it is really a “self-hurt book, if you will," he added. "Aren't campaigns fundamentally contrivances?"

Matthews agreed, but said you could still learn from successful politicians – like them, you sometimes have to “sell yourself” to get a job or manipulate people to get ahead.

"But there has to be some core of soul in there," Stewart replied. "There's nothing in this book about, 'Be good, be competent.'"

Matthews said THAT book had been written before – and it was the Bible. But Stewart, when he is on his game, can be quick and erudite, and now he pointed out that Matthews’ new book had also been written before – and it was Machiavelli’s “The Prince.” Matthews claimed his book was better than "The Prince."

Stewart then twice called Matthews’ book "a recipe for sadness. ... If you live this book, your life will be strategy, and ... you'll be unhappy."

Matthews, finding himself on the receiving end for a change, invited Stewart to “Hardball,” and "we can play this both ways." Stewart replied, “I don't troll," drawing gasps from the audience.

"You are unbelievable," Matthews said. "This is a book interview from hell. This is the worst interview I've ever had in my life. This is the worst. You are the worst." Matthews accused him of being another Zell Miller but Stewart said that, unlike the former senator, he would not challenge Matthew to a duel.

Sputtering for an explanation, Matthews charged that "you are afraid of me" and there must be something in his book “that you fear."

Perhaps we should close with a quote from Machiavelli: "Because how one ought to live is so far removed from how one lives....it is necessary for a prince, wanting to maintain himself, to learn how to be able to be not good and to use this and not use it according to necessity." Now, that's playing hardball.

It didn’t look that bad on film, it looks worse in the transcript.

I used to be a big fan of Chris Matthews. Man did he go off the deep end. I haven’t been able to watch him since 2004 when he became part of the Kerry Campaign.

Stewart is a liberal commedian. I will credit him that he is funny. He may be partisan, but he is funny. Compare him to Al Franken. Franken was funny, but that was happened a long time ago. Franken is useless. Many celebrities come out for causes and reveal themseles to be idiots. Stewart is somewhat of an idiot, but at least he has a punchline.

And commedians are largely going to be liberal and hold contrarian views. Just accept it. The good thing is that they will attack just about anyone in power, including Matthews. It is not like Stewart is going to jump lock-step into Hillary-Care. They attack everyone. Republicans more than dems? Sure, but at least they take some jabs and not let them off for free.

At least with Jon Stewart I can be entertained. He does have entertainment value. And he knows that if he ever loses that he is finished.

Stewart replied, “I don't troll," drawing gasps from the audience.

Jon Stewart, appearing as Himself, on some other television talk shows:

"Entertainment Tonight" .... Himself (1 episode, 2007)
"Late Show with David Letterman" .... Himself (5 episodes, 1994-2006)
"The Colbert Report" .... Himself (4 episodes, 2005-2006)
"Howard Stern on Demand" .... Himself (1 episode, 2006)
"The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" .... Himself (2 episodes, 2002-2006)
"The Oprah Winfrey Show" .... Himself (5 episodes, 2004-2006)
"Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show" .... Himself (1 episode, 2006)
"Larry King Live" .... Himself (3 episodes, 2001-2006)
"This Week" .... Himself (1 episode, 2005)
"Book TV" .... Himself - Panelist (1 episode, 2004)
"Crossfire" .... Himself (1 episode, 2004)
"The Charlie Rose Show" .... Himself (5 episodes, 1999-2004)

It goes on (I got bored cut/pasting). Seems to be a surge of appearances around '06. Coincidentally, I seem to recall that Jon Stewart "wrote" a (presumably brilliant, life-changing) "book" called The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book). It came out in 2006. Oh, but I'm sure that's a coincidence. I'm sure Jon Stewart never mentioned his "book" on any of those talk show appearances, all of which were motivated by the pure and pristine desire to speak to the host(s) of those respective talk shows while being filmed doing it. You know, just to visit.

Also, I'm sure earlier he never mentioned other items for sale such as the wonderful DVD collection The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - Indecision 2004, which is clearly essential for the discerning DVD fan's library, a collection of old Daily Show episodes that can be had for the low low price of only $31.99. Ditto for his earlier "book" called "Naked Pictures Of Famous People", which if I recall correctly was so good it won two Nobel Prizes simultaneously. And the various crappy movies he's been in (and multiple earlier failed talk shows, before he took over this "Daily Show" thing that Craig Kilborn started). I'm sure he never hawked, mentioned, promoted, or showed "clips" of any of those things on any of the literally hundreds of talk show appearances he has logged in his "career" as a "celebrity".

Because you see, Jon Stewart doesn't troll.

Look, I may not like Chris Matthews, but I really despise Jon Stewart. Smarmy, self-absorbed, legend in his own mind - and not funny, which is pretty unforgivable for someone who is supposedly a comedian. (I acknowledge that some TDS material may be funny; this material is, of course, written for Stewart by actual funny people.) And I still can't figure out why he was given not one, not two, but three chances at hosting a talk show while other comedians and actors are out there who don't get one chance. Someone in Hollywood has been REALLY REALLY convinced for like 12 years that Jon Stewart needs to have a talk show, and they finally made one stick. Again, the show in question - back when I actually watched it - used to be hosted by Craig Kilborn. Stewart had to piggyback on someone else to finally find success; now that he has his favorite pastime seems to be posturing as an intellectual and "dismantling" people who are smarter and more respectable than him, simply by the raw display of gall and arrogance.

And what's with this?:

Sputtering for an explanation, Matthews charged that "you are afraid of me" and there must be something in his book “that you fear." "Like fascism, I fear fascism," Stewart responded.

So Chris Matthews' silly little money-grab book is somehow analogous to "fascism"? Talk about hyperbole. This just makes Stewart sound like a shrill old lady. Jon Stewart fears Chris Matthews's book in the same way he fears fascism! This is the person we are congratulating? Sounds like a person we should be psychoanalyzing.

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