As Jon Stewart, the host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show, announces he will step down later this year, thousands of people on social media have offered helpful suggestions to revitalize his show.
News anchor Brian Williams is off the air for six months for making things up. Jon Stewart, a funny man with a serious side, is looking for a change after 16 years at the helm of The Daily Show. These are two entirely separate stories, but on social media they blended quickly into one theme with many proposing an elegant solution to both problems - just switch jobs.
Both men made the news around the same time. On Monday, NBC announced that Williams would be suspended for six months without pay. The long-serving news anchor had admitted to "misremembering" his involvement in the downing of a US helicopter during the Iraq War in 2003, and giving a misleading account of coming under fire. The same day, comedian and Daily Show host Jon Stewart surprised his studio audience, saying he was moving off the satirical show.
"When God closes a door he opens a window, right?" said one Twitter user, echoing many others. "maybe Brian Williams should take over from Jon Stewart on The Daily Show?"
The jokes of social media are, in fact, now leading to serious debate. New York Times reporter Lydia Polgreen and others see some validity to the swap. "The funny thing about the joke that Jon Stewart is replacing Brian Williams, is that it's actually a good idea," she said. [Source] [BJS]
