From drugs, DUIs, theft, and debt, the list of celebrities who have committed crimes is outrageously long and sadly growing. There are numerous crimes committed that do not receive the proper punishment and justice they deserve. There especially seems to be a double standard with celebrities and the law. The media does not help with celebrity justice, but promotes it for higher ratings. CNN, ABC, and Fox news seem to cover celebrities who turn to the bad side quite often. It is rare that the news or comedy shows presents “happy” news. No one ever mentions if a celebrity does a good deed. Comedy shows such as the Colbert Report and the Daily Show also cover celebrities. The news shows usually have facts and truth to them. The comedy shows make jokes about the celebrities, and rarely state all the facts, just brief descriptions. However, through the sarcasm the comedy shows still have some truth about celebrities that the news shows would never say because it would be unprofessional. At the end of the day, the news is supposed to state the facts, while the comedy shows entertain.
The average Joe can be convicted of a crime having to do with dog fights and people will disgusted with him, while football player, Michael Vick can be convicted of the same type of crime, and all people will be concerned about is the next game he will be able to play in. Jon Stewart made jokes, but at the same time made completely valid points with how corrupt the law, NFL, and the media are when it comes to celebrities. On the Daily Show he showed a clip of NFL announcers saying, “were looking at Michael Vick not showing up in the NFL again until 2010…Jon replied yelling,” MY GOD …that’s almost 28 dog years from now”(The Daily Show). Because of the media, people seem to be devastated that their fantasy football teams will be missing Michael Vick. People should be more concerned about the innocent dogs that were cruelly killed. Jon made the point that people to need to wake up and realize that it is a big deal that Michael Vick committed an inhumane crime. This is a serious flaw in the legal system. The media is another major factor that encourages this flaw to be ok. It’s exciting to turn on the TV and hear of the latest celebrity in trouble with the law, but if that celebrity were to go behind bars, what story would the media have to tell? The media can’t go behind the bars, there’s no more suspense whether or not the celebrity will receive a certain punishment. Schudson mentioned, “ another major development in self-advertising was larger and darker headlines” (p.114). It seems that the media is just playing a big game with no rules, and whoever can get the most ratings wins.
The comedy shows may not always be stating proven facts, but they usually are bold enough to say the unspoken truth that the majority of the public is thinking. John Stewart made jokes about Michael Vick and the dog fighting, but in between the jokes was truth. Jon Stewart on the daily show stated, “let the dogs see how fast and as elusive as he says he is” (The Daily Show). Being on a comedy show he can say things that the media purposely ignores, while the news. Jon was implying that Michael Vick was inhumane and lets see what happens when the roles are reversed and the dogs get to attack him. He may be a great football player, but no one is impressed. News stations seem to just state “facts” that get them the highest ratings, they chose what to show to keep the publics interest. CNN reported that Michael Vick was close to completing his sentence and how he is teaming up with a human society to prove he is changed. At the end of the CNN clip, the reported mentions, “many people say one of Vick’s challenges in the coming months will need to convince NFL commissioner to lift the suspension and reinstate him into the league” (CNN). While those facts may be true, the media chose to say the good things Vick is doing, getting sympathy votes from the public. At the end of the clip, they made it seem like poor Vick, please let him back into the NFL, he is changed. If Jon Stewart used that clip on his show, he would make fun of the fact that they said one of Vick’s coming challenges is about getting back into the NFL. The NFL should be the least of his worries if he is a “changed” man. Smolkin also agrees that the Daily Show is the only show that stands up for what’s true. She stated, “The Daily Show' is hypocrisy, exposing hypocrisy. And nobody else has the guts to do it," Brown says. "They really know how to crystallize an issue on all sides, see the silliness everywhere”(Smolkin). Even though he is there to entertain, there is always some truth to his “jokes”.
The media, fans, lawyers need to be stopped from preventing anymore unfair bias when a celebrity is convicted. Not only is this not a fair system, but also what kind of examples do we want to set for the public? Celebrities who do good deeds should be the top story’s, not celebrities who commit crimes. It is sad that the comedy shows tell more of the truth then the News when it comes to Celebrities. The media seems to be a flawed system, no matter the topic, the media decides what to show or say, making almost everything bias. I’m not sure I will base my information from what the media says, whether it’s a news station or comedy show, it seems to be lacking the full truth.
Schudson, Michael. The New Journalism. In D. Crowley, P. Heyer, (Eds.), Communication in history, technology, culture, society (pp. 111-118). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Smolkin, Rachel.”What the Mainstream Media Can Learn From John Stewart”. American
“Human Society Will Work With Vick”. 19 May 2009. Youtube. Accessed 20 October 2010. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFcAYgC-7bc&feature=related>
“Dog Fighting.” Thedailyshow.com, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <
“Vicks Rub.” Thedailyshow.com, n.d. Web.20 Oct. 2010 <http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-august-21-2007/vick-s-rub>
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