Your wingnut whine ‘o the day
by digby
The choice of Mr. Colbert is a strange business model for CBS. Gallup calibrates 38% of Americans as conservatives, 34% as moderates, and 23% as liberals. Friends who know Mr. Colbert, even some conservatives, tell me he’s a good human being. But if he doesn’t widen his appeal beyond those who lean strongly left, CBS will be writing off a large part of its potential audience. Carson hit the advertisers’ sweet spot with a broad appeal to all consumers. It’s a misnomer that comedians are rebels. At least not the successful ones who reflect the views of their fans.
Politically, Mr. Letterman took a left turn in recent years. It enraged many on the right when he mocked Sarah Palin’s daughter and even today continues to bash Mr. Bush. And it didn’t help his ratings. Now, by picking Mr. Colbert, CBS seems to be signaling that its target demo is Democrats of a decidedly liberal stripe.
I think they’ll be content to keep Letterman’s audience, thank you very much.
That piece was written by Johnny Carson’s longtime head writer who has become a political consultant. Gosh I wonder what party he consults for?
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