Media Training Question #36 – Is John Stewart A Genuine Vox Populi?

Nov. 1, 2010 - PRLog -- Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” with John Stewart is succeeding in way I’m not sure anyone originally thought, but that’s a good thing.  One thing is clear above all else, Stewart, whether by design or destiny, has become a genuine Vox Populi, Latin for “voice of the people”.

A comedian by profession, John Stewart is reaching a kind of success and attention that is rare in a media culture that doesn’t much like his type.  He is not a journalist, and doesn’t pretend to be.  He is an unashamed Democrat, yet Republican’s rush to his show if asked.  He along with Comedy Central co-worker Stephen Colbert held a widely popular rally in the nation’s capitol this weekend called “The Rally to Restore Sanity”.  Itt was billed as a non political rally that really was a political rally, but it wasn’t, or something like that!

Do I like John Stewart? I do, very much and for a variety of reasons, his political point of view aside. He is funny, intelligent, handsome, thoughtful, considerate, reasonable, fair and quirky.  He has taken the opportunity given to him by Comedy Central and made the best of that situation, finding ways to bring a younger demographic into the political arena where no one else could.  He has helped shape the national message, and as a testimonial to his power; he recently had President Barack Obama on his program further instilling his importance to the political world.  

And because he has always been true to whom he is, something that is critical to credibility, John Stewart is a wonderful teaching example of how you can achieve your media dreams by finding your niche and never abandoning your message, even if that message takes some time to find the audience.  There is gold in his story for those of you that have the dream of building a message and then building a platform for that message.  You can do what John Stewart has done even if not at his level, just yet.

What makes John Stewart work, for the most part, is a simple desire to not be anything more than he already is.  He does not have to reinvent himself from day to day.  He does not need to be anything more than he already is and that is the lesson here.  While being true to whom he is it has allowed him to reach millions of people effectively.

As an author, comedian, television show host and pundit, he has carved out for himself a wonderful piece of the American pie and he has done it by being authentic.  If you are a student of success, study the John Stewart model and what you will see is someone who made decisions that focused on what worked and then kept fine tuning that method until he arrived and millions of dollars poured in.

There is always something exciting for me as a media trainer when I see someone who follows a set path for media success and it works.  For my clients this happens at a much smaller level, but still as significant for them.  It is not uncommon for one of my clients to come to me with a set goal and while helping them shape a plan to achieve that goal the path gets clearer and clearer as we achieve the baby step success that happens.

It starts with an on-line presence that defines you clearly.  A Bio that has impact and clarity.  It means doing local television interviews and building that into a national opportunity.  From there it may manifest in many ways.  Maybe a webinar series.  Maybe an on-line radio program.  Maybe an on-line YouTube video series and the list go on.  You must build toward what you want and with the proper strategy and training you can and will achieve success.

John Stewart has accomplished something no other entertainment personality ever has, save Colbert.  He has made himself the central character in a persona that is hard to define, but whose impact is definite.  That is a rare feat to accomplish.  I’m not guaranteeing you can reach the level of success of John Stewart, but I am suggesting you can reach your level of success if you learn from those who have done what it is you want to do.  

Emulating success is not a shortcut; it is in fact a brilliant strategy.  If you take away who John Stewart is and just look at what he has done, why you would not want to learn from his example.  

So dream big!  If I were to tell you ten years ago that a comedian who was hardly known landed a show on a cable channel that had hardly an audience at all and that that show would be placed in prime time against major television programs, and that that same person would be seen as a seasoned political commentator and thought leader with great ratings in his time slot, would you have believed me?  You would have said it was impossible, right?

So what do you want that is impossible?  Give me a call.  Maybe we can make that happen for you, too!

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Tony has spent the better part of the past two decades in and around the media. As the host of his own nationally syndicated radio programs for 15 years, Tony has interviewed over 25,000 guests and appeared as a guest on over 800 radio and national television shows. He founded of his own public relations firm and he went on to author two books and became a “go to” authority on a myriad of issues from weight loss to self empowerment; from politics to pop culture. Tony’s list of media training clients number over 2000, many of them well known celebrities and authors. He often works under confidentially agreements and enjoys of the challenge of helping people discover their voice.
Tony is respected and well known for his honesty and willingness to do what it takes to get to a core message. He works tirelessly with his clients and advocates for his clients in finding the most passionate and profound tenets of their message and then giving them the tools to deliver that message.