Aspiring writers and comedy fans alike flocked to Helen C. White Hall Monday morning for a question-and-answer session with UW-Madison and Daily Cardinal alumnus Ben Karlin-the executive producer of Comedy Central's \The Daily Show with Jon Stewart."" The discussion centered on Karlin's career and insights into the production of ""The Daily Show.""
Karlin, who says ""Madison has an atmosphere that encourages creativity,"" graduated with a BA in history and communication arts in 1993, and began his satirical writing career at The Onion while an undergraduate student. At that time, The Onion was still in its early stages with a focus on local issues and ills.
After leaving Madison for Los Angeles in 1996, Karlin teamed with other former The Onion editors and worked on a variety of projects, including television pilots for Fox Entertainment. Karlin showcased one of these pilots, an Onion-esque faux news program called ""Deadline: NOW,"" for the students and faculty in attendance on Monday.
Karlin moved into a more permanent position in 1999, when he joined ""The Daily Show"" as head writer concurrent with Jon Stewart's replacement of former host Craig Kilborn.
In 2002, Karlin assumed the role of executive producer, managing both creativity and production.
Entering the realm of political coverage, ""The Daily Show"" came to stride during the 2000 presidential election season.
""[Following the 2000 election] the media dictated what story was going to be told,"" said Karlin. ""The Daily Show"" capitalized on this opportunity. ""The Daily Show"" was recognized with a prestigious Peabody Award for its election reporting that year, which came as a great surprise to its staff.
""It was as if the critics were saying, 'Because we are so disappointed in other media, we are going to give you this award,'"" Karlin said.
The assertion that ""The Daily Show"" has replaced conventional news sources in the lives of young Americans doesn't stand with Karlin, who insists that his program is only a ""piece of the pie"" when it comes to news and the reaction to news. ""Our show depends on people being informed,"" he said.
Entertainment wasn't the only topic of discussion Monday, as students queried Karlin about writing as a career and ""Daily Show"" internships.
Karlin also addressed the concern of balancing humor and respect in the context of tragedies like 9-11 and the war in Iraq. He said that ""instinct"" is the only real barometer; illustrating that at ""The Daily Show"" they err on the side of caution by attacking policy rather than action.
Karlin, who visited the Wisconsin Book Festival over the weekend, released, along with Stewart and ""Daily Show"" head writer David Javerbaum, a mock civics textbook last month entitled ""America (The Book),"" which is now a New York Times No.1 best seller.
