When the media
become entangled
with the message

I DON'T much watch cable news. I'll click on CNN early in the morning just to make sure the world isn't ending.

The commercials are a quick indicator. If the Ditech and air purifier ads are blasting, you can assume there have been no life-threatening storms or mass-murders, no B-level celebrity arrests or other such TV-worthy fodder for which the network will ditch its income pitches.

Last week, I caught a trailer promising Jon Stewart would appear on "Crossfire." For those unfamiliar with "Crossfire," it's your average political scream-fest that does nothing to elevate public discussion.

Stewart of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" fame was booked ostensibly to push "America: The Book," a mock civics textbook he wrote with some other funny colleagues from the fake news show that's a hilarious prescription for relief from the bizarre script of the presidential campaign.

And bizarre it has been. The spectrum runs from the summer's ridiculous obsession with John Kerry's Vietnam War experience and George Bush's lack thereof to the serious revelations about miscalculations and intelligence failures surrounding the war in Iraq. The fertilized take Bush and his people have thrown out as cover -- that while Saddam Hussein did not have WMDs as they swore he did, he really, really wanted them -- 'tis but one of the season's contortions.

It seems to me that perspective has been nudged off kilter. That would explain why a rectangular bulge beneath the back of Bush's suit coat, noticed during the first debate with Kerry, has sent not only bloggers but established media organizations on a freaky tangent of speculation about electronic prompting devices, back braces and Secret Service tracking gadgets. The Bush campaign, in typical fashion, employed denial, a mistake when there's photographic evidence. Since then it has brushed off questions, joking to NBC's Tim Russert that the bulge outed the president as an alien.

The campaign has entangled television, not just as a medium but as a consequential participant. CBS news and its long-respected anchor Dan Rather took heavy flak when the network neglected to verify the authenticity of documents calling into question the president's Air National Guard service. The mistake eclipsed the thrust of the information -- that the Bush family's influence aided him in getting on the guard rosters ahead of others and shielded him from having to conform to rules. It also allowed Bush's supporters to buttress the notion of partisanship by the "liberal media."

Yet few Republicans are aiming accusations of partisanship against Sinclair Broadcasting Group, which has ordered its 62 stations to dump their regular programming to air, as news, an anti-Kerry film this week. The company, whose stations reach nearly a quarter of U.S. homes and has been a major GOP donor, fired its Washington bureau chief after he criticized his bosses for promoting "blatant political propaganda." Fake reality TV can never match the genuine stuff.

Which brings me back to Stewart.

The comedian told "Crossfire" hosts Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala that he had made an effort to appear on the show because he had often criticized it. "I felt that that wasn't fair and I should come here and tell you that I don't -- it's not so much that it's bad, as it's hurting America."

He then went on: "Here's just what I wanted to tell you guys. Stop." Carlson and Begala chortled -- the guy's a comedian, right? -- but Stewart was serious. "Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America," he begged.

Stewart's point was that shows like "Crossfire" are further polarizing the nation and playing into the hands of politicians. Carlson, finally sensing Stewart was earnest, became defensive and denounced Stewart for not asking Kerry hard questions when the candidate appeared on "The Daily Show."

Stewart was aghast. "You're on CNN," he told Carlson. "The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls."

I'm glad Stewart explained the difference. Sometimes it's hard to tell.