Jon Stewart ventures outside NYC — discovers ‘Hillary for Prison’ people are still out there

BS BULLETIN:

Jon Stewart told Michelle Obama that leaving New York City for neighboring New Jersey exposed him to a rather different political world.
His evidence included spotting a “Hillary for Prison” bumper sticker.
Stewart acknowledged that living inside political bubbles can leave people with a badly distorted idea of what the rest of America thinks.

Jon Stewart left New York City.

Don’t worry. He survived. But apparently there were some startling discoveries on the other side.

During an appearance on Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson’s “IMO” podcast Wednesday, Stewart discussed the political bubbles Americans increasingly inhabit — including his own.

Then he offered an example. He had ventured across the river into New Jersey. And there it was. A car with a bumper sticker reading: “Hillary for Prison.”

“I was, like, oh, OK,” Stewart recalled.

Welcome to America, Jon.

The sticker apparently helped illustrate something Stewart readily admitted: The political world surrounding him isn’t necessarily representative of the country outside it. “When you’re in New York, there’s a certain bubble that you live in,” Stewart said during the discussion. And once you get outside that environment, you encounter people who see politics very differently.

Which is admittedly not exactly Lewis and Clark discovering the Pacific. We’re talking about New Jersey.

Americans increasingly live in separate political realities. Their neighborhoods are different. Their media are different. Their social-media feeds are different. And the people they spend their time with often reinforce what they already believe. Stewart even turned some of that criticism on himself.

Elsewhere in the conversation, the “Daily Show” host wondered whether his own brand of political comedy has actually helped America’s political conversation — or simply given people another dose of ideological sugar. He compared it to “high-sugar food” and wondered aloud whether shows like his might be giving the country “political diabetes.”

That’s a surprisingly self-aware question from a man whose show helped pioneer the modern formula of mixing political news, comedy and partisan cultural commentary.

And Stewart clearly understands the trap. If everyone around you thinks essentially the same way you do, it’s very easy to believe everyone else does too.

Until you leave Manhattan.

Then suddenly there’s a guy in front of you at a traffic light who still wants Hillary Clinton locked up.

MY QUICK TAKE

I actually give Jon Stewart some credit for this one. The “Hillary for Prison” bumper sticker is hilarious. Not because somebody owns it.

Because Stewart had to cross into New Jersey for it to become an encounter with another political universe.

Buddy, keep driving. Pennsylvania isn’t far. Then try Ohio. Maybe Texas. By the time you reach Alabama, somebody may have to revive you.

But Stewart’s underlying point is dead serious.

Too many people in politics and media spend their lives surrounded by people who agree with them — and then act completely bewildered when half the country votes differently.

Sometimes the best political polling operation in America is simply getting out of your neighborhood.

Apparently, for Jon Stewart, it started with a bumper sticker.