Chat With Ben Karlin

Cardinal Alumnus and DCAA Award Winner Ben Karlin chats with The Washington Post about his job as Executive Producer of The Daily Show on Comedy Central:

Baltimore, Md.: Hello Mr. Karlin. HUGE congratulations on your two Emmy's. I am so proud of you guys. I LOVE the show. Keep up the good work.

My question is this: The show seems, at its heart, very positive and upbeat, even though it is a satire. Does the writing staff (or any of the staff) find it difficult to 'find the humor' in politics, especially when it is so rife with controversy as of late? The writing never seems to get bogged down in 'gosh, this is so depressing' mode. How is this done?

Ben Karlin: Thanks. Very glad to hear you say this, though I will tell you we start most mornings dark and sad. Then we treat the day as one giant cathartic push to find the funny and absurd. Except of course for days when we have footage of Madonna on a spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Then we start the day laughing.

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