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Cable news, says Stewart, has become a street fight instead of civil discourse. "What has become rewarded in political discourse is the extremity of viewpoint," he tells Kroft. "People like the conflict. 'Conflict, baby! It sells.' 'Crossfire!' 'Hardball!' 'Shut up!' 'You shut up!'"
Stewart says reporters complain about Fox News, but he doesn't think much of CNN as an alternative. "Fox has the phrase 'fair and balanced' and journalists wring their hands about that," he says.
Stewart has no problems with Fox because everyone knows what it does, but not necessarily its competitors. He finds it ironic that journalists say, "'How can they...say fair and balanced, but they're not?' I watch it. It's not. It makes me so mad," Stewart says. "Well, CNN says, 'You can depend on CNN.' Guess what? I watch CNN. No, you can't!"