By Paul Wilson | July 10, 2012 | 3:39 PM EDT

Observers on the right and left have, for different reasons, long lamented that Comedy Central has become the main source of news for young people. But one group thinks the phenomenon is just fine. The academic left considers comedian Stephen Colbert an object of serious and perhaps even obsessive study. 

The Washington Post’s Paul Farhi wrote an excellent piece on July 9, examining the academic world’s “unsettling” obsession with comedian Stephen Colbert. Farhi describes Colbert-related studies as the “academic cult of Colbert,” writing: “Yet ever since Colbert’s show, “The Colbert Report,” began airing on Comedy Central in 2005, these ivory tower eggheads have been devoting themselves to studying all things Colbertian.” 

By Tim Graham | October 25, 2010 | 8:23 AM EDT

The Washington Post  celebrated Jon Stewart in a very gooey artistic fashion on Monday: in a drawing, it made Stewart all four faces on Mount Rushmore. The headline was "Who Does Jon Stewart Think He Is?" Obviously, he'd disavow being great enough to replace four iconic presidents on a mountain face. The story by Post reporter Paul Farhi also began with goo:

These days, he can claim to be many things: political satirist, pseudo-anchorman, media critic, author, successful businessman, philanthropist, Emmy Award magnet. On Monday he arrives in Washington in a new, self-anointed role: as our national voice of reason, moderation and rationality -- a uniter, you might say, not a divider. 

But Farhi wasn't completely in tune with the glorifying artwork. He compared Stewart's rally with Glenn Beck's August 28 "Restoring Honor" rally in its "nonpartisan" nature (Mt. "Stewmore" image below):