Donald Trump”s presidential campaign came as a blessing to many late night talk show hosts, but believe it or not, Trump is actually doing some good for American politics as well.
Obviously he”s not making the impact he”s intending to make because he has no self-awareness whatsoever. But, he”s certainly not a conventional presidential candidate either. What can you expect from a guy who takes himself so seriously even though everything about him is a joke?
Erin Bamer
Hopefully voters aren”t foolish enough to elect Trump as the next President of the United States. But I predict a spike in the number of Americans who show up to vote because of the candidate”s sheer dramatic appeal.
Trump is so entertaining that it”s easy to forget that what he”s rambling about is hard-hitting news, which impacts a lot of serious topics and current events. That doesn”t necessarily mean he”s addressing these issues well, but he”s still addressing them.
Plenty of people are tuning in to see if they can catch a new Trump gaffe during a live recording of one of his campaign speeches or debates. But while those viewers are laughing at his blunders, they”re also learning about important topics that affect them and the rest of the nation.
Trump is in the spotlight so much that he has become a regular name discussed by the likes of Stephen Colbert, Conan O”Brien, Jimmy Fallon and many other hosts of late night television shows. These shows, like Trump himself, may be comedic in nature, but when they tackle Trump-related events they teach their viewers about topics they may not have been well-versed in before.
Sure, Trump and late night comedy may not be the most reliable sources of education regarding important political issues, but it has to start somewhere. Too many people in the U.S. had no clue what was going on in politics before Trump announced he was running for president. Now it seems like every man, woman and child have informed themselves just to watch Trump make a fool of himself.
It”s likely that many Americans will forget about these political issues after the 2016 election, but some could stay involved because they learned about something they didn”t know they were interested in. Comedic news like “The Daily Show” and “Last Week Tonight” introduced me to a lot of topics that I am now well informed and passionate about. A hilarious, well-crafted segment would pique my interest, and after the show I would research the subject from legitimate sources. Trump may be a similar force now for who knows how many unwitting television viewers.
The words that come out of Trump”s mouth are garbage, there”s no doubt about that. But if that garbage keeps more people interested in current events, it”s better than those people remaining totally ignorant.
For now, I”m content to watch Trump continue to crash and burn, because I know more people are interested in an election than they have been in years, and it”s likely because of him. But if Trump actually manages to win, God help us all.
Erin Bamer can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @ErinBamer