Fresh Politics, New Media

All eyes are on New Hampshire this evening as the GOP primary there draws to a close. It seems that Rick Santorum has continued to ruffle feathers -- this time his comments aren't directly tied to the gay and lesbian community -- now he's making controversial comments about members of the African-American community and entitlement programs. Specifically, Santorum is reported to have commented on January 1 in Sioux City, Iowa: Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum singled out blacks as being recipients of assistance through federal benefit programs, telling a mostly-white audience he doesn't want to "make black people's lives better by giving them somebody else's money. Of course, like any skillful politician, Santorum is trying to deny that he really made the controversial remarks directed at African-Americans. In fact,  Santorum said that he wasn't really saying the word "black," -- just a simple twist of the tongue.  Here's S...

While Mitt Romney is technically the winner of the spoils of Iowa -- by a mere 8 votes -- it seems that Rick Santorum is the media's new darling. For late night political comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, Santorum's surge and his infamous "Google Problem" provided some rich material for the start of the new year. The Stewart clip below is laugh-out-loud funny and will make you think twice about digging into that leftover holiday box of chocolates. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes , Political Humor & Satire Blog , The Daily Show on Facebook The Colbert clip offers a nice primer on Santorum's "Google Problem" for those in need of a refresher on the alternative definition of "santorum." The Colbert Report Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes , Political Humor & Satire Blog , Video Archive

I'm anxiously awaiting the results of the 2012 GOP Iowa Caucus. Will Mitt Romney be able to secure more than 25% of the vote? Will Ron Paul eek out a Mike Huckabee style victory? Or will Santorum and his v-neck sweater vests  make the most of some recent momentum? While the New York Times  sweater vest story (link above) is a funny one, nothing beats these proposed Santorum newspaper headlines , a fun list that pays tribute to Santorum's Google problem . While Romney remains as the presumptive nominee even with a second or third place finish in Iowa, a second place finish (or even a good showing) for either Santorum or Paul will keep the respective #2 candidate in the media spotlight. If it's Santorum in the news, you can bet the headlines, the sweater vests, and the association with the Google problem will only continue on to New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Jon Stewart started off the week with a review of last week's Google/Fox News Republican candidate debate. There's an irony not to miss here given that this clip is from a Google sponsored debate and Santorum is well known for his Google problem . So here's the clip for Rick #1 from the top of the show: The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes , Political Humor & Satire Blog , The Daily Show on Facebook  and here's Rick #2 (aka Rick Squared): The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes , Political Humor & Satire Blog , The Daily Show on Facebook For viewers who often think Stewart is left-leaning, his address to Republican base over at Camera 3 offers a sample of partisan commentary. In fact, recent research with colleagues Patricia Moy and Michael Xenos published in the volume,  The Stewart/Colbert Effect: Essays on the Real Impacts of Fake News , explores the connection between partisan identity (e....