All photos by Rachel Ellis.

Photos by Rachel Ellis

All photos by Kyoko Takenaka.

Rally participants had a lot to say about restoring sanity and keeping fear alive. Hear them share their reasons for heading to the Stewart/Colbert extravaganza here:

Ian Paterson, Jeff Beavers and Adam Frost from Virginia explain why communism is the way to go:

Erty Seidel and Greta Dohl from Wisconsin show their support for Stewart and Colbert:

Sandy Grandchamp and Stan Sawicki from Colorado are tired of fear mongering:

While the previous rallies were widely described as politically charged, the nature of the well-known comedians’ rallies has been an issue of much debate.  As The Washington Post reported, the event is “widely viewed as a satirical response to the “Restoring Honor” rally hosted by conservative commentator Glenn Beck on Aug. 28.”  However, in the days leading up to his event, Stewart stuck to his claim that it was not about politics.

In an interview on CNN’s Larry King Live, Stewart insisted that his “Rally to Restore Sanity” is “not a political rally in any way, shape or form,” but instead, a “visceral expression of a people fed up with the reflection they are shown of themselves.”  He described that reflection, which he said is portrayed by the media, as one of a “divided country, and a country that’s ideological and conflicted and fighting.”

He asserted that “75 to 85 percent of the country” are reasonable people who get along, even though they may not agree on everything.  The other 15 percent of the country, he said, control the nation, its dialogue and legislation.

He said he and his satirical counterpart, Stephen Colbert, are “using the rally format” to deliver the same satirical messages as their Comedy Central shows.

In response to NPR’s publicized assumption that the rally would be political in nature — and, therefore, prohibiting employees to attend — Stewart, after pledging to boycott his NPR “tote bag” said that NPR was “guessing wrong,” though he remained cryptic about the specifics of Saturday’s events.

Stewart is the first to laugh off presumptions that his rally is to be considered a “political movement.” He has reiterated that the rally is aimed at providing comic relief and “reasonableness” in, what King called, “this age of franticism” in the media.

However, many believe figures like Stewart may have much more political influence than they claim. According to Amy Becker, assistant professor of communication at Towson University in Towson, Md., the “line between what’s political news and entertainment news” is getting more and more blurred in today’s media world.  She said in a phone interview that viewers don’t always correctly distinguish between the two.

With midterm elections coming up in a matter of days, it’s yet to be known just how big — or serious — of an impact the comedian’s rally will have on the political front.  As The Washington Post’s Hank Stuever said in a recent article, “woe unto him who attempts to make too much or too little out of the cultural juggernaut it has become.”

According to the event websites, all donations and proceeds from merchandise sales are going to the Trust for the National Mall.

Photo courtesy of Comedy Central

Photo courtesy of Comedy Central

Nearly 220,000 people from around the country are expected to convene on the National Mall Saturday, as part of the Rally to Restore Sanity and March to Keep Fear Alive.  Or at least, that’s the number marked “attending” on the Facebook event.

The latest in a series of ongoing politically motivated rallies in the nation’s capital, Comedy Central’s Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have teamed up for a tongue-in-cheek forum to represent those Americans who are “too busy to go to rallies, who actually have lives and families and jobs (or are looking for jobs)” and/or those looking to preserve America’s “three bedrock principles: freedom, liberty and fear,” according to the hosts’ separate event websites, which are linked to one another by a button reading “don’t click here.”

The event comes two months after Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally and Al Sharpton’s “Reclaim the Dream” march, and nearly one month after the “One Nation Working Together” rally, all held in Washington, D.C.  Additionally, midterm elections will fall three days after the rally’s end.  Bookended by those events, the rally leaves many wondering what effect it will have on Nov. 2, and about Stewart and Colbert’s ongoing effect on the political landscape in general.

“Attendance may show there’s frustration with the current political situation,” said Amy Becker, assistant professor of communication at Towson University in Towson, Md., but the rally “is not supposed to be this political thing — more entertainment, a gathering.”  Becker focuses part of her research on the effects of political entertainment, like that of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.  She predicts the rally will likely have little influence in the election overall.

That’s not to suggest a more general effect is nonexistent, however.  ”It’s gotten harder to separate the line between what’s political news and entertainment news,” Becker said in a phone interview.  She cited last year’s Time magazine poll which found viewers trusted Stewart more than traditional news hosts, like Brian Williams and Charlie Gibson.  ”It’s interesting we don’t correctly distinguish between entertainment and political news,” Becker said.

Perhaps Stewart and Colbert are playing into that idea of a blurred line, or the frustration Becker said people have for the current political system, because the rally website calls for ”people who think shouting is annoying, counterproductive and terrible for your throat” to attend.

Those who gather will hear from Stewart, Colbert and other unannounced special guests.  The events last from noon to 3 p.m., rain or shine.

For more information, visit Stewart’s rally website and Colbert’s march website.

Be sure to follow us at observeronsanityfear.wordpress.com for American Observer’s background and coverage of the day’s events.