1. THE COLBERT REPORT (Comedy Central)

It was a great year for political television. Rachel Maddow, making braininess seem like the coolest trait possible, got her own show. Jon Stewart came up with endless variations on his look of horror when faced with stupidity in both parties' primaries. Campbell Brown pushed newsmakers for straight answers and was rewarded with her own program, a shocking move for the timid CNN. Even Katie Couric lucked into credibility just by asking Sarah Palin what she read. But no one jumped into the fray more enthusiastically and emerged more triumphantly than Stephen Colbert.

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