More than any other media outlet, I believe The Colbert Report has explained and illustrated the SuperPAC phenomenon to the mass audience of the American public. Because of Stephen Colbert’s satirical take on — and full implementation of — his own SuperPAC, including the faux non-coordination transfer of ‘authority’ to Executive Producer Jon Stewart, more Legacy Media outlets are able to simply refer to ‘SuperPACs’ with confidence Americans understand the concept.

And now, Colbert’s media leadership has been recognized.

Citizen’s United is not merely a mistake easily corrected, nor is the case simply about campaign finance or money in politics. Citizen’s United is a corporate power case masquerading as a free speech case. In many ways, the decision was less a break from the recent past than a proclamation about the sad reality of corporate power in America.