Yvette Kantrow, the executive editor of The Deal, writes that the evisceration of CNBC “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer by “The Daily Show” host Jon Stewart was the most telling moment in business journalism in the past year.

Kantrow writes, “This isn’t to say the media couldn’t have done a better job covering problems in areas ranging from subprime lending to securitization to credit default swaps to private equity (though it’s hard to imagine anyone connecting all the dots to predict just how badly the world economy would tumble).

“But as critics focus on all the missed stories, from Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. to American International Group Inc. to the real estate bubble, one issue they don’t tackle is this: Can the media effectively bridge the gap between Main Street and Wall Street? Do you do the public a disservice by claiming that you can?

“Stewart opened the door to that discussion when he took down Cramer, but so far, few have stepped inside. Too bad. Given the way the business is going, it’s far more important than asking how the media missed catching a miscreant like Bernie Madoff.”

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