Cramer v. Stewart

The long awaited and much anticipated showdown between CNBC's Jim Cramer and Comedy Central's Jon Stewart took place with a fizzle Thursday night as the chastened CNBC host sat down for a public grilling.

The admittedly made-for-TV feud between the two TV anchors followed almost two weeks of back-and-forth between Stewart and CNBC personalities after CNBC reporter Rick Santelli declined a previously scheduled interview on Stewart's "Daily Show."

Stewart repeatedly chided the network for providing bad advice on the stock market, for failing to anticipate the current financial crisis, and for developing a cozy relationship with corporate CEOs who regularly appear on the network.

Thursday night, Cramer appeared on the show for an unusually lengthy interview, in which Stewart played clips showing Cramer appearing to encourage stock manipulation. Cramer explained that he was providing a public service by exposing the regulatory loopholes with the Securities and Exchange Commission. But he also acknowledged that he and his network had made mistakes.