Salon.com > The Daily Show

Must-see morning clip: Veterans still waiting for medical benefits

Fri, 03 May 2013 13:28:00 +0000

Jon Stewart delivers a progress report on "The Daily Show's" on-going coverage of veterans awaiting benefits and realizes that "the enemy is paper":

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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John Oliver to guest-host “Daily Show” starting June 10

Wed, 01 May 2013 17:45:00 +0000

Jon Stewart will go on an eight-week hiatus (previously reported as 12) from hosting "The Daily Show" beginning Monday, June 10, Comedy Central has announced.

Stewart is taking a break from hosting the show to direct his first film, “Rosewater,” an adaptation of BBC journalist Maziar Bahari’s harrowing memoir of imprisonment in Iran, for which Stewart also wrote the screenplay. Stewart is slated to return on Tuesday, Sept. 3.

John Oliver, who has been a "Daily Show" correspondent for the past seven years, will guest-host in Stewart's place. "Don’t worry, it’s still going to be everything that you love about ‘The Daily Show,’ just without the thing that you love the most about it,” said Oliver in a press release. Guests for Oliver’s first week include Seth Rogen, Armando Iannucci, Fareed Zakaria and a musical performance by Mavis Staples.

Although die-hard "Daily Show" fans will miss Stewart's comedic genius this summer, the show is still in good hands. Below are some of John Oliver's most memorable segments:

"Even Better Than the Real Thing"

Must-see morning clip: Jon Stewart on Syria’s chemical weapons

Wed, 01 May 2013 13:30:00 +0000

Jon Stewart attempts to understand if Syria has crossed the "red line" of consequences for the U.S., but can't seem to get a straight answer:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Jon Hamm announces marriage to Aasif Mandvi

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:30:00 +0000

"Mad Men" actor Jon Hamm talked season six on last night's "Daily Show," in which "Freaks and Geeks" star Linda Cardellini guest-stars as his new love interest. Cardellini's, aka Lindsay Weir's, presence on set was kept under wraps to prevent the Internet from exploding before the episode aired. "I remember her as a junior, senior in high school," said Jon Stewart. "Because of DVR I remember from, like, 6 months ago. And then you turn it on and you're like, 'Did she travel to space? How did she age ten years?' "

Hamm also plugged his upcoming movie with "Daily Show" correspondent Aasif Mandvi, "Million Dollar Arm," set in India, which serves as a convenient backdrop for their upcoming marriage.

Must-see morning clip: Inside the Bush library and museum

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 13:29:00 +0000

Jon Stewart takes a look at the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, "the Hard Rock Cafe of catastrophic policy decisions":

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Jon Stewart interviews Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:30:00 +0000

Honored this week as an attendee the Time 100 gala, Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef stopped by "The Daily Show" to discuss the Egyptian government's attempts to censor his comedy. "They're insecure, they are locked up into their teenage years. They still have pimples and have to deal with their body hair," he said.

Youssef, who was arrested for "denigrating Islam," "spreading false news" and "diminishing the president's stature," was released on bail earlier this month. His case attracted international attention, however, as activists cited the arrest as one of the greatest free speech infringements by the Mohamed Morsi's government since he came to power.

Jon Stewart is no Bassem Youssef

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 19:35:00 +0000

Two weeks ago Egypt’s public prosecutor ordered the arrest of comedian Bassem Youssef, host of the TV show Al-Bernameg, for “insulting Islam” and Egypt’s President Mohammad Morsi. Youssef’s name is rarely mentioned without reference to his admitted role model, the American comedian Jon Stewart, who recently defended Youssef on The Daily Show.

Since Youssef’s arrest, nearly every story about the incident labels the heart-surgeon-turned-TV-star as “Egypt’s Jon Stewart.” But Youssef — who continues to risk his freedom and career to ridicule Egypt’s political elite — has little in common with Stewart, a man who’s built a comedy empire on an unwarranted reputation for prophetic humor and moral integrity. And even while Youssef himself cites Stewart as an influence, the Egyptian humorist far outshines his American counterpart in his willingness to challenge political and social taboos.

Is Egypt ready for its own Jon Stewart?

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 18:00:00 +0000

CAIRO, Egypt — Egypt’s judiciary created an international firestorm when the top judge summoned the country’s foremost political satirist in for questioning this week.

The comedian, Bassem Youssef, uses his weekly satirical news show — which is based loosely on Comedy Central’s "The Daily Show" — to “insult the president” and “insult Islam,” the complaint filed against Youssef said. Youssef was released on $2,200 bail as investigations continue.

Critics are calling it an unprecedented assault on free speech in post-uprising Egypt, with even the US State Department and Jon Stewart from "The Daily Show" weighing in to support Youssef. The responses caused a diplomatic tiff in which the official Twitter account of Egypt’s presidency chastised the US Embassy in Cairo feed for posting "The Daily Show" clip criticizing President Mohamed Morsi.

Jon Stewart takes Egypt

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 19:00:00 +0000

CAIRO — “Don’t Laugh,” reads the cover of the Egypt Independent, an opposition English weekly. The headline stands above an image of Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi in Pakistani academic regalia, topped off with a bulky cylindrical hat crowned with gold trimming. The photograph of Morsi receiving an honorary degree from Pakistan's National University of Science and Technology has come to epitomize a leader who is out of touch with his country. His headwear and the attendant absurdity of arresting Egypt’s most popular comedian, have most of Egypt in stitches.

Satirist Bassem Youssef, who hosts "The Program" (in Arabic, "El-Bernameg"), a weekly production modeled on Jon Stewart’s "The Daily Show," has been snickering at that enormous hat, too. Earlier this week, when Youssef was summoned by the country’s top prosecutor in response to legal changes of insulting Morsi and Islam, Youssef himself wore a massive, to the point of ridiculous, replica of the hat in question. But why arrest Youssef now? Will the legal action trigger a chilling effect on freedom of expression in Egypt?

U.S. embassy in Cairo briefly disables Twitter account after Jon Stewart tweet

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 20:00:00 +0000

The Muslim Brotherhood's interrogation of Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef has attracted international attention, with some decrying the arrest as the leadership's most serious infringement on free speech since Mohammed Morsi became president last year. Now comedian Jon Stewart has weighed in on the conflict, devoting 11 minutes of "Daily Show" coverage to lambasting Morsi and defending Youssef (who, not-so-coincidentally, has been hailed as the "Egyptian Jon Stewart"):

On Tuesday, the U.S. embassy in Cairo sent out a link to the Stewart clip, inciting a response from the Egyptian government:

[embedtweet id="319135360586244097"]

The U.S. embassy responded on Wednesday by disabling its Twitter feed temporarily and then deleting the offending tweet, sparking what the AP calls "an unusual diplomatic incident."

From the AP:

Must-see morning clip: Jon Stewart on rising tensions between North Korea and U.S.

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 13:12:00 +0000

Jon Stewart has a message for North Korea: "Your war-mongering's a little retro," mocking Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un's binoculars and the North Korean army's training exercises.

"Look, I don't know if you know this," says Stewart, "but we've moved on from that Patton thing. War is a little more modern, now."

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: John Oliver learns that guns are victims, too

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 13:20:00 +0000

"The Daily Show" correspondent John Oliver interviews gun activist Charles Heller, who is protecting guns from people in Arizona. When shown the above photo of guns being destroyed, Heller told Oliver, "That one makes me think of what happened to the Warsaw ghetto in 1943."

Oliver responded dryly, "That is definitely not overstating it."

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Jon Stewart on DOMA oral arguments

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:12:00 +0000

Jon Stewart summarized the DOMA and Prop 8 hearings this week, "where America's top nine justices spent two full days enjoying gay oral...arguments." He mocked viewpoints from some of those against marriage equality, showing that the argument is not-so-thinly-veiled homophobia:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: “The Daily Show” on Rand Paul’s filibuster

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 14:01:00 +0000

Libertarian Sen. Rand Paul began a filibuster of epic proportions on the constitutionality of U.S. drone strikes, beginning at 11:47 a.m. Wednesday and ending at 12:39 a.m Thursday morning. It supposedly ended the way all marathon sessions do, with a need to go to the bathroom:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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7 examples of cowardice on “The Daily Show”

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:31:00 +0000

Jon Stewart has changed late-night television for the smarter, but "The Daily Show's" satire kingpin has a way of cowering before powerful people when they come on his set for interviews, not asking the tough questions. It's a stark contrast from his hard-hitting comedy sketches and reviews of the day's news, where Stewart and his coterie of correspondents can really bare their fangs. Stewart's guests on set are often the same people he lampoons, but something changes when they are in the room ... easy targets get kid gloves. Here are seven of Stewart's weakest interviews.

7. Paula Broadwell: He had her, right there in front of him, the woman who helped bring "King" David Petraeus' military and political career to an ignominious end. But he, too, like the mainstream media, seemed too busy having sex with Petraeus' exalted mythology. Sure, that legend was obviously more full of holes than the Bush administration's shifting rationales for bombing Iraq, but Stewart and Broadwell's awkward interview was nevertheless well-stocked with the same mini-legends making their way through the mainstream media's complicit coverage of Petraeus' bankrolled rise: his insane work ethic and meteoric popularity, his fairy tale meeting with Broadwell and their, ahem, scholarly research for her unfortunately titled book "All In."

Jon Stewart to take a three-month hiatus from “The Daily Show” to direct his first film

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:02:00 +0000

"Daily Show" fans will be shocked to hear that veteran host Jon Stewart will be taking a three-month hiatus from the show come this summer to direct a movie -- and it's not a comedy. Deadline is reporting that Stewart will take 12 weeks off to direct "Rosewater," a film for which he already wrote the screenplay, adapted from the 2011 memoir "Then They Came for Me: A Family’s Story of Love, Captivity and Survival." The drama marks Stewart's first foray into directing.

"Then They Came For Me" is BBC journalist Maziar Bahari's harrowing account of what was supposed to be a week-long trip to cover Iran’s presidential elections. Instead, Bahari's visit extended to 118 days, during which time he was trapped in an Iranian prison, interrogated by a man he could only identify by the smell of rosewater.

Stewart has a personal connection to the film: Bahari had performed in a "Daily Show" sketch several years ago, which Iranian authorities used as footage against him, accusing him of "plotting to stage a revolution against the government," according to the New York Times

Must-see morning clip: “The Daily Show” on the lack of transparency around the drone memos

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 14:20:00 +0000

Ten days after President Barack Obama promised to increase government transparency during his State of the Union address, the White House has still not released the controversial drone memos, theorized to be a "kill list" or justification for drone strikes. Incredulously, "The Daily Show" correspondent Aasif Mandvi has seen them -- but he can't say anything about them:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Mississippi ratifies the 13th Amendment

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 13:59:00 +0000

Almost 150 years after the abolition of slavery, Mississippi has finally ratified the 13th Amendment, inspired by Steven Spielberg's film, "Lincoln" "And then," Jon Stewart jokes, "Mississippi went to see 'Django Unchained' and tried to take their ratification back":

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Al Madrigal investigates our “constitutional right” to ride manatees

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:13:00 +0000

"There is nothing that gets into states right issues like riding a manatee," says Michael Coffman, author and Tea Party expert. "Today, we can't ride a manatee--tomorrow, we won't be able to open a business," he told "The Daily Show's" Al Madrigal:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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Must-see morning clip: Mike Piazza discusses his memoir with Jon Stewart

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 14:26:00 +0000

Mike Piazza, a former Major League Baseball player for the New York Mets, stopped by "The Daily Show" to talk about his improbable baseball career: entering as a 62nd round draft pick, becoming the greatest MLB catcher of all time, then getting shut out of the Hall of Fame due to accusations that he took steroids.

In his memoir, "Long Shot," Piazza addresses the rumors around his drug use. He tells Stewart, "Sometimes being a professional athlete is not a healthy choice."

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