Jon Stewart is leaving The Daily Show at the end of this year

[Wrath2X]

Jon Stewart says he’s leaving The Daily Show

By Sean O'Neal@seanoneal
Feb 10, 2015 5:38 PM


Ending one of the most venerable and trusted careers in making a complete mockery of the news, Jon Stewart has announced that he is stepping down as host of The Daily Show. According to sources who were there (some of whom are already passing word along on social media), Stewart let the news slip at the taping of today’s episode, telling those in the audience that he’s retiring. No word yet on when exactly he’s leaving, whether this means he’s ending his time in the anchor chair to focus on being a Serious Movie Director now, or just how much this is Brian Williams’ fault. Presumably all of this information will be revealed in time—and delivered by Stewart himself tonight on your television. We’ll update when we have more.

http://www.avclub.com/article/jon-stewart-says-hes-leaving-daily-show-215070

And here's an image from Comedy Central's twitter confirming it:



Man, he's been around for a while. I've been watching his show for over a decade now. Dude's highly influential and a great comedian. Going to miss having him around on the TV landscape. I wonder if he's going to focus on directing now after Rosewater got great word of mouth.

[Phoenix Dark]

Jessica Williams da gawd movin on up

[kingkitty]

Stewart is stepping down so he could work on his next film, Rosewater: First Blood Part 2.

[Joe Molotov]

He should take over the Colbert Report.

[Great Rumbler]

holdtite jon stewart for providing liberals an angst outlet during the shitty ass bush years

[Human Snorenado]

 

[Dickie Dee]

I know people are gonna try and pass it off like pffft I'm coo...did i mention whetevs??, but Stewart and Colbert were such a huge part of what made the '00s less shitty. It might be time for both of them to move on, but don't pretend like losing them both in a year isn't a thing.

[BobFromPikeCreek]

That's nuts. I was just thinking about the likelihood of this happening this morning. Jon's been seeming a little worn out with the show for the last year or two, and now that he has recognition as a director I assumed it wouldn't be long before we saw him move on.

[BobFromPikeCreek]

Well even if the new guy sucks we still thankfully have Last Week Tonight.

[TakingBackSunday]

I can't  :'(

jon and stephen are my heroes

[Stoney Mason]

I know people are gonna try and pass it off like pffft I'm coo...did i mention whetevs??, but Stewart and Colbert were such a huge part of what made the '00s less shitty. It might be time for both of them to move on, but don't pretend like losing them both in a year isn't a thing.

Stewart was one of the few things that kept me sane from 01-08 when it seemed like the media and the country had gone crazy. The things that show does now seem common place and part of the culture but back then it was really different and nobody else was really doing it. Before he re-imagined the daily show from kilborn, comedy/current event news satire was the home of bland entertainment like Not necessarily the news and occasional snl weekend update skits, but he elevated it from that.

holdtite jon stewart for providing liberals an angst outlet during the shitty ass bush years

He saved us from turning into Keith Olbermann's.

 

[Shaka Khan]

Growing up I used to dream of being on the show. It was supposed to be ME— not fucking Malala. :'(

[Himu]

I CANT DO THE 2016 INDECSION ELECTION WITHOUT YOU JON DONT LEAVE ME

[fistfulofmetal]

Jessica Williams da gawd movin on up

I just saw her do a talk in Ithaca and my girlfriend adores her. That would be pretty interesting if it happened.

[Shaka Khan]

I wasn't so sure about her when she first started. It was one of those situations where I kept thinking "please be good, not just a token." But as soon as she settled in she rose to the occasion.

[chronovore]

I'll miss the show, because it won't be the same without Stewart. At the same time, I'm happy he's able to move on to bigger and better things. Same for Colbert.

[Kara]

Is there going to be an insipid rally like when he rallied the insipid masses to restore sanity?

[seagrams hotsauce]

Colbert in particular had several years teed up off the back of Bush. We all ate off that shit. The chance of us experiencing a presidential cabinet that is that comically inept is v rare. This is a very exciting time.

[HyperZoneWasAwesome]

Stewart won't move onto anything bigger, he's already the biggest he can be.  He gets better ratings then any show on any of the cable news networks, he can't take his show to network TV (too many toes to step on, no open slots available to give him), and I find it unlikely that he'll scale back his politics (like Colbert is apparently going to do) to get a higher profile gig elsewhere.

I guess he'll take some less demanding job eventually when he wants to.  Maybe go back to doing standup, write a book, direct another good-but-not-great movie.  Who knows, perhaps not even Stewart at this point.

[kick51]

Kinda saw this coming after hearing an interview with him on NPR a little bit ago.  They asked him about moving on and he gave a very vague "I can't tell you but I'm quitting soon" kind of answer.

On one hand, sucks both of those shows will be gone.  On the other, no more "OMG did you watch the daily show last night?  He like did this thing that like proved how stupid those republicans are."  It's like some people want stuff to be propaganda.

[Brehvolution]

[sarslip]

All the praise here is warranted, but the writing was on the wall for at least a couple years if not more. 

RIP comedy central 

[kick51]

All the praise here is warranted, but the writing was on the wall for at least a couple years if not more. 

RIP comedy central 

south park

although i wouldn't be surprised if that only has a few years left.  when that's gone then they'll really have the fire under their ass.

[sarslip]

All the praise here is warranted, but the writing was on the wall for at least a couple years if not more. 

RIP comedy central 

south park

although i wouldn't be surprised if that only has a few years left.  when that's gone then they'll really have the fire under their ass.

Tru, south park the GOAT

anyone else remember the days of actual stand-up comedy, followed by marathons of Dr. Katz? 

Haven't seen The Nightly Show but Larry was killin it since way before Daily Show, so i should give it a go

[HyperZoneWasAwesome]

2015 is also almost certainly also the last year of Key and Peele, their careers are blowing up, as they are.

[Himu]

South Park has been since at least Chef left

[Himu]

All the praise here is warranted, but the writing was on the wall for at least a couple years if not more. 

RIP comedy central 

south park

although i wouldn't be surprised if that only has a few years left.  when that's gone then they'll really have the fire under their ass.

Tru, south park the GOAT

anyone else remember the days of actual stand-up comedy, followed by marathons of Dr. Katz? 

Haven't seen The Nightly Show but Larry was killin it since way before Daily Show, so i should give it a go

It's great. He did a thing with black fathers last week and it was

[Eric P]

Nightly Show's format is solid.  It is an opening monologue / followed by a panel with one expected dissenting voice, but Wilmore keeps it from being a pile on, then all of the guests have to answer a question that's often designed to expose a weakness in their position and the audience decides if they "kept it 100" (get a sticker) or get "weak tea" (Wilmore throws teabags at them), then Larry Wilmore takes a question from twitter that puts him under the same pressure. 

It's not as incisive as when Wilmore was brought out for, well let's face it, the race beat for the Daily Show, but he is an amiable host and I think it's handled quite well.

It's certainly worth watching.

It's great. He did a thing with black fathers last week and it was

i dunno that bit about "how bossy are black women" was kind of awkward but he addressed it the next day.  I like that he owns up to his own mistakes (like harassing someone for fat jokes the day after he harassed Michael Moore for being fat)

[Phoenix Dark]

I never really watched the Daily Show consistently. There was a period last year when I first got me Roku that I'd watch it a few times a week on Plex, but after awhile I moved on. Id rather watch a noteworthy clip here or there. The full show wasnt really my thing. His interviews were often hit or miss: a mixture of soft balls, him getting rolled by policy folks, etc. I enjoyed the one with Raza Aslan or whatever his name is, that was insightful. And the Nancy Pelosi one was cringeworthy in the sense of exposing her as nothing more than a talking head.

Overall it felt kind of circle jerky for me. Perhaps I read too much stuff, so seeing it rehashed or abbreviated on the show wasn't really interesting.

[Stoney Mason]

I never really watched the Daily Show consistently. There was a period last year when I first got me Roku that I'd watch it a few times a week on Plex, but after awhile I moved on. Id rather watch a noteworthy clip here or there. The full show wasnt really my thing. His interviews were often hit or miss: a mixture of soft balls, him getting rolled by policy folks, etc. I enjoyed the one with Raza Aslan or whatever his name is, that was insightful. And the Nancy Pelosi one was cringeworthy in the sense of exposing her as nothing more than a talking head.

Overall it felt kind of circle jerky for me. Perhaps I read too much stuff, so seeing it rehashed or abbreviated on the show wasn't really interesting.

A.) Nothing that comes on 3 or 4 night a week is going to be of consistent quality every night. The Daily Show and the Colbert Report for years were the best of this stuff in a format that will always be inconsistent.
B.) Everything in modern culture is "circle-jerky". Some things are at least fortunate enough to be quality in the midst of it.

[Himu]

I'll also say that tds and Colbert were also fantastic even though they were inconsistent in quality because you still learn something from them and I was introduced to a lot of stuff from their shows, namely books. I dunno. It just felt right having them cap off my night.

[Himu]

Yeah, we also deserve a nice circlejerk too

[Stoney Mason]

Bill Maher.

yuck

Yeah, we also deserve a nice circlejerk too

Circle jerk means lots of people like or agree with a thing. Which is a separate thing from whether that thing is worth liking or truthful, or honest, or smart, or witty, or whatever.

[Joe Molotov]

Not sure where this idea that a circlejerk is a bad thing comes from. 

[Himu]

Yup. Growing up blue in red states, Stewart was my daily savior. Especially when I reached college age in 2004 and we were neck deep into the Iraq war.  Gosh, I was so blue then I could make a smurf blush. Going to protests, seeing Fahrenheit 9/11 day one.

[bork]

Colbert GONE
Stewart GOING
South Park only has a few seasons left

What does Comedy Central have after this?  Key And Peele?

[benjipwns]

It's not like he's dying, he's going to be taking over for Larry Sanders.

spoiler (click to show/hide)

At center for the Milwaukee Bucks

[close]

[benjipwns]

His interviews were often hit or miss: a mixture of soft balls, him getting rolled by policy folks, etc.

What a smug opinion, the show was the pinnacle of hard-hitting intellectual debate and accountability journalism. Just because your right-wing heroes like Tucker Carlson and Jim Cramer were destroyed forever from orbit by Stewart personally (who writes the entire show himself) and made you look bad as a supporter is no reason to deny reality.

[Himu]

Colbert GONE
Stewart GOING
South Park only has a few seasons left

What does Comedy Central have after this?  Key And Peele?

Drunk history - owns
@midnight - owns
Tosh.o - sucks

[Dickie Dee]

I don't think Stewart usually trying to find common ground, no matter who the guest = lobbing softballs

[Dickie Dee]

Best option would be Jason Jones and Samantha Bee co-hosting

[Himu]

I'd rather have bee hosting, period

[Dickie Dee]

I know after Colbert they won't base another show on a joke character, but Samantha Bee hosting a Nancy Grace-esque show would be UNGODLY

[Himu]

I know after Colbert they won't base another show on a joke character

Why not? Colbert brought money and that idea is money.

[Dickie Dee]

Dunno, just think they won't.

[Stoney Mason]

I know after Colbert they won't base another show on a joke character, but Samantha Bee hosting a Nancy Grace-esque show would be UNGODLY

Colbert and that character were a product of their time. The Glen Beck's and Bill O'Reilly, and Sean Hannity's were so rife to be parodied. Plus it separated that show from the Daily Show since most people initially assumed they would be carbon copies of each other. Grace would be a good candidate but I'd probably prefer they just try a different approach.

[mormapope]

South Park has been since at least Chef left

 

South Park has been trash since some minor ass character left? More like "I stopped watching the show ten years ago just because."

South Park's recent season was awesome besides the last one or two episodes.

[benjipwns]

PD shares his thoughts on The Daily Show:

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2015/02/jon_stewart_stepping_down_from_the_daily_show_he_was_bad_for_liberals.single.html

I grew up with The Daily Show. It hit its stride during the 2004 election—my last full year in high school—and was critical viewing when Barack Obama won the Democratic nomination and then the presidency, my last full year in college. I attended Stewart’s Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear in 2010 and have watched the show on a semi-regular basis for almost a decade. And as a liberal, college-educated millennial—the almost prototypical viewer for The Daily Show—I’m thrilled Stewart is leaving.

I’m not saying this because Stewart has given his time or deserves to try something new. I’m saying this because Jon Stewart, with his brand of left-leaning cynicism (sprinkled with occasional earnestness), is a bad example for the liberals who watch and love him.

The emblematic Stewart posture isn’t a joke or a witticism, it’s a sneer—or if we’re feeling kind, a gentle barb—coupled with a protest: I’m just a comedian. Sometimes, this is refreshing. Of everything Stewart can be proud of in his professional career, special attention goes to his appearance on an Oct. 15, 2004, episode of CNN’s Crossfire, then-hosted by Paul Begala and Tucker Carlson. In his now famous rant, Stewart goes after the two hosts—and cable news writ large—as bad for the country. “Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America. … Right now, you’re helping the politicians and the corporations. And we’re left out there to mow our lawns,” he said.

More often however, Stewart’s stance is frustrating. His protests to the contrary, Stewart is a pundit, and like many pundits, he’s wed to a kind of anti-politics, where genuine difference doesn’t exist (or isn’t as relevant as we think) and political problem-solving is mostly a matter of will, knowledge, and technocratic know-how.

...

Cable, however, isn’t the only forum for debate, and most political conversations aren’t as shallow as the ones you see on TV. On op-ed pages and around dinner tables, Americans have substantive conversations about politics. And while the facts aren’t always right, the discussion is often valuable. Stewart gives short shrift to that kind of talk. Instead, in the world of The Daily Show, the only politics is cable politics, where venality rules, serious disputes are obscured, and cynicism is the only response that works.

Not only does this discourage people who want to make a difference—like the earnest young viewers of Stewart’s audience—but it blurs the picture and makes it hard to see when those arguments really matter. It’s how we get the spectacle of Stewart’s rally, when tens of thousands of liberals gathered on the National Mall in Washington to hear an ode to civility—with an extended metaphor about the Lincoln Tunnel—as if Washington gridlock were a case of bad manners and not deep-seated ideological differences about government and its place in the world.

Again, there are times when this basic perspective is vital, when we need someone to bathe our government in light and mockery and challenge the dishonesty, incompetence, and self-seriousness of our leaders and elites. But this approach, which worked wonders during the Bush administration, isn’t always the best one. For liberals in particular, the idea that government is only hypocrisy and dysfunction is self-defeating and nihilistic.

The natural response to all of this is a version of Stewart’s protest—He’s just a comedian—and a refrain from The Dark Knight: Why so serious? The answer is easy: He’s influential. And for a generation of young liberals, his chief influence has been to make outrage, cynicism, and condescension the language of the left. As a comedian and talk show host, Jon Stewart has been pretty funny. But as a pundit and player in our politics, he’s been a problem. And while I wish him luck in his next move, I’m glad he’s stepping from the stage.

[Himu]

South Park has been since at least Chef left

 

South Park has been trash since some minor ass character left? More like "I stopped watching the show ten years ago just because."

South Park's recent season was awesome besides the last one or two episodes.

No, more like, after Chef left they started venturing the show into pop culture news of the week. It's not because Chef left, or anything. I can't pinpoint one moment, but it's definitely after Chef left. The kids stopped acting like kids, it became pretty gimmicky. The episodes I saw last season were pretty bad. Like some three part thing with the console wars. It was pretty terrible, and it kind of suffers from Simpson-itis in that it just randomly inject pop culture into it now instead of just telling a story worth laughing at. It's cheap laughs. haha, i get that reference type deal. The characters are now no longer a wheel to drive the shows humor, but just excuses for Matt and Trey to delve into What Happened This Week. When it turned into the Cartman show, it got even worse. I still enjoy it some level, and some of the episodes have been good, like the cat piss drug episode and the took our jerbs episode. When Matt and Trey really want to, I think they handle topical episodes well, but for the most part, South Park's best years are way behind it. What certainly doesn't help, is, much like the Simpsons, the switch to digital. The episodes simply lack any sense of charm of the earlier seasons and feel almost automated in terms of animation. I watch the earlier seasons and I still think it's fucking hilarious.

[Himu]

fuck yes

old south park gang

[mormapope]

I get where you're coming from. My favorite season is probably season 8 (2004), which is when they jumped on the weekly pop culture train. I can't stand the really old stuff, even though I watched the early stuff growing up, comes down to preference I guess.

Regarding Comedy Central, nothing was more hilarious than when they were fiending for the next Chappelle's Show. Comedian after comedian getting a shot via sketch show and then failing miserably.

[Himu]

i think i'm being too hard on them. it's not trash but i see a complete quality dip. but at the same time, it's still watchable, unlike the simpsons.

[benjipwns]

The earlier seasons treat the kids more as kids. With their limited experience. All the "messages" of the earlier seasons came about as the kids not understanding and thus seeing through the adults bullshit.

Now from the start you know the adults are going to be dumb, while the kids (sans Cartman) are going to be all knowing.

Some of their better pop culture references are just the silly ones, like when everyone is using the Bane voice changer it just makes everything stupider funny.

[king of the internet]

Best option would be Jason Jones and Samantha Bee co-hosting

I didn't like their guest hosting episode. Maybe it sounds fucked up but I just don't think a married couple could have the right chemistry for a co-host situation.

[Stoney Mason]

I thought the early seasons of South Park were unwatchable. I didn't like it and I always skip those episodes if I happen to watch repeats.

The show found its stride for me right around that era when the South Park movie came out which I really liked.

The latest seasons have been of varying quality but much like Always Sunny, they always deliver a few knockout moments during a season that make the whole endeavour worthwhile.

[Phoenix Dark]

I'd rather have bee hosting, period

racist

[Himu]

I'd rather have bee hosting, period

racist

Comedy Central already has a black host with his own show right after the daily show.

[Sausage]

I'd rather have bee hosting, period

racist

Comedy Central already has a black host with his own show right after the daily show.

It wasn't a problem when there were two white hosts in a row. 

[Am_I_Anonymous]

Colbert GONE
Stewart GOING
South Park only has a few seasons left

What does Comedy Central have after this?  Key And Peele?

Drunk history - owns
@midnight - owns
Tosh.o - sucks

No ma'am, Tosh is okay by me. Always makes me laugh.

[Sausage]

Colbert GONE
Stewart GOING
South Park only has a few seasons left

What does Comedy Central have after this?  Key And Peele?

Drunk history - owns
@midnight - owns
Tosh.o - sucks

No ma'am, Tosh is okay by me. Always makes me laugh.

His sports science segment was amazing.