Following Jon Stewart's final show as host of The Daily Show on Thursday, #JonVoyage trended on Twitter, and I felt the need say my goodbye as well to the late-night legend.
I've been a long-time viewer of The Daily Show. Jon Stewart, along with George Carlin, Stephen Colbert, Jerry Seinfeld, and my parents, has been one of my biggest influences as far as my humor and writing (satire) go. He brilliantly combined humor with fact to illustrate the level of ridiculousness often times spouted by politicians and members of the news media. He held people accountable regardless of their party affiliation. Whether it was George W. Bush, Barack Obama, CNN, Fox News, or himself, he'd call people out on their misstatements, and even apologize if he accidentally misspoke, and I respected that. He'd often times tell his viewers and other members of the media, "I'm not a newsman; I'm a comedian first and foremost." Yet, as sad as he may think it is, many, myself included, trusted him over anyone in the actual news media.
Many on the right liked to label Stewart as a cheerleader for the left, as liberally-biased as they come. But while Stewart, like myself, may lean left-of-center on the political spectrum, the man wasn't anti-Republican, anti-Christian, anti-conservative, nor anti-Tea Party; he was (and is) anti-bullsh*t. That's why I think his final speech was the perfect one to wrap up the show. If there's one thing Jon Stewart hates more than anything, it's bullsh*t. Jon Stewart's beliefs may be perfectly in line with a particular Democratic politician, but if that politician utters a word of bullsh*t, Stewart's not going to put up with it and neither should the rest of us. Ultimately, I think that's why he decided to leave The Daily Show: he got burnt out on calling people out on their bullsh*t, felt he wasn't making a difference in doing this, and reached the point where he finally decided to give up and focus his full time and attention on his wife and kids.
Jon Stewart first started hosting The Daily Show in 1999. Since his debut, partisan media sources have become progressively bigger and louder, and as a result, this country has become more divided. He went from joking about politicians and members of the media to realizing our political system and media is the joke. He's hosted the show from the end of Bill Clinton's tenure to the Supreme Court decision regarding the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore to 9/11 to the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan to Hurricane Katrina to the rest of the Bush tenure to the Citizens United ruling to President Obama being sworn in as our first African-American president to the Affordable Care Act being signed to the Sandy Hook shooting to Ferguson to the initial run up to the 2016 presidential election and beyond. From Monday through Thursday night at 11:00 pm EST for almost 17 years, Jon Stewart attempted to provide people a cathartic release, by ending the day with some much needed laughter, all the while attempting to inspire us to think for ourselves and to hope and fight for our futures.
So thank you, Jon, for all of the laughs, heartfelt moments, and wise and inspiring words. We're sorry to see you go and you'll be greatly missed, but we understand and wish you nothing but the best with whatever you decide to do in the future. Thanks for 17 great years! Cheers!
I've been a long-time viewer of The Daily Show. Jon Stewart, along with George Carlin, Stephen Colbert, Jerry Seinfeld, and my parents, has been one of my biggest influences as far as my humor and writing (satire) go. He brilliantly combined humor with fact to illustrate the level of ridiculousness often times spouted by politicians and members of the news media. He held people accountable regardless of their party affiliation. Whether it was George W. Bush, Barack Obama, CNN, Fox News, or himself, he'd call people out on their misstatements, and even apologize if he accidentally misspoke, and I respected that. He'd often times tell his viewers and other members of the media, "I'm not a newsman; I'm a comedian first and foremost." Yet, as sad as he may think it is, many, myself included, trusted him over anyone in the actual news media.
Many on the right liked to label Stewart as a cheerleader for the left, as liberally-biased as they come. But while Stewart, like myself, may lean left-of-center on the political spectrum, the man wasn't anti-Republican, anti-Christian, anti-conservative, nor anti-Tea Party; he was (and is) anti-bullsh*t. That's why I think his final speech was the perfect one to wrap up the show. If there's one thing Jon Stewart hates more than anything, it's bullsh*t. Jon Stewart's beliefs may be perfectly in line with a particular Democratic politician, but if that politician utters a word of bullsh*t, Stewart's not going to put up with it and neither should the rest of us. Ultimately, I think that's why he decided to leave The Daily Show: he got burnt out on calling people out on their bullsh*t, felt he wasn't making a difference in doing this, and reached the point where he finally decided to give up and focus his full time and attention on his wife and kids.
Jon Stewart first started hosting The Daily Show in 1999. Since his debut, partisan media sources have become progressively bigger and louder, and as a result, this country has become more divided. He went from joking about politicians and members of the media to realizing our political system and media is the joke. He's hosted the show from the end of Bill Clinton's tenure to the Supreme Court decision regarding the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore to 9/11 to the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan to Hurricane Katrina to the rest of the Bush tenure to the Citizens United ruling to President Obama being sworn in as our first African-American president to the Affordable Care Act being signed to the Sandy Hook shooting to Ferguson to the initial run up to the 2016 presidential election and beyond. From Monday through Thursday night at 11:00 pm EST for almost 17 years, Jon Stewart attempted to provide people a cathartic release, by ending the day with some much needed laughter, all the while attempting to inspire us to think for ourselves and to hope and fight for our futures.
So thank you, Jon, for all of the laughs, heartfelt moments, and wise and inspiring words. We're sorry to see you go and you'll be greatly missed, but we understand and wish you nothing but the best with whatever you decide to do in the future. Thanks for 17 great years! Cheers!
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