Trevor Noah to Succeed Jon Stewart on 'The Daily Show'

[Traveller519]

Judging a comedian of their tweets is not something I'm going to do. Twitter is more of a testing ground for up and coming comedians, at least for me. It seems to be a forum where they can see what jokes land and which don't while also riffing with existing comedians. To take any comedian's material as their own viewpoints at face value is disingenuous to the concept of comedy to me. 

 

These jokes obviously didn't land and, it seems, weren't crafted into his broader comedy routine, they were left to die there, unfortunately compared to discarded jokes at at open mic night, these live on via the wonderful world of Twitter. The jokes do appear to be send ups of established stereotypes, hamstrung by the twitter format.

 

If he was a genuine anti-Semite, I find it hard to believe he'd come to a working agreement under one of the most famous present-day Jewish comedians, from either of their perspectives.

[SpiritSong]

 

There's a school of thought in comedy that you should never apologize.  In some ways it's a righteous idea.  But it's dependent on you being willing to take the lumps and practice your no-holds-barred flavor of comedy in whatever venues are necessary to be like that.

 

When you promote yourself for a larger public forum you lose the privilege of not having to apologize.  It's the bargain for being on that guaranteed larger stage.  And then again with a show like The Daily Show, you also take on a public affairs responsibility.  I know I've heard even a guy like John Oliver, who I respect a lot, claim "hey I'm just a comedian" and directly say that he doesn't have any goal (or even a responsibility) to make people think (even though his show SO totally has that slant).  But I think Oliver is fooling himself there, and the reality of these politically tinged comedy shows like The Daily Show, The Nightly Show, Bill Mahr's show, and Oliver's own Last Week Tonight, is that the public sees you as a voice of wisdom--even if comedy is being used to deliver that.  That's the forum Trevor Noah is being thrust into and so if you want to KEEP that audience you inherit responsibilities and lose the right that you're totally above public perception.

 

So you apologize.

I don't think it's fair to the comedians to blame them for how the public perceives them. Even if they specialize in political humor, I think the operative word is HUMOR. I believe most comedians would rather get a laugh than make a political point. If they can do both, so much the better.

If Trevor Noah was running for a political office I'd be a lot more upset about his offensive tweets, but I don't hold comedians to the same standards as someone who is supposed to be a public servant. I find lots of jokes offensive, but a joke is different from making public policy. Even if Trevor apologized I don't think it would change the minds of those who have already decided they don't like him or want him to host The Daily Show. Their right, of course, but I'm still going to give him a chance.

[LADreamr]

Side note: I really wish we could get clear that criticizing Israel is different than criticizing the Jewish faith. Comedians could help out by not conflating the two.

But as we see of course, he's in fact he's NOT criticizing Israel. He's making jokes about "jewish girls". While many might disagree if he was making Israel jokes, at least there might be some level of respect for him hitting a proper political target and not an ethnic one.

Sorry, I actually just meant that as a general comment, not a defense of his specific ones. I should have clarified.

[Kromm]

I don't think it's fair to the comedians to blame them for how the public perceives them. Even if they specialize in political humor, I think the operative word is HUMOR. I believe most comedians would rather get a laugh than make a political point. If they can do both, so much the better.

Why does it have to be fair?  They're not elected officials, sure, but watching a TV program is a VOLUNTARY act.  You can't realistically enter into it with any expectation that "the public should just understand" or "I don't owe anything to them". That's totally unrealistic thinking when they owe you nothing.

 

In other words, Trevor Noah needs the public and their understanding infinitely more than the public needs him. 

Ergo... apology.  If it doesn't work, then so be it.  But at least he won't come off as someone too prideful to apologize, or like he's incapable of even seeing why people are troubled/offended.

[iMonrey]

 

I think it's probably for the best that the show changes. It's not fair to the new host to follow Jon's format and agenda. Oliver was able to tweak things a bit when he filled in for Jon, but everyone knew that's what he was doing: filling in for Jon. Jon was able to make TDS his own after he took over from Kilburn, and Jon's successor deserves the same chance.

 

It depends on what the show changes into. TDS has become a relevant counterpoint to Fox News and right wing pundits. Jon Stewart is a real, legitimate thorn in the side of the right wing because millions watch him and listen to him. I'm not sure Trevor Noah is going to have the same influence. It's possible Fox and their friends are going to have a much easier time of writing Noah off as an irrelevant comic who doesn't know what he's talking about. I would hate to see TDS devolve into the kind of silly show it was under Craig Kilborn. I think it's too important a show to entrust to an untried commodity like Noah.

[dubbel zout]

Jon Stewart is a real, legitimate thorn in the side of the right wing because millions watch him and listen to him. I'm not sure Trevor Noah is going to have the same influence.

 

Jon didn't have that influence right off the bat; why would Noah?

[iMonrey]

 

Jon didn't have that influence right off the bat; why would Noah?

 

That's my point. TDS did not have that kind of influence with Craig Kilborn. It was something Stewart turned the show into. And I hate to lose that. Sure, Noah's show might be great but it won't be the same Daily Show that makes the Fox News people tear their hair out almost every day. It'll be more likely something they can ignore and laugh off. I don't want to go back to that. The right wing pundits need a voice like Stewart's. Whether or not Noah can fill that void is unknown, but I would have much preferred Comedy Central had done a better job of insuring it by choosing a replacement that could keep TDS are relevant as it is now. I just don't see that happening with Noah.

[Kromm]

Also the argument shouldn't be "can Noah turn this into the same situation" (where he has influence) because the expectations are inherently different.  And those expectations can't magically be wished away simply because it's not fair.

[wknt3]

When you promote yourself for a larger public forum you lose the privilege of not having to apologize.  It's the bargain for being on that guaranteed larger stage.  And then again with a show like The Daily Show, you also take on a public affairs responsibility.  I know I've heard even a guy like John Oliver, who I respect a lot, claim "hey I'm just a comedian" and directly say that he doesn't have any goal (or even a responsibility) to make people think (even though his show SO totally has that slant).  But I think Oliver is fooling himself there, and the reality of these politically tinged comedy shows like The Daily Show, The Nightly Show, Bill Mahr's show, and Oliver's own Last Week Tonight, is that the public sees you as a voice of wisdom--even if comedy is being used to deliver that.  That's the forum Trevor Noah is being thrust into and so if you want to KEEP that audience you inherit responsibilities and lose the right that you're totally above public perception.

 

I have to disagree with you about there being some special "public affairs responsibility" for political comedy or that you have to think of yourself as the voice of wisdom. Your goal and responsibility as a comedian is to be funny. That's it. They are not journalists or politicians or scholars and they shouldn't be held to the same standards. That doesn't mean that anything goes and we can't say that a joke is offensive or misses the point. But when we start confusing the two we end up with often tiresome criticism that misses the point. Someone complaining that Jon Stewart didn't address every nuance of complex socioeconomic phenomena in a 4 minute bit or went for a laugh instead of addressing an overlooked angle to a story that the media hasn't explored. Or excusing those who should be held responsible to the public because the comedian doesn't meet the highest journalistic standards in your opinion (remember "puppets making crank phone calls"?) Even a show like Last Week Tonight which clearly has an advocacy angle and is trying to shed light on topics is first and foremost dedicated to making people laugh and has to be judged on that.

[ruby24]

There's really no reason to even expect it to stay a political show anymore, to be honest. I mean, Craig Kilborn's was totally different, Jon Stewart made it something else, now this guy could take it in a completely different direction. It could very well circle back to Kilborn silliness.

 

Everyone seems to be expecting it to stay a political comedy show, but there's no reason to think that will happen. That was Jon Stewart's area. It became much more important because of him only- which is why I briefly wondered if they might just retire it and start a new show for someone else.

 

And Noah seems like a frat guy to me, and on top of that he's from South Africa, so why should we be expecting that he's going to delve into the American political system and media the way Jon did? He may not be very knowledgeable or even interested in that. I fully expect The Daily Show to lose the influence it gained under Jon Stewart, it will probably never be like that again.

[dubbel zout]

I think it is unfair to Noah to expect him to have the same influence right of the bat that Jon has after years of being at the show.  Even if Noah kept TDS a political comedy show, it would be different simply because Trevor Noah is not Jon Stewart. Disappointment in Noah's version of the show is inevitable if people want it to be Jon's version.

[Kromm]

I have to disagree with you about there being some special "public affairs responsibility" for political comedy or that you have to think of yourself as the voice of wisdom. Your goal and responsibility as a comedian is to be funny. That's it. They are not journalists or politicians or scholars and they shouldn't be held to the same standards. That doesn't mean that anything goes and we can't say that a joke is offensive or misses the point. But when we start confusing the two we end up with often tiresome criticism that misses the point. Someone complaining that Jon Stewart didn't address every nuance of complex socioeconomic phenomena in a 4 minute bit or went for a laugh instead of addressing an overlooked angle to a story that the media hasn't explored. Or excusing those who should be held responsible to the public because the comedian doesn't meet the highest journalistic standards in your opinion (remember "puppets making crank phone calls"?) Even a show like Last Week Tonight which clearly has an advocacy angle and is trying to shed light on topics is first and foremost dedicated to making people laugh and has to be judged on that.

You're focusing on the smallest part of my post.  The first and last sentences in what I posted are the key ones.  Your choice is taken away because it's the bargain you make to play to a mass audience. 

 

"Responsibility", if it exists, is a result of pragmatism, not morality.  There's arguably no moral responsibility to be anything but funny, but there's a very real pragmatic REASON to be so.  That being that they, the public, call the shots and you don't. Trever Noah has no existing base to use to call the shots, to expect loyalty, from the general public.  Humility is the only option to get past this.  That's all I was saying.  He's got no choice.

[Pete Martell]

I don't really expect his show to be like Stewart's, because most of Stewart's was entirely about him and his personality. 

 

The problem I have is when someone tweets "hilarious" comments about beating women and the best he can say in response is whining about how people are "reducing" him. I've seen people doing their best to make him a martyr to "social justice warriors" and act like there's an effort underway to destroy comedy, and it makes me shake my head, especially when many of these people, like Patton Oswalt, were not the subject of his "humor." 

Edited April 2, 2015 by Pete Martell

[Kromm]

I don't really expect his show to be like Stewart's, because most of Stewart's was entirely about him and his personality. 

 

The problem I have is when someone tweets "hilarious" comments about beating women and the best he can say in response is whining about how people are "reducing" him. I've seen people doing their best to make him a martyr to "social justice warriors" and act like there's an effort underway to destroy comedy, and it makes me shake my head, especially when many of these people, like Patton Oswalt, were not the subject of his "humor." Yet they get endless praise for making it all about things that the likes of Patton Oswald aren't affected by - like the "humor" of women being beaten and assaulted.

Bingo.  The key is the response.  

 

Everyone makes mistakes.  Has misstatements.  Says immature or badly thought out things.  Everyone.

 

Someone who can't admit it was one or more of those things and tries to blame everything on how people are interpreting him? Even at best that pegs a person as an overweaning prideful asshole.  And a coward, afraid to admit to some mistakes.

 

The words "I was wrong" have power.  They admittedly won't fix every problem, but acting like you are above being wrong--that the problem is everyone BUT you?  Fuck that.

Edited April 2, 2015 by Kromm

[Wax Lion]

But as we see of course, he's in fact he's NOT criticizing Israel.  He's making jokes about "jewish girls".

 

There's one tweet that seems to have gotten a good amount of circulation in the right wing twitter outragosphere, something like 'South Africans love recycling the way Israel loves peace' which, IMO is totally fair except in the right wing world suggesting that maybe Israel should try a little harder to avoid collateral damage in conflicts with Hammas is "anti-Semitic".

[LADreamr]

The problem I have is when someone tweets "hilarious" comments about beating women and the best he can say in response is whining about how people are "reducing" him. I've seen people doing their best to make him a martyr to "social justice warriors" and act like there's an effort underway to destroy comedy, and it makes me shake my head, especially when many of these people, like Patton Oswalt, were not the subject of his "humor."

Exactly. And not only are those people not the subject of the hateful and harmful talk, and never will be, but they also want to preserve the right to keep talking however they want to, themselves, by even further maligning the offended subjects. And by the way, no one is taking their right to do so away. But the people who are the subject of it have at least equal right to say we're sick of that bullshit and we're not giving you any of our business.

I don't even give a shit what he does with the show anymore. It will be interesting to see if Jon addresses any of this on Monday.

WRT Israel, civilian deaths are not collateral damage. It's entirely on purpose.

Edited April 2, 2015 by LADreamr

[SpiritSong]

Why does it have to be fair?  They're not elected officials, sure, but watching a TV program is a VOLUNTARY act.  You can't realistically enter into it with any expectation that "the public should just understand" or "I don't owe anything to them". That's totally unrealistic thinking when they owe you nothing.

Well of course it doesn't HAVE to be fair. It just seems pointless to me to get upset that someone doesn't see themselves the way others want them to. I don't think it's at all realistic for someone to change who they are because they've got a TV program and the viewers would prefer they be different. The comedian does NOT, in fact, owe anything to them. Just as the viewer doesn't owe them an obligation to watch.

Watch TDS, or don't watch it. That's every viewer's choice. I don't watch Faux news because I think they're all full of shit. But they make money doing what they do, and it would be silly for me to expect them to change because I wish they were something else.

[Hooper]

I really enjoyed Trevor Noah's first couple appearances on TDS (the third was kinda blah), and so I was pretty excited by the prospect of a fresh new face as Jon's replacement.  Then again, I thought Larry Wilmore was a great choice to replace Colbert, so...

 

I still haven't written Noah off completely, but he's got some pretty big strikes against him in my book now.    I really don't buy the argument that Noah should be given a pass because Twitter (or open mikes) are places where comedians test out new material.  I don't think a comedian should be condemned for sometimes being unfunny if some of their material "failed to land" in those venues. I'll buy that comedians benefit from feedback from an audience to judge whether material is funny.  But comedians shouldn't need Twitter or open mikes to find out if comments are insulting to people who have done nothing to deserve to be insulted.  Comedians should have enough empathy to figure that part out on their own.   If Noah's argument is that he didn't know if a "joke" about violence toward women who dare to spurn a man's proposal, or a dig at "fat chicks everywhere" would get a big laugh until he tested it on Twitter, well ok, I guess.  But if his argument is that he needed feedback from Twitter to test whether those comments were offensive and degrading to people who have done nothing to deserve being degraded, well, he's an idiot.  Or at least if he needed feedback from Twitter to find out that a lot of people are going to be appalled by "jokes" about violence toward women, or anti-semitism, or fat-shaming, then he and his apologists shouldn't be feeling all victimized when he gets exactly that feedback.

The problem I have is when someone tweets "hilarious" comments about beating women and the best he can say in response is whining about how people are "reducing" him. I've seen people doing their best to make him a martyr to "social justice warriors" and act like there's an effort underway to destroy comedy, and it makes me shake my head, especially when many of these people, like Patton Oswalt, were not the subject of his "humor."

 

Exactly. And not only are those people not the subject of the hateful and harmful talk, and never will be, but they also want to preserve the right to keep talking however they want to, themselves, by even further maligning the offended subjects. And by the way, no one is taking their right to do so away. But the people who are the subject of it have at least equal right to say we're sick of that bullshit and we're not giving you any of our business.

Yeah.  That's what I'm talkin' about.

[TV Juriste]

I don't think it's important to defend this guy for stupid tweets- comedians are just very sensitive about anyone calling anyone out for "jokes," even if they're bad ones. If anything, to me this makes him look immature and like others have said, below the "gravitas" of The Daily Show, but that might be a good thing for expectations. We know immediately this will no longer be a Daily Show that's perceived as important by political/media figures, so I'm just not going to watch. I didn't watch Kilborn either. Jon Stewart was the Daily Show for me, and if him and his show are gone, I'm just not interested.

I agree. RIP nightly hour of political comedy zen. Looks like Trevor Noah = Tosh 2.0. I'll just head over to CBS for Colbert and HBO for John Oliver.

[Ms Blue Jay]

First of all, god I hate Patton Oswalt

 

Second of all

 

Is it racist to say "Opa Gangam Style" every time you see a fat person?

1/7/13
Just saw a Japanese supporter crying after the loss. His eyes were so small his tears were coming out as mist.
6/29/10
As in blond hair blue eyes or ET pronounced by an Asian? RT @khayadlanga: Shout out to all the Ariens up in here.
2/3/12
You can tell how angry the Chinese kid at the factory was by how hard it is to open the packaging.
1/14/14

These are horrifying.  These are not the only tweets I saw about Asians, either.  My word.  This guy is really beyond.

[Kromm]

These are horrifying.  These are not the only tweets I saw about Asians, either.  My word.  This guy is really beyond.

Ouch.  Maybe the jewish girls didn't get it so bad from Noah in comparison.  At least he wants to have sex with them (yuck).

 

Even STILL, as gross as these are, it's about the followup.  Any 13 year old can make racist and sexist jokes.  It takes an adult to live up to them and not blame the rest of the world for "not understanding" or supposedly coming down too hard on you.  Given that he made these jokes in his late 20s and not when he was 13, that's already a strike against him.  But as I said before, a total unwillingness to actually acknowledge the jokes are wrongheaded and putting the reactions on other people?  Fuck that.  Fuck him.  And even though I dearly love a lot of the comedians defending him and am not likely to turn on them permanently just for defending the CONCEPT of comedy freedom, fuck them for not seeing how this is a different situation.  This is someone dodging responsibility rather than simply living up to what he said.  "To reduce my views to a handful of jokes that didn’t land is not a true reflection of my character, nor my evolution as a comedian.”  That's not living up to what you've said, it's DISMISSING it and shifting blame to the audience. Fuck fuck fuck you, Noah.  Until you actually DO say more and seem to simply admit you said these things, that it was unwise, and that it's not the audience's fault for being upset, but yours for not thinking it through--yes, even in the past where you can't change it anymore.

 

Predictably by the way, those disgusting pieces of shit at Fucks News are ALREADY playing this up exactly as predicted here.

 

Fucks News: 'Daily Show' disaster: How Trevor Noah picks on the powerless

 

So fuck them too. 

Edited April 2, 2015 by Kromm

[dusang]

I'll buy that comedians benefit from feedback from an audience to judge whether material is funny.  But comedians shouldn't need Twitter or open mikes to find out if comments are insulting to people who have done nothing to deserve to be insulted.  Comedians should have enough empathy to figure that part out on their own.

 

Having actually worked in a comedy club*, I kind of disagree.  (I'm not speaking specifically about Trevor Noah or any of his tweets here but on the broader topic of comedians testing things out and/or insulting people.)  I think there can be a disconnect between what a comedian (or anyone) thinks they are saying and what an audience hears and audience feedback is really the only way to identify that disconnect.  Context, tone, body language... things can go horribly wrong on stage.  And different audiences might react in totally different ways.  For example, (and this is totally not even a comedy example) after Common's appearance on TDS a couple of weeks ago where he said something about not harping on the wrongs of the past and extending a hand of friendship to white America, which Jon was loving and the TDS audience was loving, I was listening to The Read podcast and the two hosts were like, "WTF are you talking about Common?  That's bullshit all over."  And Twitter as a medium is super tricky for comedians.  I mean, look at the #CancelColbert froufra.

 

Either way, just in general, even the most well meaning person can fuck up hard sometimes and what seems obvious to one person may not be obvious to the next person.

 

*As staff not talent. :)

Edited April 2, 2015 by dusang

[Sesquipedalia]

What I love about Jon Stewart is that he combines funny and smart. I watch for the incisive political satire, cathartic ranting against conservatives, and intelligent yet funny interviews. Yes, Stewart's humor can also be puerile. I roll my eyes at all the dick jokes and click over to my email when he gets off onto something too silly. But when he talks about politics and social issues, I can usually count on him to be thoughtful and insightful.

 

What Noah's tweets say to me is that he is not smart enough to host a Daily Show I would want to see. If fat chick jokes and slanty eye Asian jokes are what his mind repeatedly turns to in moments of thoughtless tweeting, I don't think he's going to bring that much to the table. The fact that he sees no need to apologize makes it worse, emphasizing how tone-deaf he is to the portion of TDS audience that watches for the political humor, not the fart jokes.

 

I wish Jessica Williams had gotten the job. I know she's young, but she seems way more politically aware and self-aware.

[LADreamr]

Apparently it was never offered to Aasif. I would like to have seen what he could do with the show.

[iMonrey]

 

Everyone seems to be expecting it to stay a political comedy show, but there's no reason to think that will happen. That was Jon Stewart's area. It became much more important because of him only- which is why I briefly wondered if they might just retire it and start a new show for someone else.

 

I don't expect it to remain a political comedy show. That's the problem. I want it to, but I don't see it happening. And I'm going to mourn the loss of a show that was a strong political counterpoint to right wing pundits everywhere. 

[Wax Lion]

Guy Branum says it all beautifully. He does a great job savy why these tweets are a problem, why comedians should get a chance to say stupid things and learn from them and why comedians shouldn't see this kind of criticism as a threat.

[nowandlater]

Guy Branum says it all beautifully. He does a great job savy why these tweets are a problem, why comedians should get a chance to say stupid things and learn from them and why comedians shouldn't see this kind of criticism as a threat.

 

I knew Guy Branum in college, when Hillary Clinton sent the Secret Service to his home over a misguided attempt at humor. Imagine if Twitter was around back then...

[redlaces]

I'm all for this guy now. I love a person that can get the population of the offended to become who they are the best. Soggy bottom offended soft sacks. Keep it going Trevor!! 

[Kromm]

Guy Branum says it all beautifully. He does a great job savy why these tweets are a problem, why comedians should get a chance to say stupid things and learn from them and why comedians shouldn't see this kind of criticism as a threat.

Guy Branum seems smart, and right about most of that, missing only the one sole piece that this situation would look a bit different if Noah was showing any sense of remorse or regret, rather than simply acting like it's no big deal and people are being "reductionist" and unfair to him.

Life isn't always fair.  You man up, and IMO Noah hasn't.

(yes, even if you aren't a man, so maybe I need to use a different expression...)

[ruby24]

I don't expect it to remain a political comedy show. That's the problem. I want it to, but I don't see it happening. And I'm going to mourn the loss of a show that was a strong political counterpoint to right wing pundits everywhere. 

Of course. Me too. That's why I'm not going to watch anymore. You know, for as much as people say MSNBC is Fox News for liberals, to me the one-two punch of Stewart and Colbert was all I needed to feel cleansed of all the BS they spout all day. I trusted them for the most part (Jon wasn't as great lately as he used to be, but he was on fire for many years), and especially during the dark days of the Bush administration, and the right wing noise machine's nonsense and hysteria aimed at the Obama White House. For many years I counted on them, I never watched much of MSNBC (maybe during the 2008 election, but that was it, it was never a place that earned my "trust," the way these guys did).

 

It's the end of an era for me, and it just feels like such a bummer. For liberals like me who needed that catharsis, to have it be nowhere anymore, while Fox News is still on, presumably forever, just feels unfair. We need something too, not just another apolitical comedy talk show. And I love Jon Oliver, but his show is very much focused on international issues or non-partisan single issue reporting (not a bad thing, but not the same), and Larry WIlmore just hasn't delivered like I thought he would.

 

I feel a bit abandoned, I guess. There's still Bill Maher for political comedy, but he's always been a little too out there in his thinking to be truly trusted and respected by the mainstream. But his show is basically all that's left as far as that goes. And it's just once a week and he often has complete idiots on as guests, so much of it is just frustrating.

Edited April 2, 2015 by ruby24

[Wax Lion]

Predictably by the way, those disgusting pieces of shit at Fucks News are ALREADY playing this up exactly as predicted here.

 

Sigh. Seems like a win-win for Fox and the conservative media machine. Either "the liberals" are repressing an artist's creative freedom with their political correctness or they're being hypocrites and looking the other way when one of their own says something offensive.

[Bastet]

Apparently Noah sent out a series of "We All Need a God" tweets (um, no thanks, I'm good) when Christopher Hitchens died.  If they'd ignored their religious differences and stuck to the derogatory remarks about women both were so fond of, those two would have got on quite well.

Edited April 4, 2015 by Bastet

[solotrek]

Apparently Noah sent out a series of "We All Need a God" tweets (um, no thanks, I'm good) when Christopher Hitchens died.  If they'd stuck to sexist commentary, those two would have got on quite well.

Well, clearly the guy we need to helm TDS. I mean, Christians are the persecuted minority who need a voice somewhere to speak up for them. Godless heathens are at the gate.

Edited April 4, 2015 by solotrek

[Darian]

Well, I was already not going to watch because of ugly tweets directed at groups I don't belong to, but I'm an atheist, so at least I don't have to feel left out.  

[FartyPants]

Based on the responders on this forum, the regular viewers of the daily show do not condone

domestic violence

racist stereotypes

denouncing atheism (or other beliefs)

 

Three strikes and he is out :(

[Kromm]

I really don't think this is going to blow over (Noah's OWN lack of proper response is only hurting things, not helping).

 

Stewart himself is stepping in though, and I'm not sure even that's gonna do the trick.  It might have if Noah had seemed even a LITTLE repentant/concerned and not so dismissive of people who would be his viewers.

 

Watch Jon Stewart Defend Trevor Noah On 'The Daily Show'

 

Wait, here's a YouTubed copy to embed:

 

http://youtu.be/pj77nx2UVfc

It's an interesting technique Stewart used, but again it totally depends on Noah actually giving a reaction now instead of a dismissal of his critics.  I'm not sure he has the guts, but lets see if he proves me wrong.

[ChelseaNH]

I stopped following along, but how many tweets are we actually talking about?  If it's a handful of tweets from someone who has been tweeting daily over some number of years, then I'm inclined to chalk it up to experimentation.  If it's a regular thing, that's another matter entirely.

[Kromm]

I stopped following along, but how many tweets are we actually talking about?  If it's a handful of tweets from someone who has been tweeting daily over some number of years, then I'm inclined to chalk it up to experimentation.  If it's a regular thing, that's another matter entirely.

I don't know if anyone's cataloged them all yet--people keep digging out new ones.

 

The big issue for some isn't the comments, but his followup.  The attitude in his response that came off as a blanket criticism of a pool of people, some who admittedly never would have liked him, but others who could have definitely been potential  fans if he hadn't been so instantly dismissive of their concerns.

[possibilities]

Yeah, I am 100% willing to forgive and move on, but he keeps reinforcing the idea that he stands by his shittiness, and that makes it hard to do. All he needs to do, and what I think he would do if he was worth anything as a comedian OR a professional, would be to make a sincere apology, even in the form of a joke about how he used to be a dumbass but he's grown up since then, and looks forward to showcasing his better work. There's really no defense for his CURRENT behavior, of seeming offended that anyone would call him on his shit.

 

I thought Stewart's defense was uncharacteristically weak. He did not defend the statements that have been criticized. He did not say people had over-reacted. He said he he had seen another side to the guy and he hopes we'll give him a chance... or not.

[LADreamr]

All he needs to do, and what I think he would do if he was worth anything as a comedian OR a professional...

Or a person. I may check out the first couple of shows, but I'm not too enthusiastic.

[Victor the Crab]

Trevor Noah is going to either rise or fall only on how he handles the TDS hosting job once Jon leaves. The time for any action has come and gone, and Jon standing by him last night only reinforces that. No amount of whining from the peanut gallery is going to change anything.

 

So, unless there's some new evidence that shows him in a worse light than a tiny handful of nearly 9,000 tweets showed, Trevor is the next full time host of The Daily Show. For better or worse.

[Tetraneutron]

http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/2015/04/08/trevor-noah-stole-my-jokes-russell-peters-claims.html And now another controversy: Two comics, including Russell Peters, claims Noah stole their jokes. I'm reserving judgement until I hear what the jokes in question actually are.

 

I suppose this is what all public figures will go through now. Everyone wants to be the one to bring down a beloved figure. My instinct is this amounts to nothing, since if this were Dane Cook/Carlos Mencia level, Trevor Noah never would have gotten the job. Overlooking a few gross tweets out of thousands (plus stand-up specials, hosting jobs, and interviews) is one thing, accusations you steal jokes is something else, something people in the comedy scene definitely would have heard about.

Edited April 8, 2015 by Obviously

[Traveller519]

Noah has been doing jokes about Russell Peters' father?

[dusang]

Russell Peters is saying that was a prank.

 

http://www.vulture.com/2015/04/russell-peters-claims-trevor-noah-stole-jokes.html

[Victor the Crab]

Noah has been doing jokes about Russell Peters' father?

 

Edited April 9, 2015 by Victor the Crab

[stormy]

I'm disappointed that Jon defended him. Maybe he thought he had no choice.

When Jon signs off, I sign off. Waaa!

[solotrek]

I'm disappointed that Jon defended him. Maybe he thought he had no choice.

When Jon signs off, I sign off. Waaa!

Considering Jon had a huge role in pushing CC to hire Trevor as a correspondent and then the next TDS host, it makes sense.

[Jaded Sapphire]

I'm disappointed that Jon defended him. Maybe he thought he had no choice.

When Jon signs off, I sign off. Waaa!

What I found interesting is that he really didn't defend him. He said that he's 'personally' seen him be thoughtful and conscientious. Which is what we saw on TDS until those not-so-thoughtful tweets. Hiding one's true nature and feelings around those it would (presumably) offend, especially if they're also your boss, is hardly proof of one's moral integrity. Edited April 9, 2015 by Jaded Sapphire

[nowandlater]

Interesting NY Times article on Noah...

https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/586165445067206656

 

It questions whether that Russell Peters accusation was really a prank. I mean, it's just really weird that he brought it up -- as a prank?

[Kromm]

What I found interesting is that he really didn't defend him. He said that he's 'personally' seen him be thoughtful and conscientious. Which is what we saw on TDS until those not-so-thoughtful tweets. Hiding one's true nature and feelings around those it would (presumably) offend, especially if they're also your boss, is hardly proof of one's moral integrity.

It's probably still possible he's thoughtful and conscientious in many ways.  But he's also seemingly too prideful, and if he's thoughtful it's not connected up to common sense.  The way he handled the "joke thief" thing again leaned towards the juvenile and ineffective. He again shortcutted any real sense of thoughtfulness by (again) using Twitter to provide a jokey (and again unfunny) response.  He IS a comedian, of course, so you expect his response to be through humor, but Twitter asides don't satisfy anyone--like with his tweeted response to the hue and cry over his older tweets, he was just using the SAME mechanism again and sounding roundly dismissive.

 

He needs to get his ass into an interview chair with a real news outlet (one who will be fair to him) and give an actual interview. Over ALL of these issues--the rude tweets AND the joke stealing accusations.  And just put it to bed with a thoughtful response to both rather than seeming dismissive.