In the Media: The Blogs Must Be Crazy

[ApathyMonger]

New correspondent and contributor! Hasan Minhaj and Trevor Noah: http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/the-daily-show-adds-comedians-hasan-minhaj-and-trevor-noah-1201326740/

Edited October 10, 2014 by ApathyMonger

[Victor the Crab]

Amazing that people overlooked this, but Malala Yousafzai, who was Jon's guest exactly a year ago,  was named co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize today. Her appearace and candour about seeing young girls in the Middle East get an education, and how she didn't back down from the Taliban after they shot her and left her for dead, left Jon clutching his hands to his mouth, speechless.

Edited October 10, 2014 by Victor the Crab

[trow125]

TDS had a nice response to Malala's win on their Twitter feed today. Maybe she'll be the MoZ on Monday...

[Fremde Frau]

I was re-watching that interview earlier today. I hope she is the MOZ. That would be sweet.

[solotrek]

Next Night of Too Many Stars: America Comes Together for Autism Programs will be taped February 28 2015 and will be aired March 8 2015.

[dubbel zout]

Coldly indifferent to its burning desire for them to come together as political talk show and political talk show host, New York magazine reports...

 

Off topic, but that's a whopper of a misplaced modifier.

 

 

And what would a Sunday show do without a weekly visit from John McCain? The DC world would end.

 

As would his.

Edited October 13, 2014 by dubbel zout

[Julia]

Coldly indifferent to its burning desire for them to come together as political talk show and political talk show host, New York magazine reports...

Off topic, but that's a whopper of a misplaced modifier.

I totally challenge whoever wrote that sentence to diagram it.

I think if there's no possible way to know what your pronouns are referring to you really need to rethink the structure of your sentence.

[Fremde Frau]

Saw this on Twitter. It's too bad that Jon never invites onto the show people with whom he disagrees. I'm sure Yelton would put him in his place.
 

 
Here's the original segment. Poor guy's still feeling it. Heh. (Damn, I miss Aasif. He was on the same tier as John, Stephen, and Steve were and as Jessica is now. Perfect in almost every segment, whether in studio or in the field.)

[trow125]

(Damn, I miss Aasif. He was on the same tier as John, Stephen, and Steve were and as Jessica is now. Perfect in almost every segment, whether in studio or in the field.)

 

Aasif is busy working on his HBO show, but he was a guest on my local public radio station's morning chat show last week and said he would be appearing on TDS again very soon. So while he's no longer a regular correspondent, it sounds like he'll still be popping up from time to time.

[Fremde Frau]

From Salon: an excerpt from the new book #Newsfail: Climate Change, Feminism, Gun Control, and Other Fun Stuff We Talk About Because Nobody Else Will, by Jamie Kilstein and Allison Kilkenny. And here is a brief interview with the authors by HuffPo.

 

This is hardly a show that has its fingers on the pulse of the activist community. If the authors were given to copyright infringement, they might publish the following as an appendix in this book:

“The Daily Show’s” Guide to Activism
1. Wake up.
2. Play Xbox for one to seven hours.
3. Throw away empty PBR cans.
4. Write angry Tumblr post about evils of corporations while smoking Marlboro reds, eating McDonald’s hamburger, and drinking Pepsi beverage.
5. Watch “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart.
6. Email MoveOn.org petition to family.
7. Avoid phone calls from family members.
8. Change Twitter avatar to whatever color for whatever latest third-world country is being destroyed by crazed dictator.
9. Search Wikipedia for information on said country in case later quizzed.
10. Play Xbox for several more hours.
11. Go to sleep with self-satisfied smile on face.

Real activism doesn’t work that way. You can’t appoint a progressive messiah and listen to him snipe through your flat screen and expect for things to magically get better.

The only way to effect real change is through the precise instances of direct action that “The Daily Show”—supposed bastion of liberalism—repeatedly mocks, not only in brief comedy sketches on late-night TV, but on a grand scale such as the Rally to Restore Sanity.

In conclusion: Never trust a show owned by Viacom to lead a counterculture revolution. If “The Daily Show” was ever a real threat to the establishment, it would have been canceled years ago.

 
The good news is that they're rooting for LWT, so we haven't lost our progressive messiah in the counterculture revolution. Because what else could possibly motivate us to be proactive citizens, if not satirical comedy? And I'm so glad they're talking about climate change, feminism, gun control, and that other fun stuff, because goodness knows TDS never does. Slackers.

[alexvillage]

 

Real activism doesn’t work that way. You can’t appoint a progressive messiah and listen to him snipe through your flat screen and expect for things to magically get better.

This is absolutely true. There are different ways of being an activist and they all require some action. Just cheering someone is not activism.

 

The Daily Show does mock a lot of things that we wish it were more deeply involved but that's not a problem to me, as long they are not claiming to be activists (are they?) My problem is when Jon involves himself with the Night of Too Many Stars without really knowing where he is dipping his feet in (and if he knows, he is a douche that hurts autistics he supposedly wants to help)

or when he claims other stuff that have been discussed and I don't want to repeat right now

[Victor the Crab]

Real activism doesn’t work that way. You can’t appoint a progressive messiah and listen to him snipe through your flat screen and expect for things to magically get better.

 

The only way to effect real change is through the precise instances of direct action that “The Daily Show”—supposed bastion of liberalism—repeatedly mocks, not only in brief comedy sketches on late-night TV, but on a grand scale such as the Rally to Restore Sanity.

 

In conclusion: Never trust a show owned by Viacom to lead a counterculture revolution. If “The Daily Show” was ever a real threat to the establishment, it would have been canceled years ago.

 

Bill Maher should take heed of that.

[Fremde Frau]

I think The Daily Show has consistently insisted that they are absolutely not anyone's champion. Jon always gets singled out for shirking some presumed social or political responsibility, but he isn't alone in saying this; writers, producers, correspondents, etc., have said the same thing. John Oliver is saying it now, about himself and his new show. Sometimes, I definitely wish TDS had done a more serious take on this or had covered that, but what is that to them? They aren't responsible for what people want out of them in excess of their profession and intent. Jon seems to be a kind of quiet activist as a private citizen, using his fame and fortune for causes that he cares about (moderating a panel of Arab Spring activists for the Women in the World summit, for example), but, as far as I've seen, he's never directly asked his Daily Show audience to take specific political action. Not with the rally or even with the 9/11 first responders episode, the way Shep Smith did. The show is still built on what he cares about, but there is a separation of church and state, so to speak, that appears to be very deliberate on his part. Crossing that would be a pretty major step for him, I think.

In any case, I don't know why he should be held to account for supposedly breaking a contract that he never entered into. His contract with us is to entertain; if he makes a wrong-headed joke or starts repeating old field pieces in place of new content, those would be legitimate criticisms. But too often, you read an article like that and the reason he's being criticized is that he's had a failure of integrity as a journalist, a political activist, or both. That's just a false premise from the start. That TDS is a generally hilarious show while also offering sharp, insightful commentary on politics and society is like discovering that the apartment you've leased, sight unseen, turns out to have a fantastic skyline view that contextualizes everything your city is doing wrong. You are still going to face that city every morning and try to make a difference in whatever way you can, but that unexpected, cathartic view at night is really nice to have. At least, that's how I watch the show.

[alexvillage]

 

Bill Maher should take heed of that.

Definitely a douche who thinks everything he says should be teen was the ultimate wisdom (and he does that even when faking humbleness) 

[formerlyfreedom]

Let's remember, this is the spot to talk about The Daily Show in the Media. Thanks!

[Fremde Frau]

There's a new study by Pew Research Center on political polarization and media habits. On the one hand, more people trust Jon than Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, or Glenn Beck. On the other hand, their regular audience is much larger individually as well as collectively, so I'm not sure that this is a very representative sample. And Fox still dominates the ideological right.
 
EDIT: TDS and TCR are having live midterm election coverage on November 4th. Not a joint show, alas!
 

“The Daily Show’s” special political coverage, “Democalypse 2014: America Remembers It Forgot to Vote” will feature news and results analysis from host Jon Stewart and The Best F#@king News Team Ever with a guest appearance via satellite by Reince Priebus, Chairman of the Republican National Committee.

“The Colbert Report’s” special political coverage for The Nation, “Midterms ‘014: Detour to Gridlock: An Exciting Thing That I Am Totally Interested In—Wait! Don’t Change the Channel. Look at this Video of a Duckling Following a Cat Dressed Like a Shark Riding a Roomba! ‘014!” will include host Stephen Colbert’s patriotic fervor and insightful conjecture of the results with a guest appearance by Andrew Sullivan of The Daily Dish.

Edited October 28, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[solotrek]

For everyone who wants to Jon and Stephen together again, Stephen will be interviewing Jon about Rosewater.

 

Buy tickets here.

Rosewater: Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert Live will be showcased in select cinemas nationwide on November 13 live at 7:30 p.m  EST (tape delayed in other time zones).

Join Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and special guest Maziar Bahari, for a full-length advanced screening of Jon Stewart’s highly-anticipated film, Rosewater, before its November 14 release

 

Edited October 29, 2014 by maculae

[attica]

Sam and Jason are having a new baby Pilot!  That premise actually sounds promising -- playing to Jason's strengths.

[Fremde Frau]

Rolling Stone: Jon confirms that NBC offered him Meet The Press.

[attica]

Wow. I'd been skeptical of that. Now I know there is no limit to the numbskull-ness of a network suit. Lesson learned.

[Fremde Frau]

Yeah. I'm so glad that Jon seems to have such a contentment about being who he is and doing what he does. What could have given them the idea that he might have taken that job?

[dubbel zout]

If the execs had done any amount of research on Jon, they'd know MTP isn't something he'd ever want. But why not make an offer? You never know until you ask. David Gregory's approach on the show wasn't working, so it makes sense to wonder if a different approach might work.

[Victor the Crab]

If the execs had done any amount of research on Jon, they'd know MTP isn't something he'd ever want. But why not make an offer? You never know until you ask. David Gregory's approach on the show wasn't working, so it makes sense to wonder if a different approach might work.

 

Yet they seem to continue using the same format as before. All you need to know about this is look at Gregory's replacement Chuck Todd. Garbage in, gabage out.

[Fremde Frau]

Vanity Fair has an excerpt from Aasif's book, No Land's Man (available on November 4th).

My experience with Muslims before this was mostly at my parents’ mosque, where, judged for my spouseless-actor-in-New-York lifestyle, everyone treated me as if I had a bottle of whiskey in my sock and a pig for a best friend. But now, suddenly, Muslims began to treat me as if I was one of their own. They wanted to hug me; they wanted to tell me how using satire to address the issues of the Middle East and the war on terror on The Daily Show was oftentimes more effective than the work they were doing through the Islam Anti-Defamation League. They also wanted to know if I was married, because they would like to introduce me to their daughter.

It all made me incredibly uncomfortable for two reasons. Firstly, I realized that they thought I was like them and I was not. My relationship with Islam was complicated and contentious. I had taken great delight in arguing with conservative Muslims who would tell me crazy shit like, “Eating pork will make you want to sleep with your mother,” or in provoking imams by telling them that they could learn as much about the human condition by reading Rumi or Shakespeare as they could from reading the Koran. I rarely went to the mosque, I never fasted, and I only prayed namaaz on the holy nights because my mom bugged me about it.

The second reason it made me uncomfortable was that I liked it. I liked knowing that what I got to say on the show, even though I didn’t always write it, was having an impact. Not in terms of policy, or to lawmakers, but to Muslims in America. The fact that there was a brown person, openly identified as Muslim, on national television, talking about the relationship between America and the Muslim world from a vastly underrepresented point of view was a big deal for them. That that brown person happened to be me was absurdly bananas, but it started to make me feel, dare I say . . . Muslimy. The whole thing was very unsettling.

The longer I spent time on The Daily Show, standing in front of a green screen pretending to report from war zones and hot spots around the world—most often from somewhere in the Middle East—the more I began to realize that The Daily Show was radicalizing me. I was being allowed to express the outrage that had lain dormant in me since the aftermath of September 11. I was becoming a terrorist of comedy. This was my joke madrasa run mostly by Ivy League–educated Jews, and I was being taught how to commit a jihad of irony against the bullshit, the hypocrisy, the ignorance. I was learning to fire missiles of satire across the basic cable airwaves and blow the minds of a million people. Sometimes we even got up to two million if it was election time. I was able to retaliate on behalf of a sector of society that needed to know that someone, kind of, sort of, had the balls that no one on Fox or CNN had. American Muslims, whether they were religious practitioners or whether, like me, they mostly identified with Islam from a cultural standpoint, had not been allowed the luxury of being both patriotic and critical of America at the same time. This was evidenced by the brown-faced cabbies on the streets of New York who had adorned their yellow cabs with so much red, white, and blue that they looked like floats in the Fourth of July parade. Anyone with a thick Middle Eastern or South Asian accent quickly replaced “Inshallah” with “God bless America.”

“Even though on the outside I may look like those that did you harm, I am not one of them,” they were attempting to say. “I get that you are angry and afraid, but if we just connect for a moment, you will see that I’m actually Armenian or Sikh or from Poughkeepsie. And if I do happen to be Muslim, I am not that freedom-hating type of Muslim. I believe in peace, and baseball. My blood runs apple pie so you can pass over me. Oh, ye angel of freedom, liberty, and ignorant racially-driven outrage, pass over me.”

Here is a nice interview with HuffPost Live today. This is the Daily Show segment that his web series is based on.

Edited October 31, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[Fremde Frau]

A new (and very long) interview with Jon by New York Magazine. It covers quite a lot of ground, so I'm putting it here rather than in the Rosewater thread. It's hard to pick out a few quotes because it's full of his humor and honesty, but this part stood out to me because of what they have covered recently on the show.

 

You’ve consciously diversified The Daily Show’s staff over the years. Why has that been important to you?

I was defensive at first about our writing staff being all white and male, and then I had to examine what were the structural issues, and what’s my own ignorance of some of this. It’s been a long process, and that’s just one metric, but I wanted a wider and deeper pool of people to draw from. Hopefully, I’ve grown and learned as I’ve gotten older. I’ve had some very frank conversations with women on the staff and minorities on the staff about the inherent difficulties, the fact that in their lives they have to make decisions and strategize in a way that I take for granted. I don’t think people recognize how exhausting it is sometimes to be black.

You were pretty worked up trying to get Bill O’Reilly to acknowledge “white privilege” the other day.

He’s six-five! You know, if I want him to hear me, I’ve got to climb the mountain.

The show also did a controversial segment recently about the racism of the name “Washington Redskins.” Were you wrong to ambush those fans who were defending the team name?

I wouldn’t call it an ambush. We don’t lie to people and say we’re not The Daily Show or “This won’t happen” or things like that. I even said on the show if we found out that these people had been intentionally misled, that segment wouldn’t have aired. That’s not the case. I’ll tell you where there was a real ­ambush—when the Native Americans went to the stadium and people said the most vile shit to them. The ugliness that arose was mind-numbing. So for the story to be these poor people, the Redskins fans, who sat in a room and had to then talk to the Native Americans … I don’t understand the weird defensiveness. We all live in a country built on this very devastating scenario with the people who were already living here. That’s our original Manifest Destiny sin. In some ways, by accepting the flaws, the progress that we’ve made is more impressive.

 
That first image is great, but it's bugging me because he looks like some "golden age" actor, but I can't think of who it is.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[purist]

 

That first image is great, but it's bugging me because he looks like some "golden age" actor, but I can't think of who it is.

 

I think it's just the old cliche of the classic movie director with megaphone, beret and jodhpurs. There are photos floating around of Erich von Stroheim and Cecil B. DeMille in similar get-ups. Thanks for the article!

[Fremde Frau]

You're probably right. I was thinking that there's something about his expression that reminded me of a particular actor from that era, but it's probably the background and B/W photography that is messing with my mind.
 
I didn't realize that there was another new (old) article out, also in New York magazine but from 1994.

Here in the '90s, when everybody except Chevy Chase has a talk show, Jon Stewart brings three all-important qualities to MTV’s entry in the chat wars: He’s funny. He’s not afraid tackle tough issues with guests like the 7-year-old Olsen twins from Full House. And he has an abundance of body hair. “They have to shave my neck during the hour between taping,” Stewart says. “Is that something I shouldn’t have shared?”

This is the man who should have been Conan. In fact, Stewart made it to the finals of NBC’s Replace Dave Sweepstakes, only to have Lorne Michaels choose O’Brien, who’d spent as much time in front of a television camera as Doris Duke.

“And what do we have for the losers?” Stewart intones in his most unctuous game-show-host voice. “A week at Giggles Comedy Club in Rochester!” Stewart’s consolation prize turned out to be more valuable: MTV launched The Jon Stewart Show.

All the standard talk-show elements are present in Stewart’s speedy half-hour, but they’re slightly skewed: Announcer Howard Feller looks heavily sedated (he played an inmate in Awakenings). The musical guests (the Breeders; 4 Non Blondes; Gin Blossoms) are loud and quirky. Then there’s the host, a boyish, smartly sarcastic comic who’s a regular guy — quick-witted, but not overpowering like Robin Williams; ironic, but not smug like Dennis Miller.

Stewart is also doing his best to be perky. “Jon’s shown more of his nice-guy side so far,” says pal Denis Leary. “As this show continues, it will get uglier; eventually it will just be this raging little Jewish man screaming into the camera.”

[solotrek]

Aasif did an interview with Terry Gross on Fresh Air. A lot in the interview about getting hired on TDS and some behind the scenes stuff. Really great interview.

[trow125]

Jon is going to be a guest on "Late Show with David Letterman" on Nov. 13.

[Fremde Frau]

I know it's almost inevitable, but I still hope they discuss Stephen, if only because at this point I have an embarrassingly obvious affection for Jon and Stephen's affection for each other, and I want to savor every last drop before their partnership on Comedy Central officially comes to an end.

 

EDIT: Jon will be on CBS Sunday Morning; the preview is here. (Isn't that Mo Rocca?)

Edited November 7, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[dubbel zout]

Jon sold his apartment and made a bundle.

[peeayebee]

For anyone who didn't catch Jon on CBS Sunday Morning, here's a link. Scroll down. There are also web exclusives.

 

Jon's wife has white teeth. Really white. Too white.

[Fremde Frau]

Damn, that New York real estate is something else.

 

It made me sad to listen to Jon talk about his parents' divorce. I wonder if he ever reconciled with his father; I read somewhere that they were estranged for a long time. I respect that it's something he's reticent to talk about publicly.

 

EDIT: Here's an interview with Yahoo that covers the Mets, Star Wars, the voting joke, etc., in addition to the movie.

Edited November 10, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[trow125]

Jon and John reunite (briefly; sort of) for the LWT finale:

[Fremde Frau]

I'm sure it was coincidental, but I love that Jon was the first victim in their montage. Salmon always return to their birthplace.

[Fremde Frau]

CNN had an interview with Aasif that ties in with what he has written about in his book, specifically the influence of The Daily Show and Aasif's visibility as a Muslim, as well as in the play Disgraced. There is a video interview with Amanpour as well as a written article by Aasif and Dean Obeidallah.
 
Jon had a short interview with The National Post, which covers some different ground (what it means to be Jewish, what it means to criticize Israel, etc.). He indirectly responds to the criticism by people like Savage and Levin.
 
According to this backstage bit, Jon will be on Howard Stern next Tuesday(?).
 
This is the last thing: Dan Cortese, Jon Stewart and George Clooney, from MTV Rock N' Jock Baseball in 1995.

Edited November 12, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[solotrek]

Jon will be doing a Reddit AMA on Friday.

 

ROSEWATER ‏@RosewaterMovie 3m3 minutes ago

Want to ask Jon Stewart anything? On Friday, tune in to his @reddit_AMA at 11:30am ET / 8:30am PT! #RosewaterMovie

 

[Fremde Frau]

That should be interesting.

 

And then there was this business, with Steve Carrell... I don't even...

Edited November 12, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[trow125]

Jon will be a guest on "Fresh Air" today - it'll be available to listen to here sometime Thursday evening. Even if you have Jon Stewart Interview Fatigue, this should be a good one, since Terry Gross is a huge TDS/TCR fan and will no doubt ask some questions that haven't already been asked a bazillion times.

[attica]

I only hope she holds his feet to the fire regarding the whole "Who would win in a fight, you or Colbert" questions. Somebody's gotta get to the bottom of that!!!

[Fremde Frau]

Dan Roodt, the fellow from John's old field piece "The Amazing Racists," is planning on suing TDS.

Controversial advocate for a separatist Afrikaaner state, Dan Roodt, has told Eyewitness News that he intends pursuing legal action against US television programme The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as well as those who have “obsessively” shared a link to an interview he did on the show.

On his list of people to sue is Daily Maverick columnist Rebecca Davis, whom he informed of his intention via Twitter on Friday 7 November after she shared a link to the interview. Roodt says that he intends to sue for an amount of between R100 million and R1 billion.

Roodt believes that he was defamed in his interview with the Daily Show and is seeking damages done to his reputation.

In 2010 the show's John Oliver set out on a trip to South Africa in a piece that satirised racism and race relations. Oliver then interviewed Roodt in the segment and it seemed that while Roodt took the interview quite seriously, he was unaware of Oliver’s sarcasm throughout the interview.

I had to add this part. It's too much.

He went on to explain that he felt that the interview was “a colonial way of doing things”, where he felt that The Daily Show came to South Africa expecting him to be “some sort of native to be slandered and ridiculed”.

Edited November 13, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[solotrek]

The Fresh Air interview with Terry Gross. Too good to not put here as well.  Part 2 will be aired next Wednesday.

[Fremde Frau]

Jon and friend are doing his AMA now.

Damn it. I have been listening to the NPR interview, and I just read this phone interview with the Wall Street Journal. Jon really is all but gone, isn't he? I get the sense from his interviews and from what people like Maziar, Stephen, and John have said that his work ethic won't let him half-ass it until he leaves, and it's clear that he still feels deeply and strongly about the issues that TDS covers, but it's also clear that he's privately ready for a "nap" (to quote his AMA). Damn. I did find it interesting, though, that he considers the film and the show to be the same conversation (the same material and work) along a great continuum, so maybe that means that he'll still be writing and performing stand-up or in the public sphere somehow after he's rested a bit. I just hope he stays until his contract is up and doesn't try to sneak out the back door in December or something.
 

Has the Daily Show peaked? And if so, when?

[Laughs.] You want the day!? That’s probably up to us. Like anything that people have become accustomed to the rhythm of, it maybe takes a little bit more to generate the type of visceral reaction you could have gotten when it was more novel. Young love is always more evocative than comfortable love. At the same time I feel like we execute our ideas better, and at times we still deliver bits that are as good as anything we’ve ever done.

In that way your satirical news show is becoming an institution, like some serious new programs that have gone on for decades–

–purposelessly drifting. It’s always a battle between evolving it in a way that makes sense and makes it better, or just contriving it to make it different. The flipside of that is leaving it alone and letting it die a quiet, perfunctory death. There is a shelf life. Not necessarily for the format, but for my input in it. You probably do reach a certain peak Stewart.

So would there continue to be a “Daily Show” without Jon Stewart?

I think absolutely. It will be interesting to see the next iteration. John Oliver has been able to take that mentality and apply it to a more long-form, considered study [on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight”] and that’s been really exciting to watch. Our shows are different animals, but somebody will be able to bring the next iteration of that day-to-day process that I might not have the vision for.

Everybody has that thing they would do — or so they tell themselves — if they weren’t so busy with their damn day job. What’s your nagging ambition?

I think I scratched that itch. That ambition was to move to New York to try this. Now it’s just a question of doing it well, even if you hit an obstacle. If you’re in a slump in baseball, sometimes you just don’t have your swing. And in those moments you go, “At least I’ll just try and hustle around the bases and try not to be a detriment to the team.” I’ve learned that those ups and downs are cyclical.

Edited November 15, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[trow125]

No way would Jon leave TDS until "The Minority Report" is well established. As with "Colbert," it will take some time for it to succeed on its own terms (I trust that it will indeed succeed, because Larry Wilmore is a ridiculously talented guy). It wouldn't surprise me to see the return of the toss, this time with Larry, to persuade folks to stay tuned in.

 

The big question is, will he stick around for the 2016 elections. It would be the fifth presidential election cycle he's covered and that must be a particularly tough gig. Though considering the high ratings TDS usually scores in election years, CC might back up the money truck and persuade him to stick around for one more.

[Victor the Crab]

I can possibly see Jon staying around until the end of 2016, right after the presidential elections. Plus, he'd need to find the right replacement for TDS and maybe groom that person. Whatever happens, enjoy Jon at TDS while you still can.

[Fremde Frau]

I hope you both are right. That he talks about the show continuing on without him makes me think that he might step away even with Larry's show starting and the 2016 elections looming around the corner. On the other hand, they're sort of having a crisis of talent right now, what with Jason at least and possibly Sam leaving if that pilot goes well. Aasif and Al aren't there full time. Jessica and Jordan are super talented and capable, but one's young and one's still inexperienced, and I wouldn't be surprised if other networks were eyeing them for major roles, after how they've stood out all year long. It might be that Jon has to stay around longer than he's comfortable, simply for lack of an heir as ready for the desk as John was.

 

I'll definitely be enjoying him while he's on TDS. It's been quite a run for him. I still have years worth of archived videos to catch up on, and the same for Stephen. I sure hope Comedy Central leaves those videos up for a while, if DVD sets are an impossibility. I can't hope to catch up yet on all that Stephen has done.

[Victor the Crab]

Of course, there is this possibility that had crossed my mind. And that is, Jon would use his appearance on TCR, this coming Thursday, to tell Stephen and the world that he was stepping down as host of TDS by the Labor Day break next year.

(please don't hate me for that)

[trow125]

Don't think it's gonna happen that soon, Victor the Crab. Remember, Jon owns a piece of "The Minority Report," and has an interest in wanting it to succeed. (Not to imply that he's solely motivated by money, but the fact that it's a Busboy Production gives him more of a stake -- financial and emotional -- than if it were just another Comedy Central show.) He's going to make sure that baby has left the nest and flown like Stephen Jr. (there's a reference for you long-time Colbert fans) before making any announcements.

[Victor the Crab]

Don't think it's gonna happen that soon, Victor the Crab. Remember, Jon owns a piece of "The Minority Report," and has an interest in wanting it to succeed. (Not to imply that he's solely motivated by money, but the fact that it's a Busboy Production gives him more of a stake -- financial and emotional -- than if it were just another Comedy Central show.) He's going to make sure that baby has left the nest and flown like Stephen Jr. (there's a reference for you long-time Colbert fans) before making any announcements.

 

You're probably right, trow125. All this speculative talk about Jon's future has me insane in the membrane. :P

[formerlyfreedom]

I think the most likely scenario is Jon 'retiring' after the 2016 election cycle. He's young enough that there is still a lot he can accomplish, and he's been behind that desk for some time.