Jon Stewart Moves Out Of Stephen Colbert's Desk

By Andrew Sanford | TV | February 12, 2024 |

By Andrew Sanford | TV | February 12, 2024 |

Jon Stewart was a voice of reason when I didn’t know what was happening. I started watching him on The Daily Show in high school. At the time, my political knowledge was basically, “George Bush bad.” That was a great position, but it lacked any further understanding on my part. Still, when I watched Stewart, I felt like I understood things a little bit better. He was an introduction to the news for me.

The Daily Show can’t be one’s only news source. It’s a comedy show. Stewart made as many jokes about Bush as he did about Arby’s. As he once pointed out to Tucker Carlson, he’s on after Crank Yankers. There is value, however, in having The Daily Show as a kind of gateway drug. People could, ideally, find themselves getting more politically motivated thanks to the show.

I would argue that with Stewart leaving, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver became the signature comedy/politics show. Plenty of talented people have been on The Daily Show since then. Many of them could do (and have done) an incredible job hosting the show. It hasn’t caught fire like when Stewart sat at the desk. So, tonight, he’s returning. He has to move out of Stephen Colbert’s desk first.

Stewart joined Colbert on a Super Bowl Edition of The Late Show to chat about his big return. It’s fun to see the two together. Stewart has made many appearances on Colbert’s CBS home, and this was one of the silliest yet. After joking for years that Stewart was living under Stephen’s desk, we finally got a look at his home, complete with a box of The Faculty DVDs.

I’m excited for Stewart’s return tonight. Even though I did find myself saying, out loud, “I don’t want to stay up until 11.” Still, I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that the show had hosts available, which I do believe could have taken the show in a new and exciting direction. Several of them will get a chance to show their chops when Stewart isn’t hosting. The mix of old and new will hopefully breathe some new life into the show.