Jon Stewart joined “CBS Mornings” on Monday to discuss his return to the “Daily Show,” saying that his comeback was influenced by his desire to speak his mind about current events.
Stewart returns to the Comedy Central late night show on Monday night and every Monday throughout the 2024 election cycle.
“I very much wanted to have some kind of place to unload thoughts as we get into this election season,” Stewart told CBS.
The talk show host noted that he thought he would still be over at Apple TV, which he left after two seasons over creative differences.
“They call it Apple TV. It’s a television enclave. Yeah, very small. It’s like living in Malibu,” Steward joked about the streaming platform from the tech giant.
Steward said that he felt his speech was limited at Apple, saying “They decided that they felt that they didn’t want me to say things.”
“So you have some things you want to say,” CBS anchor Gayle King replied. “Are you back because you’re worried about what’s happening to the country?”
“Not at all. Totally fine. Everything’s going beautifully,” Stewart sarcastically quipped.
“No, I just thought who better to comment on this election than someone who truly understands two aging men past their prime,” Stewart, 61, said. “I mean, look at me, baby. This is where it’s at.”
When asked whether he was hoping to have an influence on American politics, particularly in a presidential election cycle, Stewart said “I don’t know about hoping to have an influence, but I’m hoping to have a catharsis and a way to comment on things and a way to express them that hopefully people will enjoy.”
“But as far as influence, and you guys know from doing this, just about everything I had wanted to happen over the 16 years that I was at “The Daily Show” did not happen if you were hoping for influence,” the late night host added.
Stewart’s return to hosting Monday’s show was announced in January. The rest of the week the show will be hosted by a rotating team of correspondents who work on the program, including Jordan Klepper, Desi Lydic, Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta and Dulcé Sloan.
Stewart will also be an executive producer on all nights of the show, allowing the involvement of the host to continue throughout the election cycle.
The change comes as the show has been continuing to search for a permanent replacement host for Trevor Noah, who departed from the show abruptly in 2022.
