Why Did Jon Stewart Return As A ‘The Daily Show’ Host?

Jon Stewart sits down at The Daily Show this week as the iconic host returns to his old stomping grounds. Stewart’s return was such a huge surprise that it even caught his old co-worker John Oliver by surprise.

As for why Stewart chose to come back after exiting the show heading into the 2016 election, the comedian opened up to CBS Mornings on Monday about his decision to wade back into America’s chaotic landscape.

“Who better to comment on this election than someone who truly understands two aging men past their prime” Stewart quipped before getting surprisingly candid about his recent departure from Apple TV. Despite The Problem with Jon Stewart being renewed for Season 3, Stewart reportedly walked after Apple wanted him to refrain from commenting on China and AI.

“I very much wanted to have some place to unload thoughts as we get into this election season,” Stewart said via The Hollywood Reporter. “I thought I was going to do it over at — they call it Apple TV+. It’s a television enclave, very small. It’s like living in Malibu. They decided, they felt that they didn’t want me to say things that might get me in trouble.”

He shares why he’s taking on a second term: “Who better to comment on this election than someone who truly understands two aging men past their prime” pic.twitter.com/WSOBtSmrdj

— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) February 12, 2024

However, Stewart made it very clear that he has no aspirations about affecting the outcome of the 2024 election as Donald Trump and Joe Biden become the likely candidates.

“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,” Stewart said. “And I think I’ve learned that post-Daily Show … I don’t really view it as ‘I really want to have an influence on this issue, this election,’ things like that.”

What Stewart does want to talk about is AI and the state of our government. Ahead of his CBS Mornings appearance, Stewart appeared on The Daily Show’s Ears Edition podcast to promote his return as host.

“If you want to be present in this world, you have to be present in this conversation and you have to be as relentless and as tenacious as the counter-narrative that’s being formed,” Stewart said via THR. “It’s not just the election. It’s AI. It’s the way that we’ve militarized all our conflicts. It all ties together to one larger idea, which is the form of government we love so much is an analog — I don’t want to say dinosaur — but it is analog and the world now moves at an increasingly infinite digital pace and reconciling those two things, I think, is the challenge of the moment for people.”

Jon Stewart returns to The Daily Show on February 12 at 11 pm ET.