If I can be honest, The Daily Show isn't my favorite show. I don't watch it religiously as I would Last Week Tonight. I haven't even followed his final few weeks as closely as I did The Late Show host David Letterman a few months prior. Yet his departure tonight is kind of saddening because it always seemed like he would be there as this institution, occasionally dropping segments rich with profundity that you couldn't not watch them the next day. Throughout the course of contemporary history, he has felt like the go to for commentary on various political events ranging from elections to tragedies. Watching old clips gives you not only insight into how his show has evolved, but how younger society talked about the world. He is an influential figure that will definitely be missed.
If one must know, the past two years have been rough for late night. The heavyweights have been pretty much entering retiring with a fair consistency. There's been Stephen Colbert (The Colbert Report), Arsenio Hall (Arsenio), David Letterman (The Late Show), Jay Leno (The Tonight Show), and even the brilliantly aloof Craig Ferguson (The Late Late Show). While I haven't been a large supporter of late night, I find that there was something that made these hosts enduring. It wasn't just that they had impeccable personalities. It was that they made their shows feel rich and important. If you didn't watch them then, you would never see it again. While The Daily Show has been more effectively able to integrate itself into the viral video culture, it still marks the final straw in an old school method of hosting.
In today's modern society, late shows have been mostly reduced to "the gag." Not to discredit the shows that pull off consistently engaging content, but the traditional attitudes of late night are practically gone. The Tonight Show's successor Jimmy Fallon has turned the show into a series of games and segments that are easily translatable to viral videos. He knows how to appeal to the youth. However, it also diminishes the appeal of watching the show. Likewise, The Late Late Show's host James Corden has adopted the model, meaning that both currently running main channel late shows are reliant on "the gag" and not the spontaneous fun. If anything, one can hope that Seth Meyers (Late Night) finds his niche and that Stephen Colbert (The Late Show) will be able to translate to a different format.
While there's all of that uncertainty, I am left to accept that with Stewart's demise, my general attitudes of late night are dying. As a child, there was something exciting about staying up late and at very least hearing the monologue. It could be that throughout my youth, it was my source of entertainment when I didn't have cable. In fact, it is likely why I was late to The Daily Show, which I didn't see until 2005 when on a trip to Washington D.C., I got in trouble for laughing too loud in a hotel room. It didn't spark immediate loyalty, but from that moment on, I understood the impact that the show would have.
I am very uncomfortable talking about politics. It is just my way. Speaking as I graduated high school in 2008, my formative years were done in the very conflicted George W. Bush years. I had friends who were vocal. I saw Fahrenheit 9/11 become a box office hit. I saw a world that I didn't understand surrounding me - and all I wanted to do was watch a movie and do whatever it is I did as a teenager. To a large extent, this disarray didn't stop me... until it began to seep into the movies. Then I knew that I needed to just accept the reality. The world was dangerous, and I had no idea what anything was. I was 12 when 9/11 happened. I could barely process the next few years.
What does this all have to do with The Daily Show? Well, it was my general attitudes going in. While I could never clamor for The Colbert Report, I would occasionally find myself turning to The Daily Show. You see, as uncomfortable as I am talking about politics, I found something cathartic about Jon Stewart. I wouldn't understand his impact until years later, even as his face appeared on Rolling Stone drinking a smoothee. To me, he was able to present information in an accessible manner. Even if I could only claim to have watched The Daily Show at most a dozen times per year (minus various clips), he helped me to understand the world around me. I may not owe all credit to him (George Carlin did it better), but there is enough that I understand his influence.
As someone who admired late night, I had many options when 11 PM went around. It would become hard after a certain point. The Daily Show dropped off at a certain point. Even then, I noticed that as I became more comfortable, I could see The Daily Show seep into political comedy. When it comes to the subject, it was the Saturday Night Live of it all. It wasn't the first, but you definitely will recognize pundits like Rob Corddry, John Oliver, and even Oscar nominee Steve Carrell. He was a factory, producing talents that would go on to do things. Even beyond the show, it does feel like programs like Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell owe their lives to The Daily Show. It may have been on Comedy Central, but it hit the news with enough seriousness and research to compete with the big boys.
So, why say all of this? I think it is mostly to prove a point that no matter how apathetic I feel about The Daily Show even a year ago, I know that it is a show that matters. It was a show that made the news accessible to those who have no idea who to trust. Maybe he wasn't always right. If I had to turn to someone to hear a news report, he was among my prime selections. To me, The Daily Show won't just be remembered as Jon Stewart's glorious control on political satire. I think it will leave behind an insurmountable influence that even his replacement Trevor Noah can't expect to reach. He taught young people to care and not to dumb it down, even if it was laced with a lot of jokes. It is why I will miss the show and why I will be watching his finale, hoping that he goes out with a bang.
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