Jon Stewart Returns to 'The Daily Show'

Comedian Jon Stewart returned to 'The Daily Show' this week after leaving the program in 2015, and focused much of his first show on the 2024 presidential candidates.

Key Quotes: “Joe Biden isn’t Donald Trump. He hasn’t been indicted as many times, hasn’t had as many fraudulent businesses or been convicted in a civil trial for sexual assault or been ordered to pay defamation or had his charities disbanded or stiffed a [expletive] ton out of blue-collar tradesmen he hired," said Stewart. "But the stakes of this election don’t make Donald Trump’s opponent less subject to scrutiny. If the barbarians are at the gate, you want Conan standing on the ramparts... not chocolate chip cookie guy." He continued by talking about the Biden campaign's efforts on TikTok, and asked, "How do you go on TikTok and end up looking older?"

For Context: Stewart’s first show reportedly netted 930,000 viewers, the most to watch the program since 2018.

How the Media Covered It: Reactions to Stewart's return were often positive across the spectrum, and many noted the impact his commentary could have on the 2024 race. Many right-rated sources highlighted Stewart's criticisms of Biden. Left- and center-rated outlets were more likely to note his criticisms of both Trump and Biden. The Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) noted how Stewart's solid ratings performance still fell short of some of his competitors in the same time slot, including Fox News.