Abstract

This is the introductory chapter of The Ultimate Daily Show and Philosophy: More Moments of Zen, More Indecision Theory, which shows why and how The Daily Show is philosophically engaging and significant. The book is divided into five “segments”. It starts by focusing on fake news: what's distinctive about it, what it does, how it works (“headlines”). Then it segues into discussions of Jon Stewart as a philosopher figure, reflecting deep concerns some of which have existed for‐literally‐millennia (“live report”). Next it describes politics and critical thinking (“field report”), followed by religion and culture (“interview”), and finally discusses topics like The Colbert Report that are “Daily Show adjacent” (“moment of Zen”).