The world woke up to a new era on Friday after U.S. news satire show The Daily Show aired its final episode with acclaimed host Jon Stewart at the helm.
Stewart's departure from the beloved nightly TV show prompted an outpouring of grief from devoted fans in the U.S., including the hashtag #JonVoyage. The mourning was shared around the world, as Stewart's genre-defining brand of acerbic wit and outrage at political hypocrisy found followers and emulators from Mexico to Iraq.
Egypt's Bassem Youssef, who was inspired by Stewart to set up popular Egyptian satire show Al-Bernameg, echoed the sentiments of fans around the world. Youssef, who hosted Stewart on El-Bernameg and appeared several times on The Daily Show, ended his own show last year citing the dangerous political climate in Egypt.
Iranian comic Kambiz Hosseini, who hosts a U.S.-based news satire show in Farsi called Poletik and has been called the Jon Stewart of Iran, mourned Stewart’s last show on Twitter as a “sad day in America.”
Mexican comic Chumel Torres, also inspired by Stewart to set up his popular YouTube show Pulse of the Republic, was equally overcome with grief.
(Translation: Today is the last The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in front. * Requests wine *Puts ice cream in fridge * Buys two boxes of Kleenex*)
Nigerian talk-show host Ebuka Obi-Uchendu expressed his grief in emojis.
Indian stand-up comic Aditi Mittal says Stewart was an inspiration.
Indian comedian Sorabh Pant, founder of East India Comedy in Mumbai, also sent his appreciation.
Palestinian-American comedian Dean Obeidallah praised Stewart's treatment of the Middle East and Muslims in The Daily Beast. "Battling bigotry was important to Stewart regardless of the community being targeted," he wrote.
The Daily Show returns next month with South African comic Trevor Noah as the new host.
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