Talk show host Jon Stewart apologized Friday for making fun of transgender people in the past.
Stewart referred to the jokes he made as a host of “The Daily Show on Comedy Central from 1999 to 2015 as “s***ty and reductive” during an episode of his program The Problem with Jon Stewart. The Friday episode was dedicated to Stewart “break[ing] down the gender binary and gender spectrum,” according to a promotional tweet.
“We are in a new dawn of gender and sex complexity, where those who don’t fit into a simple binary are meant to be seen with humanity,” Stewart said during the cold open of the episode.
IF JON STEWART HAD ANY INTEGRITY, HE’D GO AFTER DEMOCRATS, NOT REPUBLICANS, ON VETERANS BILL
What is a woman? It’s a question that’s suddenly everywhere, and it turns out the answer is complicated. Jon breaks down the gender binary and gender spectrum in this week’s episode. Stream the free episode now on Apple TV+. pic.twitter.com/n9RfjAhu7p
— The Problem With Jon Stewart (@TheProblem) October 8, 2022
Previously, Stewart made jokes about “tr**** hookers” that he’d jokingly talk about picking up because he was “nearsighted.” A nine-year-old petition called for Stewart to “reject transphobia and respect gender identity” over the jokes. Later, Stewart would relentlessly tease Caitlyn Jenner after the athlete came out as transgender in 2015.
Friday’s episode also included a heated interview with Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge over the state’s ban on gender-affirming care for children. Stewart accused Rutledge of relating made-up statistics about transgender children and ignoring medical organizations’ guidelines.
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The show, typically released exclusively on Apple TV, released this episode free of charge online.
