Jon Stewart accepted a high honor in journalism with trademark self-deprecation.
A video message from the Daily Show host was played at Friday’s Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Political Journalism ceremony, and Stewart used the moment to feign disbelief that his program was worthy of such an honor.
“I’ve just been informed The Daily Show has won a 2025 Walter Cronkite Award,” he said during a moment of downtime at his TDS desk, donning faux glasses, before adding a big, “Huh??”
Stewart read from the website for the awards, which are bestowed by USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. “The Walter Cronkite Award ‘honors excellence in political journalism that exemplifies the role of a free press in upholding constitutional principles and the rule of law…,’” he shared. “I thought to myself, ‘That’s not us.’
“That’s not us at all,” he continued. “I mean, we’re delighted. Don’t get me wrong.”
Stewart said he then dug deeper into the specific honor he’d received.
Stewart this year was the first-ever recipient in the new Comedic News and Commentary category at the biennial awards ceremony—a delineation he said made things much clearer. “That made a lot more sense when I had a little bit of that nuance,” he said.
Such modesty was to be expected from Stewart. When announcing the late-night vet as the winner, USC Annenberg noted he was chosen “notwithstanding his insistence on calling himself an entertainer, not a journalist,” noting that a panel of judges considered him a “pioneer” and “vital voice” in political news and commentary.
Judges added that the host “remains relevant, bringing valuable facts to light, advancing public discourse, [and] urging civic action.”
As usual, Stewart served up his humor with a dose of sincerity. “We’re delighted to be receiving that, and really thankful not to be in that other category,” said the host. “The entire team is delighted to be receiving an award of this magnitude, and thank you all so much for bestowing it upon us. I hope it’s edible.”
Stewart also took a moment to poke fun at the random photo that was selected to accompany his win on the Cronkite Awards website: an over-the-shoulder Daily Show inset of a bird snorting cocaine. (The image had come from Stewart’s February 2025 monologue on DOGE, which had been singled out for its “astute insights based on solid research” by Cronkite Award judges.)
“I don’t remember why we were making the bird cocaine joke…,” Stewart admitted. “But I do know it was Cronkite Award-worthy.”
