Jon Stewart brilliantly tackles the Charlie Hebdo murders: Comedy 'shouldn't be an act of courage'

Jon Stewart brilliantly tackles the Charlie Hebdo murders: Comedy &#039;shouldn&#039;t be an act of courage&#039;

(Image credit: The Daily Show)

On Wednesday night's Daily Show, Jon Stewart talked about "Nazi cows." But before he tackled the aggressive cattle bred by Nazi scientists — it's funny, and surprisingly relevant, and you should watch it below — he addressed the day's big, bad news: The murder of 12 people at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Like other late-night comedians, Stewart made a poignant statement about free speech and satire:

Very few people go into comedy as an act of courage, mainly because it shouldn't have to be that. It shouldn't be an act of courage — it should be taken as established law. But those guys at Hebdo had it, and they were killed for their cartoons — a stark reminder that for the most part, the legislators and journalists and institutions that we jab and ridicule are not in any way the enemy.... This type of violence only clarifies that reality. [Stewart]

The clever part of Wednesday's show, though, started when Stewart brought in "Senior Moo-slim Correspondent" Aasif Mandvi to talk about... those Nazi cows. "We're talking about cows, here, right?" Sure. --Peter Weber

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.