Jon Stewart hasn't changed, and that's the problem. As far as his comedy, no notes. He's undeniably funny. But his politics just leave a sour taste. His enlightened centrist voice of reason shtick hits different now.
He's defended people like Rogan and Chapelle. And I get it, they're his buddies. He doesn't see them as public figures, but as flawed individuals. And that's a valid perspective, just a rarefied one.
His first guest upon his return was the editor of The Economist magazine who gushed about Reaganomics and Thatcherism. She framed the rise of right-wing politics in the West as first and foremost a threat to the neoliberal world order as Jon nodded along. And we all know that progressiveism is just the other side of the horseshoe to people who think this way.
I'll be watching Stewart, and I really do admire him. But never meet your heroes I guess.
It skirted the line of praising the neoliberal days, to be sure. But it really seemed to me be not just them waxing nostalgic about the neoliberal golden years. I read it more as they were talking about how perspectives have changed and that that neoliberal approach is now out of touch with modern liberals and the public in general. They seem to realize that the time of the neoliberal isn't coming back so we need our leaders to move on from it. I think the point in talking about it was that his perspectives have changed, or at least he sees that it is no longer the popular perspective it once was.
Also believe me, the writers at the Daily Show are well aware of modern progressive viewpoints and I'm sure they would be challenging Jon on that at every turn if that was the viewpoint he was coming to the table with. He's also not fresh back to doing leftist political commentary on television. He will have had feedback from The Problem With Jon Stewart as well. I really doubt he'd trying to push an outdated neoliberal message, nor would the Daily Show producers be likely to support that.
He's not a hard left, progressive, socialist messiah and he never was. He's a sensible and honest voice of reason that calls out the hypocrisy and absurdity in our government and political media. I don't need him to be a champion of modern progressivism to have a deep respect and admiration for him and what he does.