Jon Stewart, the former host of the Daily Show, has recently slammed Newsweek on Wednesday, declaring that its model of business was arson. This came after the magazine went on to report that Stewart had accused J.K. Rowling of antisemitism. The magazine had published an article on Tuesday where the headline read Steward had hit out at J.K. Rowling over her antisemitic caricatures in the Harry Potter books and movies and has questioned as to why there was no more outrage over the portrayals of the goblins in the franchise.
Jon Stewart Shreds Newsweek Over False Statement
This incident was apparently news to Jon Stewart, who condemned the magazine for taking something out of context and making a mountain out of a molehill. Newsweek also shared this report on Twitter, with Stewart responding that he hadn’t said anything similar- before he went on to elaborate in a video.
Stewart explained that he had been discussing the concept of Bar Mitzvahs on his podcast when a guest cracked a joke about which chapter in the entire Harry Potter series the Jewish ceremony took place in.
Jon Stewart clarified that there was absolutely no reason for any person that watched the podcast and not to see it for what it was- a light-hearted conversation between friends that were having a laugh and enjoying themselves about Harry Potter.
They were also discussing his first time watching the movies in the theatre as a Jewish guy, and how some of the tropes were so entrenched in mainstream society that they were basically rendered invisible- even in a process as sorted and calculated as movie making.
Naturally, his apparent comment about Rowling’s antisemitism did unsettle him. He clarified that he didn’t believe Rowling was antisemitic, nor was the series antisemitic. In fact, he loved the movies a lot- more than a person of his age should, he joked.
