The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Ronny Chieng covers how Trump is taking charge of Venezuela's oil industry and replacing their old dictator with a new one: himself. Plus, this Venezuela takeover is so much fun, the president adds a bunch of other countries to his To-Be-Overthrown list, including Greenland, and Michael Kosta couldn't be more excited to be part of Trump's nation-extorting mafia. Jordan Klepper profiles Benny Johnson, social media star turned White House press commentator, who caught Trump’s eye with his generic vitriol, Russian backing, penchant for plagiarism, and unyielding obsession with Batman. Stephen J. Dubner, host of "Freakonomics Radio" and co-author of "Freakonomics," sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss the book’s 20th anniversary edition. They talk about how Dubner and his co-author Steven Levitt wove together storytelling and data to present case studies without imposing their own judgment, and how their publisher, doubtful of the title, liberated them to write the book they wanted. Dubner also offers some Freakonomics insights for 2026 pertaining to animals and artificial insemination, and why one should never go before a judge just before lunch. Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster—join at https://RocketMoney.com/DAILYSHOW. Refresh your winter wardrobe with Quince—visit https://quince.com/DAILYSHOW for free shipping and 365-day returns. Join the thousands of parents who trust Fabric to help protect their family. Apply today in just minutes at https://meetfabric.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ronny Chieng unpacks former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s abduction and first day in court, where he and his wife got some good couples time pleading not guilty to cocaine trafficking charges. Meanwhile, MAGA attempts to justify Trump’s intervention by downplaying the episode, citing Christianity, and downright playing the bully. The latest scientific studies show that microplastics are in just about everything, and we’re ingesting them at an alarming rate. Thankfully, there’s a new product that's sure to help us take advantage of all the plastic we’re downing each day — eventually. Legendary Korean filmmaker, Director Park Chan-wook, sits down with Ronny Chieng (without any translation help from Ken Jeong) to discuss his new film, “No Other Choice,” which he adapted from an American novel. They discuss what attracted him to this story, which follows a devoted company man who is fired and directs his rage toward his competitors on the job market, and the similarities between the plot and his own 15-year struggle to get the film made. He also reflects on why Korean directors are so adept at satirizing capitalism and how the demise of movie theaters is the biggest threat to filmmaking. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jon Stewart dives into the Trump administration’s abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Trump's collusion with oil companies to exploit Venezuela’s resources, and the emergence of the “Donroe Doctrine" as Trump threatens more international takeovers. Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, who also served in the Navy as a captain and combat pilot, joins Jon Stewart after news broke that he was being censured by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth for telling U.S. service members to refuse illegal orders. They discuss the president’s “major ego problem,” why he stands by his message as the Trump administration continues to levy attacks against free speech, frustrations with Democratic leadership, and the importance of Democrats taking control of the House and the Senate to put President Trump in check. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week's Daily Show host Ronny Chieng is joined by writer Ashton Womack to recap what they missed over the holidays, and preview what might be to come. They dig in to the surprise operation to capture Venezuela's president Maduro, the incompetent redaction of the Epstein files, and Marjorie Taylor Greene's apology tour as she leaves congress. Looking ahead, they anticipate the anniversary of January 6th, the new American imperialism, and, of course, rap beefs with Lil Wayne. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pull up a chair and tuck a napkin into your collar for The Daily Show's conversations with some incredible chefs. Jon Stewart sits down with Anthony Bourdain to talk traveling the world for food and culture. Trevor Noah chats with David Chang about the cultural history of food, and José Andrés about feeding the hungry after natural disasters. Chef and author Anne Burrell recounts her experiences on food competition shows and her book "Cook Like a Rock Star", and Kwame Onwuachi tells Trevor about his early life and his book "Notes From a Young Black Chef." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Instead of making unrealistic promises to yourself this year, let The Daily Show do it for you. Take a listen back to American Resolutions: A Series of Human Interest Stories Used to Emotionally Manipulate You. Jon Stewart introduces Rob Cordry, who resolves to have a threesome. Nate Cordry steps up to show them, show them all... Ed Helms vows to improve himself, starting with a new job. Jason Jones takes the viewer on a journey into underwhelming fatherhood. Finally, Stephen Colbert offers up his own resolutions, for Jon to work on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Get your late night fix with these interviews with after hours comedy luminaries. Former correspondent and current host of Last Week Tonight, John Oliver stops by TDS to chat with Ronny Chieng. Jimmy Kimmel joins Jon Stewart before his late night hosting debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Conan O'Brien talks to Jon about a recent visit to Cuba. Jimmy Fallon sits down to talk hosting The Tonight Show and his new collection of thank you notes. The Late Show host Stephen Colbert stands with Jon as Conan challenges them to hand-to-hand combat. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Take a snow day with The Daily Show as we look back at coverage of the worst of winter over the years. Jon Stewart reports on unexpected snow while Stephen Colbert freezes to death. Stacey Grenrock-Woods witnesses the majesty of Yellowstone's natural snowmobiles. Ed Helms gets seasonally depressed. Aasif Mandvi gets lost in the storm. Sam Bee and Jessica Williams miss the snow altogether. And Trevor Noah can't relate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's America's last remaining forever war: The War on Christmas. Take a listen back through the years, as Jon Stewart and the Daily Show team recount the harrowing battles. Jason Jones reports from the trenches of the mall. John Oliver embeds near the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree. Classic Christmas TV specials weigh in, looking a little different this year. Jon officially declares war on Christmas, after which Fox News informs him he's going to hell. A bit of friendly fire sends Fox News running for cover. Jon is visited by a series of ghosts to teach him a lesson about Christmas. Sarah Palin and Bill O'Reilly join the fight in World War C. After a Festivus detour, Jessica Williams joins to set the record straight on Black Santa. Finally, Jordan Klepper and Desi Lydic take to the streets to find out what the public has to say about the neverending War on Christmas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Crack open The Daily Show's looks at Hanukkah over the years. Stephen Colbert tackles the commercialization of the holidays. John Stewart analyzes the Bush era Hanukkah celebration as part of Operation Enduring C(h)overage. Lewis Black expresses his frustrations with Hallmark’s Hanukkah movies, Amazon’s Auschwitz-themed Christmas ornaments and the businessman who bought Hitler’s hat, and Jon rates the efforts of Republican presidential hopefuls pandering at that other holiday gathering, the Republican Jewish Forum. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Take a peek behind the desk The Daily Show's hosts as they go unscripted to answer audience questions in part two of the best of 2025's After the Cuts. Jon Stewart introduces the show's viral lighting director / Pedro Pascal lookalike, tells a story about spending time with this inspiration George Carlin, how he interacts with faith, and his newfound passion for drumming. Josh Johnson talks about getting recognized in the wrong ways, and Jordan Klepper thinks is okay that we're not going to be okay. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Go to https://RocketMoney.com/DAILYSHOW today. To get simple, online access to personalized, affordable care for ED, Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit https://hims.com/dailyshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Take a peek behind the desk with The Daily Show's hosts as they go unscripted to answer audience questions. Jon Stewart reveals the embarrassing outcome of a football bet, talks about the annoyance of specificity when it comes to labeling fascists, and gives Michael Kosta a hard time about being injured, before injuring himself live on air. Jordan Klepper opens up about the real people behind his MAGA interviews, and Ronny Chieng gets a surprise visit from Bill Murray. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Go to https://RocketMoney.com/DAILYSHOW today. To get simple, online access to personalized, affordable care for ED, Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit https://hims.com/dailyshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join the Daily Show co-hosts as they take a look back at the biggest stories from the Very Normal Year that was 2025. Jordan Klepper, Ronny Chieng, Desi Lydic, Josh Johnson and Michael Kosta get together to highlight the weirdest news moments of the year, the characters that grabbed the spotlight, and their favorite bits from their Daily Show co-hosts. They also lay down their predictions for 2026, assuming we still make it that far. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Go to https://RocketMoney.com/DAILYSHOW today. To get simple, online access to personalized, affordable care for ED, Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit https://hims.com/dailyshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The U.S.-Venezuela conflict escalates as the Department of Homeland Security TikTok-ifies the seizing of an oil tanker, and Trump can't resist taking credit for the “Captain Phillips” moment. Plus, the State Department bans the font Calibri for being “too woke,” and Michael Kosta unpacks the new beef between conservatives and the font's creator. This Christmas, gather round from all sides of the political spectrum for the holiday rom-com “Oh, Trolly Night!” Watch online enemies and unlikely lovers come together to find out the answer to the question: Can love Trump hate? Paleoclimatologist at The Ohio State University Lonnie Thompson sits down with Michael to discuss his groundbreaking work collecting ice cores in tropical glaciers – the subject of the film “Canary,” which is available to stream for free on YouTube over the holidays. They talk about how ice can be used to study climate history and understand where we’re at today, the importance of following your dreams, and how his work drilling in 16 countries leaves him feeling optimistic about climate change solutions. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Desi Lydic catches a Fox News closed caption writer's "minor" Freudian slip during Trump's economic rally, an event that focused less on affordability and more on Joe Biden. Plus, Michael Kosta explains why the president has been lashing out at female reporters so much lately: he's going through man-o-pause. TikTok’s biggest trends in 2025 had "6-7" becoming the word of the year, high school seniors cosplaying assassins, people damaging property Kool-Aid Man-style, and Lewis Black wondering what the f**k is wrong with our society. Legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz joins Desi Lydic to discuss her powerful new collection of career-spanning work titled "Women." They talk about breaking stereotypes of pregnant women with Demi Moore’s Vanity Fair cover, capturing Michelle Obama as she found her laid back self after eight years as first lady, her favorite unsmiling image of her mom where the camera "disappears," and Gloria Steinem’s message in the book about women “not going backward.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ronny Chieng covers the latest on the Trump administration’s petty changes to free-entry days at national parks, the president’s promise to bail out farmers after f**king up the economy, Melania’s attempt to spread some yuletide cheer, and Sean Duffy’s Department of Transportation press conference that turned into a d**k-measuring contest against RFK Jr. On another edition of Who Won It Best, Desi Lydic and Troy Iwata recap the FIFA World Cup Draw and Peace Prize Ceremony, the biggest award show you’ve never heard of, where the balls were mingled, the Village People performed the “YMCA,” and Trump received a trophy, medal, and certificate before jetting over to the Kennedy Center Honors to make KISS’s big night all about himself. Journalist, internet activist, and author Cory Doctorow talks to Ronny about the concept behind his latest book, “Enshittification,” which breaks down how tech giants like Facebook, Amazon, and Google have made the internet worse for everybody by locking in users only to turn on them. He also stresses how the blame for the “enshittification” of the internet shouldn’t be placed on consumers, but on policy makers, and points to anti-trust enforcement, tech worker unions, and interoperability as the keys to remaking an internet that benefits users instead of billionaires. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump contradicts his phony FIFA peace prize by cranking up the heat on military action in Venezuela, a country Newsmax host Greg Kelly couldn’t find on a map, and Jon Stewart gets an assist from The Daily Show archives and a time-traveling Rob Corddry to show how MAGA’s drumbeat for war with Venezuela is Iraq all over again. Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, education activist, and bestselling author, returns to The Daily Show to chat with Jon about her new memoir, “Finding My Way.” They talk about how much her life has changed since she first visited the show at 16, including graduating college and getting married, and how she came to realize she doesn’t have to be perfect. She also opens up about managing mental health and societal projections while pursuing activist work and the school for women she founded in Pakistan, which just graduated its first-ever class. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you're feeling like you could use a dose of youthful optimism right now, we've got you. Check out these visits from inspiring young activists. Jon Stewart sits down with Malala Yousafzai, and Trevor Noah enjoys visits from Greta Thunberg, Parkland survivors X González & Matt Deitsch, and climate activist Xiuhtezcatl Martinez. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the current Secretary of Defense finds himself in the hot seat, take a listen to a few of Pete Hegseth's predecessors' visits to The Daily Show. Jon Stewart sits down with Donald Rumsfeld, Robert Gates and Leon Panetta to dig into their decisions, their legacies and everything else that comes with heading up the most powerful military in the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Images of Epstein’s island reveal a penchant for creepy decor and a commitment to oral hygiene, Pete Hegseth gets cagey about turning over his phone for the Signalgate investigation, the Pentagon’s press team is replaced by MAGA personalities, and Jordan Klepper investigates Trump’s commitment to being labeled a “president of peace,” signage and all. Afraid of the woke leftists’ war against Christmas? Keep the sanctity of the holiday season alive with the brand-new Trump Tinsel, made from recycled shreddings of the Epstein files. The president promised he was going to release them, but he never said how! Frontman of the band Dropkick Murphys, Ken Casey, sits down with Jordan Klepper to discuss their latest album, “For The People.” They talk about the roots of punk in political activism, getting inspiration from bands who sang about Reagan, Bush, and the Queen of England, encouraging other musicians to speak out for social justice in their music, and a viral bet with a fan that led to an open political dialogue. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices