Athens, Ga. – Jon Stewart, host of Comedy Central’s award-winning, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, will host the 65th Annual George Foster Peabody Awards ceremony on Monday, June 5 at the Waldorf=Astoria in New York City.
Stewart, awarded two Peabodys for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2000 and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2004, was praised by the Peabody board for providing “the kind of cathartic satire that deflates pomposity on an equal opportunity basis. Somehow this sharp commentary makes the real issues more important than ever.”
The winners of the Peabody Awards for original broadcast, cablecast and webcast programs presented in 2005, will be announced via Web cast and satellite on April 5 from the University of Georgia.
“Jon Stewart will provide a refreshing combination of journalistic smarts and comic genius to our ceremony,” added Horace Newcomb, director of the Peabody Awards at the University of Georgia. “He has an enormous respect for the Peabody culture, so who better to host our landmark 65th anniversary celebration?”
Stewart has transformed The Daily Show into one of America’s most influential and popular television shows. Stewart and the writers of The Daily Show also authored America (The Book): A Citizen’s Guide to Democracy Inaction at the end of 2004. The book, which was recently awarded the Thurber Prize for American Humor, was a staple on The New York Times bestsellers list for 46 consecutive weeks, including 15 consecutive weeks in the number one position.
Prior to taking over The Daily Show in 1999, Stewart’s television credits included a one-hour HBO comedy special, Jon Stewart: Unleavened, and a recurring role as himself on HBO’s series-within-a-series, The Larry Sanders Show. He also hosted The Jon Stewart Show on MTV, which went on to be nationally syndicated.
Offering biting political satire, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart: Indecision 2000 and Indecision 2004 had something droll and amusing to say about almost everything and everyone associated with American politics and the presidential elections. The highly original pieces covered the campaigns, conventions, election night and recounts with exceptional insight.
The Peabodys, the oldest awards in broadcasting, are considered among the most prestigious and selective prizes in electronic media. The Peabody Awards recognize excellence and meritorious work by radio and television stations, networks, webcasters, producing organizations and individuals. The 15 member Peabody Board is a distinguished panel of television critics, industry practitioners and experts in culture and the arts. Selection is made by the Board following review by special screening committees of University of Georgia faculty, students, and staff.
The Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at UGA administers the Peabody Awards, as it has since the program’s inception in 1940. Established in 1915, the Grady College provides seven undergraduate majors including advertising, broadcast news, magazines, newspapers, public relations, publication management and telecommunication arts. The college offers two graduate degrees and is home to the Knight Chair in Health and Medical Journalism. For more information, visit www.grady.uga.edu.
For more information regarding the Peabody Awards program, the Peabody Awards Collection, and the Peabody Center for Media and Society visit: www.peabody.uga.edu.
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