Sidenotes in NYMag Jon Stewart Interview
I was very interested in the generational aspect, that his father had been imprisoned by the shah and his sister by Khomeini.5 There was a universal aspect to it — the absurdity of totalitarian regimes. And Maziar didn’t demonize his torturer, he humanized him because, in his mind, if you view them as monsters you can’t fight them.
.. That venue feels like an Establishment vehicle. They run on access. There’s a certain symbiosis with politicians. I am a part of an Establishment but in a slightly different element. We’ll do certain bits that would be disqualifying in terms of that person ever talking to us again, and I’ll say to other people on the staff, “You know, what’s nice about this show is that when I leave, I’ll leave with no friends but you people.”