The Jon Stewart Interview That Tucker Carlson Wants You To Forget

Perhaps you've heard of him, the current king of Fox News and therefore all of conservative media — Tucker Carlson. And perhaps you've heard of the grandfather of news-as-comedy, Jon Stewart. If you know anything at all about these two gentlemen and their respective political ideological leanings, you can probably guess what their opinions of each other are (hint: not great, Bob). 

But in case you needed, or just wanted, some proof of their disagreements, there is actually video evidence of the two of them going head to head. Back in the day, Carlson was on a show on CNN called "Crossfire" and once interviewed Stewart, who was then still hosting The Daily Show. The interview is a pretty stunning couple of minutes, and we're pretty sure that Carlson at least would prefer if the internet forgot about it. Alas for him and his would-be signature bowtie look, the internet rarely forgets anything. 

Way, way back in the year 2004, when George W. Bush was president and Britney Spears' conservatorship was just a twinkle in Jamie Spears' eye, Jon Stewart appeared as a guest on Tucker Carlson's CNN show, "Crossfire." The show was supposed to be about ideological debate — with one conservative and one liberal host, who would take turns deliberating with guests from the other side of the political aisle on the news of the day. Stewart made quick work of Carlson, his partisan rival.

"I made a special effort to come on this show because I have mentioned this show as being, uh, bad," Stewart said. He continued that Carlson and "Crossfire" were "hurting America" and asked them to "stop."

"I watch your show every day and it kills me. It's so painful to watch. You're partisan, what do you call it, hacks," Stewart said. "You have a responsibility to the public discourse and you fail miserably." When Carlson fired back that Stewart is partisan as well, Stewart had an answer: "You're on CNN! The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls!" Carlson said that he liked Stewart as a comedian, but found his lectures "boring." Going for the jugular, Stewart asked Carlson how old he was (35), and joked, "And you wear a bowtie!" The interview came to a hasty end as Stewart called Carlson a "d**k."

The year 2004 was before YouTube and before social media, so it may have escaped going viral. And for many years, it seemed the world had forgotten about the time Jon Stewart verbally pantsed Tucker Carlson on national television. However, in the 2020s, we do have YouTube and social media. With such, the clip got a second wind in 2021 when it resurfaced and went viral, shortly after Carlson's comments about servicewomen drew controversy. 

The interview started circulating after Carlson disparaged women serving in the military on his current Fox News show, via Esquire. Stewart himself referenced the clip on Twitter. "I called Tucker Carlson a d**k on National television," the comedian acknowledged. "It's high time I apologize...to d**ks. Never should have lumped you in with that terrible terrible person." Despite Stewart's now-immortal takedown, and despite drawing nightly criticism for comments that have been deemed racist, sexist, or spreading misinformation, Carlson is still one of the most widely watched talking heads in the United States. 

So who had the last laugh? Well, we suppose that all depends on which commentator you're still paying attention to, doesn't it?