Jon Stewart became a problem for Apple TV+

AppleInsider

"The Problem with Jon Stewart" wasn't cancelled because of what the host said, but what he could have said on Apple TV+ in the future, had the show continued.

'The Problem with Jon Stewart' [Apple TV+]

Apple canceled "The Problem with John Stewart" in October 2023 after a strong two-season run and multiple Emmy nominations. At the time, it was believed that there were disagreements over topics for the third season.

In an interview the morning of his reappearance behind the desk at Comedy Central's "The Daily Show," Stewart talked to CBS Mornings about the upcoming show among other topics. However, he did touch upon the ending of his show on Apple TV+.

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Without directly confirming the reason for the cancellation, Stewart steered clear of rumors. He did say Apple "didn't want me to say things that might get me in trouble."

While the separation was reportedly amicable, the cancellation was rumored at the time to be caused by a disagreement between Stewart and Apple over topics for the third season. Topic suggestions that allegedly caused Apple concern included artificial intelligence and China.

The show had previously covered controversial areas, such as racism and climate change. At one point, Stewart even criticized Apple directly on the show itself.

It was unclear exactly why Apple wasn't supposedly happy about the topics, due to what had previously been broadcast on Apple TV+.

The cancellation and the rumors also led to a House of Representatives Select Committee on Competition with the Chinese Communist Party demanding Apple to justify the decision. Specifically, the committee wanted an answer on if China had undue influence on Apple and the programming. It's not clear how that worked out, or if Apple ever responded formally.

Stewart says his return to "The Daily Show" is because he needed a "place to unload thoughts as we get into this election season."

"I thought I was going to do it over at -- they call it Apple TV+. It's a television enclave, very small. It's like living in Malibu," Stewart added.



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entropys

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

tenthousandthings

I don’t find the China and/or AI pitches rumor convincing. Cancellation over segments like that would not have been amicable, as such stories would be journalism. I believe Stewart is hinting at the real problem when he mentions the “election season” — this cancellation was about US political commentary. Stewart is not going to sit this one out. He made that mistake eight years ago, and he’s not going to repeat it. He’s not alone.

Apple, understandably, did not sign up for that.

blastdoor

I watched an episode of his Apple TV show and I thought it would have been better if it were either more straight up serious or more comedic. But it was in a strange in between where the attempts at humor felt discordant with the serious parts. 

I hope he can regain his ability to do good satire on the daily show. There’s a lot out there that deserves satire. I hope he targets all the people who make perfect the enemy of the good and allow the worst to win. 

stompy

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

dogpaw

I like Apple and I like Jon Stewart. I thought the show was only OK. There were some really good segments, but I think overall it was underdeveloped. I felt that the editing was often "rushed" and sometimes awkward, presumably to get the episode to fit into the 1hr time slot. I would have liked to see them explore some of the subject matter a little more deeply, but at the same time I get that something longer would probably be a non-starter for most people.

jimh2

It rarely occurs to the Hollywood types that there show might not be performing adequately or their content sucked or Apple had received complaints about or Apple wanted to spend their money on something else. I doubt Jon Steward ever thought he could be the reason.

AppleZulu

The cancellation was probably a number of things combined.

Honestly, if Stewart wants a "place to unload thoughts as we get into this election season," his AppleTV platform wouldn't have been terribly useful for that, anyway. Topical elections commentary doesn't work well without access to rapid production and a regular frequency of episodes throughout the year. The Problem with... produced eight episodes one season and twelve the next. 

The Daily Show is produced daily (sort of) and Stewart will be able to appear almost-live every Monday until November. Odds are that he'll probably opt for taking some additional days in the week once he gets rolling. 

charlesn

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

Apple wouldn't greenlight half the shows it does if "ratings" were the coin of the realm for its decisions. Prestige, originality, global appeal and content that reflects well on the Apple brand are all important drivers of greenlight decisions, and having Jon on Apple TV+ ticked those boxes. It's not that viewership numbers are entirely unimportant, but Apple's streaming decisions, in particular, do not follow industry norms. And considering the budgets for its scripted shows, especially in the sci-fi genre, the budget for a talk show like The Problem had to be more like a rounding error in what Apple spends on productions. What would NOT sit well with Apple, especially in an election year, is controversy. I'm sure it doesn't want its products boycotted and "cancelled" by either red or blue America. It doesn't want a Bud Light redux on its hands. It probably also doesn't want China, its #1 market in the world, targeted for criticism in a show that it pays to produce, or to have AI taken to task when it's racing to establish its own foothold in this area. So it seems most plausible that Apple and Jon couldn't agree on the future of the show. I mean, c'mon--is there any question as to which direction his return to the Daily Show will be leaning... heavily? 

For all its warm n' fuzzy marketing, Apple stands on business at the end of the day. It plays ball to the degree it must with Xi in China, human rights be damned. And it recently issued a "move or get fired" ultimatum to its workers in San Diego regarding plans to transfer their dept to Austin, TX. Perhaps no big deal if you're a guy... but Apple women lose bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in that move. Kind of a huge deal. Doesn't matter to Apple... move or lose your job. 

stompy

charlesn said:

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

Apple wouldn't greenlight half the shows it does if "ratings" were the coin of the realm for its decisions. Prestige, originality, global appeal and content that reflects well on the Apple brand are all important drivers of greenlight decisions, and having Jon on Apple TV+ ticked those boxes. It's not that viewership numbers are entirely unimportant, but Apple's streaming decisions, in particular, do not follow industry norms. And considering the budgets for its scripted shows, especially in the sci-fi genre, the budget for a talk show like The Problem had to be more like a rounding error in what Apple spends on productions. What would NOT sit well with Apple, especially in an election year, is controversy. I'm sure it doesn't want its products boycotted and "cancelled" by either red or blue America. It doesn't want a Bud Light redux on its hands. It probably also doesn't want China, its #1 market in the world, targeted for criticism in a show that it pays to produce, or to have AI taken to task when it's racing to establish its own foothold in this area. So it seems most plausible that Apple and Jon couldn't agree on the future of the show. I mean, c'mon--is there any question as to which direction his return to the Daily Show will be leaning... heavily? 

For all its warm n' fuzzy marketing, Apple stands on business at the end of the day. It plays ball to the degree it must with Xi in China, human rights be damned. And it recently issued a "move or get fired" ultimatum to its workers in San Diego regarding plans to transfer their dept to Austin, TX. Perhaps no big deal if you're a guy... but Apple women lose bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in that move. Kind of a huge deal. Doesn't matter to Apple... move or lose your job. 

You seem to assume that by "underperforming" I was solely referring to "ratings." Let me rephrase: "were the decision makers pleased with the product's content/audience/potential?" That's underperforming. 

godofbiscuitssf

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

He probably would. And then blame himself in a way that made him even more appealing to his demographic. That’s his thing. 

But MAYBE..ans I know this might seem crazy, but maybe…Apple has a conflict of interest with controversy itself now.  If it can’t sell something as human rights in a high minded, black and white print ad kind of way so that it can’t be rebutted point by point, it can’t afford to attach its name to it.  

Ironic that Apple’s ended up so beige. 

Xed

I'm a huge fan of Jon Stewart and I'm excited that he's coming back to The Daily Show starting tonight, and yet I never once even tried to watch his AppleTV+ series. I can't tell you why that series didn't interest me enough to check it out.

paisleydisco

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

LOL or... Apple will do whatever necessary to avoid political controversy. It's what Apple does. 

entropys

I just can’t see how a current affairs/commentary type show is suited for a streaming service. Currency matters.

slow n easy

tenthousandthings said:

I don’t find the China and/or AI pitches rumor convincing. Cancellation over segments like that would not have been amicable, as such stories would be journalism. I believe Stewart is hinting at the real problem when he mentions the “election season” — this cancellation was about US political commentary. Stewart is not going to sit this one out. He made that mistake eight years ago, and he’s not going to repeat it. He’s not alone.

Apple, understandably, did not sign up for that.

charlesn said:

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

Apple wouldn't greenlight half the shows it does if "ratings" were the coin of the realm for its decisions. Prestige, originality, global appeal and content that reflects well on the Apple brand are all important drivers of greenlight decisions, and having Jon on Apple TV+ ticked those boxes. It's not that viewership numbers are entirely unimportant, but Apple's streaming decisions, in particular, do not follow industry norms. And considering the budgets for its scripted shows, especially in the sci-fi genre, the budget for a talk show like The Problem had to be more like a rounding error in what Apple spends on productions. What would NOT sit well with Apple, especially in an election year, is controversy. I'm sure it doesn't want its products boycotted and "cancelled" by either red or blue America. It doesn't want a Bud Light redux on its hands. It probably also doesn't want China, its #1 market in the world, targeted for criticism in a show that it pays to produce, or to have AI taken to task when it's racing to establish its own foothold in this area. So it seems most plausible that Apple and Jon couldn't agree on the future of the show. I mean, c'mon--is there any question as to which direction his return to the Daily Show will be leaning... heavily? 

For all its warm n' fuzzy marketing, Apple stands on business at the end of the day. It plays ball to the degree it must with Xi in China, human rights be damned. And it recently issued a "move or get fired" ultimatum to its workers in San Diego regarding plans to transfer their dept to Austin, TX. Perhaps no big deal if you're a guy... but Apple women lose bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in that move. Kind of a huge deal. Doesn't matter to Apple... move or lose your job. 

I agree with charlesn. Jon actually started off by saying "what are we going to be talking about this year... China...AI..." That is a big hint that the rumors were correct about those topics coming up in season 3. Apple is Pro-China and Pro-AI and Jon would have talked about problems with both. I'm sure he would have also had segments on political stuff, but in my opinion, he didn't talk politics in the first two seasons. A lot of people will disagree, but I don't consider talking about guns as talking about politics, for example. To me, talking about guns is just talking about guns. People have turned it into politics, but I personally don't see the issue as political. It seems so bizarre to me that people turned Climate Change into politics. Climate Change is Science. I guess people have turned Science into politics. This is crazy. 

charlesn

stompy said:

charlesn said:

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

Apple wouldn't greenlight half the shows it does if "ratings" were the coin of the realm for its decisions. Prestige, originality, global appeal and content that reflects well on the Apple brand are all important drivers of greenlight decisions, and having Jon on Apple TV+ ticked those boxes. It's not that viewership numbers are entirely unimportant, but Apple's streaming decisions, in particular, do not follow industry norms. And considering the budgets for its scripted shows, especially in the sci-fi genre, the budget for a talk show like The Problem had to be more like a rounding error in what Apple spends on productions. What would NOT sit well with Apple, especially in an election year, is controversy. I'm sure it doesn't want its products boycotted and "cancelled" by either red or blue America. It doesn't want a Bud Light redux on its hands. It probably also doesn't want China, its #1 market in the world, targeted for criticism in a show that it pays to produce, or to have AI taken to task when it's racing to establish its own foothold in this area. So it seems most plausible that Apple and Jon couldn't agree on the future of the show. I mean, c'mon--is there any question as to which direction his return to the Daily Show will be leaning... heavily? 

For all its warm n' fuzzy marketing, Apple stands on business at the end of the day. It plays ball to the degree it must with Xi in China, human rights be damned. And it recently issued a "move or get fired" ultimatum to its workers in San Diego regarding plans to transfer their dept to Austin, TX. Perhaps no big deal if you're a guy... but Apple women lose bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in that move. Kind of a huge deal. Doesn't matter to Apple... move or lose your job. 

You seem to assume that by "underperforming" I was solely referring to "ratings." Let me rephrase: "were the decision makers pleased with the product's content/audience/potential?" That's underperforming. 

If you know Jon and what he does well, the show absolutely delivered in terms of content and living up to the potential of Jon is his post Daily Show life. And if you're familiar with Jon's work, you know he tends to like running straight into the fire of a white hot controversy with his distinctively delivered POV. Especially in the midst of a bitterly divided presidential election. Was Apple up for paying to produce this? Why would they be? It makes zero sense for the brand and a "cancel Apple" decision on either side could do a great deal of financial damage. Conversely, for Jon to avoid tackling topics for which he's well-known, it's anathema to his brand. So I don't think there was a place of reasonable compromise for either side. Of course, we'll likely never know the actual reason for the parting of the ways, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Jon back on Apple TV+ at some time in the future. 

Michae1

I’m sure it sounds good to say you were canceled for being too edgy, but ‘the problem’ is that no one was watching.  Among people I know who subscribed to Apple TV+, no one watched the show. A few of my friends were were surprised to know he had a had show.

AppleAlways

I found Jon on Apple TV + not nearly as funny as he was on daily show- just watched few episodes but somehow did not feel the urge to see all the episodes- contrast that to devouring daily show. Viewership could be a problem here . Also Apple TV + is a very small part of Apple , they have a company to run, they are not obliged to go out of the way to accommodate it. Jon is not a saint in taking criticism as well as he dishes out- check Seth MacFaralane's comments many years ago on this.
I like both Apple and Jon and glad they have moved separate ways.

sdw2001

I watched one episode.  The show was unwatchable.  They couldn’t decide if it was funny or serious, so it was neither. It was straight up leftist propaganda.  Filled with inaccuracies and half truths.  And I’m the kind of person who can watch and enjoy content that has the opposite POV I have. I couldn’t stomach this.  

tenthousandthings

slow n easy said:

tenthousandthings said:

I don’t find the China and/or AI pitches rumor convincing. Cancellation over segments like that would not have been amicable, as such stories would be journalism. I believe Stewart is hinting at the real problem when he mentions the “election season” — this cancellation was about US political commentary. Stewart is not going to sit this one out. He made that mistake eight years ago, and he’s not going to repeat it. He’s not alone.

Apple, understandably, did not sign up for that.

charlesn said:

stompy said:

entropys said:

Perhaps the show didn’t meet its viewing targets?
 It isn’t as though Stewart would admit that, and Apple will say nothing. It is most likely the wrong kind of platform for such a show. At least at this time.

This. Underperforming shows get cancelled. Apple prefers to move on rather than discuss failures.

Apple wouldn't greenlight half the shows it does if "ratings" were the coin of the realm for its decisions. Prestige, originality, global appeal and content that reflects well on the Apple brand are all important drivers of greenlight decisions, and having Jon on Apple TV+ ticked those boxes. It's not that viewership numbers are entirely unimportant, but Apple's streaming decisions, in particular, do not follow industry norms. And considering the budgets for its scripted shows, especially in the sci-fi genre, the budget for a talk show like The Problem had to be more like a rounding error in what Apple spends on productions. What would NOT sit well with Apple, especially in an election year, is controversy. I'm sure it doesn't want its products boycotted and "cancelled" by either red or blue America. It doesn't want a Bud Light redux on its hands. It probably also doesn't want China, its #1 market in the world, targeted for criticism in a show that it pays to produce, or to have AI taken to task when it's racing to establish its own foothold in this area. So it seems most plausible that Apple and Jon couldn't agree on the future of the show. I mean, c'mon--is there any question as to which direction his return to the Daily Show will be leaning... heavily? 

For all its warm n' fuzzy marketing, Apple stands on business at the end of the day. It plays ball to the degree it must with Xi in China, human rights be damned. And it recently issued a "move or get fired" ultimatum to its workers in San Diego regarding plans to transfer their dept to Austin, TX. Perhaps no big deal if you're a guy... but Apple women lose bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in that move. Kind of a huge deal. Doesn't matter to Apple... move or lose your job. 

I agree with charlesn. Jon actually started off by saying "what are we going to be talking about this year... China...AI..." That is a big hint that the rumors were correct about those topics coming up in season 3. Apple is Pro-China and Pro-AI and Jon would have talked about problems with both. I'm sure he would have also had segments on political stuff, but in my opinion, he didn't talk politics in the first two seasons. A lot of people will disagree, but I don't consider talking about guns as talking about politics, for example. To me, talking about guns is just talking about guns. People have turned it into politics, but I personally don't see the issue as political. It seems so bizarre to me that people turned Climate Change into politics. Climate Change is Science. I guess people have turned Science into politics. This is crazy. 

Charlesn has already responded, I have little to add to that except to say Stewart’s confirmation (thanks for pointing that out) that China and AI were/are topics for season three and now for his team’s show this year is not confirmation that those topics were the reason for the cancellation/parting of ways.

Apple isn’t pro-Xi Jinping (a catastrophe for the Chinese people and, indeed, the CCP), as you seem to suggest. Nor are they blind to the problems with AI. Neither of these stories rises to the level of getting Jon Stewart (or Apple) “in trouble.” They are on par with the guns and climate change stories you mention. No, he’s talking about troubles inside the United States. Surely nothing more needs to be said.

pembroke

Need to ask this somewhere….

iOS 17.3.1 …. Apple have removed the symbols for male and female but have retained the symbol for Transgender (sic) ⚧️. 

This is creepy. What on earth are Apple doing? This is remarkably idiotic and a game changer for me as an owner of many iPhones since inception. But I WILL switch to Android if Apple persists on this gaslighting nonsense.