Jon Stewart has been making the rounds to promote his film Rosewater (ahem), but he said on Thursday night's show that plugging his directorial debut for a full half hour of The Daily Show felt too "weird." That's when he summoned John Oliver, his solution for all Rosewater-related problems, by rubbing a Queen Elizabeth II teapot. The Last Week Tonight anchor hosted the rest of the show (with Stewart lurking in the background), interviewing the film's star, Gael García Bernal, and Maziar Bahari, the tortured Iranian journalist he portrays in the film. Bahari kicked things off by telling Oliver "you're welcome." He explained, "If it was not for my arrest, Jon would not make a film, you would not host the show, and you would not have your show now."
Daily Intelligencer
Alleged Cop Killer Eric Frein Said He Wanted to Start a ‘Revolution’
By Margaret HartmannWe now know the possible motive of Eric Frein, who's accused of fatally shooting a Pennsylvania state trooper and wounding another, and it led to additional terrorism charges. Police say that when they captured Frein following a 48-day manhunt, he described ambushing the two officers as an "assassination," and said he did it to "wake people up." They say he explained he wanted to make changes in the government, but "voting was insufficient to do so, because there was no one worth voting for."
Condé Nast Settles Intern Pay Lawsuit to the Tune of $5.8M
Condé Nast has settled that pesky intern class action suit, agreeing to pay out $5.8 million to roughly 7,500 interns who say they were grossly underpaid for their work. Seems like it would've been cheaper to just pay their interns a fair wage.
U.K. Tourism Board Destroys Beloved Childhood Literary Figure in Single Tweet
By Jessica RoyThe U.K. tourism board has taken something wonderful, like an internationally heralded toy bear dressed neatly in a duffle coat and wide-brimmed hat, and ruined it with a single tweet.
Brazilian Cannibals on Trial for Making Pastries Out of Women
By Katie ZavadskiA man, his wife, and his live-in mistress are on trial for murdering and eating two women in the northeast Brazilian city of Garanhuns. Prosecutors say they lured the unsuspecting victims into their house by advertising a nanny job and, once they were dead, made pastries using the women's flesh. As if that weren't gruesome enough on its own, they later sold these "treats."
The Pope Is Coming!
Pope Francis is touring the U.S. next year and, rumor has it, may swing by New York to teach all the world leaders at the U.N. general assembly about how to be better people. The Vatican's U.S. envoy is feeding such speculation by saying 2015 is an "ideal time" for such a visit (why yes, the city is beautiful that time of century!), and that if his holiness is visiting the sixth borough, he sure as hell heck should be visiting the city itself.
Al Roker Left His Mic on During a Rokerthon Bathroom Break
By Jessica RoyGreat news, everybody. I know you all were disappointed when Al Roker claimed he pooped his pants in the White House but did not provide video or audio proof of said shart. Today, we have received the next best thing: According to Today.com, Roker left his microphone on during a bathroom break from his 34-hour weathercast.
Senators Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid Surprise No One and Take Top Senate Jobs
Republican Mitch McConnell will now be your Senate Majority Leader, elected by unanimous vote to the top GOP leadership spot. Likewise, Democratic Senator Harry Reid was voted in as Minority Leader, though he faced some slight opposition from within the party. The rest of the incumbent leaders for both parties were also reelected, so it'll basically be the same cast of characters, with roles swapped. There's just one small exception: Dems created a special position for Senator Elizabeth Warren, who will take on the role of Strategic Policy Adviser to the Democratic Policy Communications Center, which is a wordy title for liaison to the party's liberal base, which is still a formal title for "people like you, please help us get votes."
ISIS May Join Forces With Al Qaeda
By Katie ZavadskiISIS is back to being buddies with the Syrian Al Qaeda affiliate, according to AP reports, just as the militant group's leader released a new audio recording showing that he is still alive. This move comes amid reports that President Obama is rethinking the U.S.'s Syria strategy and whether it's possible to resolve the ongoing conflict without removing Bashar al-Assad — reports the Obama administration denies.
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