The World's Jon Stewarts

MARCELO TAS

Country: Brazil

Shtick: Tas is the host of Whatever It Takes, a weekly comedy news show that is known to buttonhole parliamentarians in Brazil's National Congress building, and ask them easy questions such as what the laws they had just voted on actually said. Any representatives who can't answer are mercilessly mocked on national television. Tas also edited a book of the inarticulate sayings of outgoing Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, like "My mother was a woman born illiterate" (think Slate editor in chief Jacob Weisberg's collection of Bushisms).

While Tas is best known for Whatever It Takes, he actually started his career as a hard-hitting reporter for the state television network, not a funnyman. His real name is Marcelo Tristão Athayde de Souza, but adopting the moniker Tas has clearly been a good career move: He now boasts more than 971,000 Twitter followers.

But Tas hasn't been joking around lately. Brazil still has a law on the books dating back to the days of military dictatorship that bans making fun of candidates in the three months before an election. With a presidential runoff scheduled for Oct. 31, it's going to be another month before Tas can unleash his acerbic tongue on Dilma Rousseff, the presumptive winner.

Ethan Miller/Getty Images for Comedy Central; Autumn Sonnichsen/Flickr

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AHSERGIO

11:18 AM ET

October 18, 2010

A small correction

Brazilian supreme court (STF) has revogued the effects os the law that was prohibiting humor with the candidates before election. That happenned as a result of a movement led by Tas' CQC and other major humor shows.
A point that I rarely see any international articles about brazil is the freedom of press and Mr. Lula policy.
The world somehow see's him as a charismatic leader, but his party insistis in the creation of laws that submits the press under state control.

GREATNEIGHBOR

7:08 PM ET

What about Jaime Bayly?

Jaime Bayly of Peru is one of the funniest, most provocative journalists I've ever seen. The openly bisexual TV personality is a critically acclaimed novelist, half-assed politician who gets seriously important people and infamous newsmakers to come on his show regularly. Once there, he sweet-talks them into deeply personal conversations and frequently nails them once they're relaxed. Seriously, watch his show, El Francotirador. His personal story and battles with network execs are almost as funny as his journalism.

JQNSALCEDO

1:15 AM ET

October 19, 2010

you forgot a few

Jaime Bayly and Carlos Valverde

Bayly is from Peru, Valverde from Bolivia. I would say that Bayly does not focus on politics, but certainly spends a lot of time on the subject. Valverde is strictly politics and tries to be somewhat serious but he is so charismatic and so often 'free-spoken' that what comes out is extremely amusing and hilarious political commentary.

An updated list is very much called for!

GREAT IDEA.

JEJL

9:32 AM ET

Besiedes, during his time in

Besiedes, during his time in Colombia television, he received death threads, aparently for making fun of the Conservative candidates (even do he supported them)

9:30 AM ET

What about a South American one?? Jaime Garzon? Jaime Bayly?

I know that there are probably too many brilliant satarist around the world that face threats and that ought to be mentioned.

But I do think you should mentioned this one JAIME GARZON,

He was an outspoken colombian satarist who become famous with a tv program called Zoociedad (Zoociety). He was murdered by orders of the paramilitary leader Carlos Cataño after having participatin in peace talks with the guerilla FARC. After the peace process broke down he was labeled as a "facilitator of the insurgence" by the then chif of staff of the colombian army, and during a dinner at the american embassy, and through many interviews he heald, he kept saying, with a touch of humour, he was going to be killed "I already call the police to tell them that I have a watch, when I get killed I dont want a policeman to steal it" I remember him saying.

9:36 AM ET

He was also dearly beloved by

He was also dearly beloved by many. He intentionally had some of his teeths removed so he would look like a traditionaly poor shoe polisher, and would interview politicians and personality while shining their shoes, acting in character of corse.

LEEN

12:40 PM ET

Jon Stewart plays nicey nice with Condi "mushroom cloud" Rice

I just don't get Jon Stewart. He allows warmongers like Bill Kristol and Condi "mushroom cloud" Rice to get on his show to promote their book and run from their records of warmongering. And then rips Chris Matthews a new ---hole about some line in his book. He clearly has it out for Chris matthews. And please do not say that Matthews was one of the group thinkers before the invasion. Total hooey. I watched him every evening before the invasion and he ripped the day lights out of Frum, Kristol and Gaffneys' go to war spin. And he has ripped Cheney to shreds with his tone.

But truly I just do not get Stewart being all nicey nice with these warmongers. They were seriously complicit in the run up to that invasion. They are partially responsible for hundreds of thousand of people in Iraq's death and injuries. And Stewart lets them on his program and does not touch their bloody hands.

What gives?

You think if Stewart could access those who were complicit in the deaths of millions of Jews and others in WWII on his show he would let them walk without chalenging their war crimes?

MARKUSTEE

1:58 AM ET

October 23, 2010

Unbelievably naiive is LEEN

"Mushroom cloud" Condi Rice? "Responsible for hundreds of thousands of people in Iraqi deaths and injuries"??? What have you been smoking, liberal weed?

Look, Condi Rice did not ever authorize dropping a nuclear weapon, although there were times that I think she should have requested it. And the "hundreds of thousands of Iraqi people" were not killed by Americans, but by other ragheads from Iraq, specifically, the jerk that was running that country, Saddam Hussein. You seem to conveniently forget the facts, in favor of your cotton candy dream.

Instead of making such idiotic charges, why don't you give a little thought to how YOU would have handled the situation at the time. Perhaps you would prefer that we train all our soldiers to be snipers, so that they can only kill the "bad guys"? Then we can have you stand out there in front, to identify the "bad guys". It is not a bad idea; you would be dead the first day. Just because you are a really really nice wimp, doesn't mean that the rest of the world will comply with your whipped cream fantasy world.

And Matthews? If you listen to him, I can understand where you got your world view. Hint: Matthews is not a news reporter. He is a liberal opinionator.

Foreign Policy Magazine

The Daily Show star has it easy. An FP List of the world's most influential political satirists shows that in dangerous places, telling jokes can be hazardous to your health.

BY MAX STRASSER | OCTOBER 18, 2010

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