Jon Stewart defends Trevor Noah as ‘Daily Show’ pick

Jon Stewart and Trevor Noah. (Reuters/Handout)LOS ANGELES – Jon Stewart opened Monday’s edition of “The Daily Show” with a pitch for viewers to reserve judgment about new host Trevor Noah after what he termed last week’s Twitter “kerfuffle.”

Trevor Noah set to replace Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show” - The Philadelphia Sunday Sun

Stewart urged viewers to be open-minded and give the 31-year-old comedian from South Africa a fair shot. Comedy Central’s choice to succeed Stewart at the “Daily Show” anchor desk came under fire last week when tweets from a few years ago surfaced with jokes about Jews and women that were deemed offensive by many.

Let's Give Trevor Noah a Chance

“Trevor Noah will earn your trust and respect. Or not,” Stewart said. “I hope you give him an opportunity to earn that trust and respect.”

Stewart didn’t address the substance of Noah’s jokes, but he did say that he has found him to be an “incredibly thoughtful, considerate, funny and smart individual.”