IF YOU’RE READING this, it means you’ve almost survived the 2024 election. Let’s hope the same can be said of Josh Johnson (above, left) and Troy Iwata (above, right). Their inaugural season as on-air correspondents for The Daily Show (Johnson started as a staff writer in 2017) has been one in which the show and its returning host Jon Stewart have had to tackle some seriously serious headlines and wrestle comedy out of them. So we decided to see how they’re holding up. “It would be so funny,” says Johnson, “if I started screaming right now.”
MEN’S HEALTH: So, uh, how’s your first year on the job going?
Josh Johnson: I’m really happy to be part of the news team in what could be the last year of America. I feel like I really slid into home.
Troy Iwata: I’m still learning on the job. There are so many times when I feel very ill equipped to be delivering political information to the masses. But we have really talented writers and producers who make me feel safe in what I’m saying. But it’s also inevitable that when you get a script, you have to put it through a bunch of filters. I need to remember that I’m the one saying it. I’m a mixed Asian gay dude. No matter what, that’s what people are going to see first. But that’s not a bad thing. It just challenges us to be smarter in how we write our jokes.
“A lot of OUR COMEDY comes from OUR GOVERNMENT or POLITICIANS making the MISTAKE of doing something out in the open.”
-TROY IWATA
MH: Where do you start when writing those jokes?
TI: We always search for the hypocrisy.
JJ: Very real journalists travel the world and risk their lives to uncover things that were supposed to be kept secret. But a lot of our comedy comes from our government or politicians making the mistake of doing something out in the open. Like when a Supreme Court decision basically says, “You can’t take bribes as an elected official, but you can take tips!” There’s something to be said for the boldness of not covering it up better. It’s terrifying, but also leaves it right out there to make fun of.
MH: And hypocrisy has always been a bipartisan issue.
JJ: In a weird way, even as a “divided” country we’re all unified in our collective exhaustion. It does voters a disservice to treat them as if they’re too stupid or lazy to care. It’s because they do care and they are watching that they’re so exhausted.
MH: Do your friends and family turn to you for news?
TI: No, my family turns to me to tell me what I should talk about on the show.
“I have a lot of takes, but I’m ALWAYS HONEST about the fact that it’s only HOW I FEEL based on the INFORMATION I have in that moment.”
-JOSH JOHNSON
MH: Which is?
TI: Whatever’s going on in their town.
JJ: I do have people who come to me, and I do think it’s a mistake. I have a lot of takes, but I’m always honest about the fact that it’s only how I feel based on the information I have in that moment. “Look, this is what I think, but I’ve only read two articles and watched a Vox video. I’m not an expert on the subject.” I think everyone’s political position should be metered, and as you get more information, the needle moves.
TI: Your intellect shines through in your comedy, which is probably why people come to you. The main response I get anytime I perform is: “I love your facial expressions!” No one has ever said anything about the words coming out of my mouth.
This article originally appeared on Men’s Health US
