Jon Stewart, America’s most respected name in news (sad but true), has been picked to host the Oscars on February 24th at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. His first stint in 2006 drew praise from people of all walks of life. When I say “people” I’m not including the Hollywood elite or NASCAR fans. “I’m thrilled to be asked to host the Academy Awards for the second time because, as they say, the third time’s a charm,” Stewart said Wednesday.

Oscar telecast producer Gil Cates said of Stewart, “You need a host who is not afraid of the unexpected, who can stand out and really work a room and deal with a live show. Jon, of course, does that on his show every night.” Cates also said Stewart was “a very, very nice guy and very easy to work with.” Each year, the host of the Oscars is chosen by the telecast producer, who happened to also be Cates in 2006. When asked if Stewart was chosen because 2008 is an election year, Cates said it hadn’t crossed his mind and that “the show is totally nonpartisan”.

In his 2006 Oscar gig, Stewart made jokes about the Iraq war and Hollywood’s ties to the Democratic Party. AP television critic Frazier Moore said, “He always brings some needed irreverence and smarts to pretty much anything he does. The Oscars are an often very pretentious, self-important institution, and somebody like Jon Stewart is very useful to help deflate a little of that pomposity.” The Daily Show has even poked fun at Jon’s own 2006 performance as host.

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