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Jon Stewart’s Controversial Book Banned From Texan Prisons, But Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ Is Permitted

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 23:01 PST, Nov 1, 2016

Jon Stewart, comedian and former host of The Daily Show, has entertained television audiences by hilariously parodying news stories, politicians, and organizations, while hosting the famous American talk show.

The Daily Show made Jon Stewart a household name, and he has interviewed many dignitaries, like former President Bill Clinton. His popularity became evident when President Obama personally bid farewell to Stewart when he quit the show in 2015. It seems that the popular host’s exit was upsetting for liberal media personalities because, despite his attempts to remain non-partisan, he was still perceived to be a progressive television personality.

According to Free Beacon, there have been occasions, though, when the popular host dropped his guard when Republicans and Conservative politicians appeared on his show. Almost everyone agreed that The Daily Show had a leftist political leaning, yet Jon Stewart certainly tried his best to conceal his political biases.

Jon Stewart has always understood that it’s unprofessional to be aligned with any political party while parodying a particular political situation, however, he also knew that he’d be free to express his views and opinions by attacking the political system through satirical writing. In 2004, Jon Stewart collaborated with other writers of The Daily Show and launched a satirical book that parodies the American political system.

Titled America (The Book): A Citizen’s Guide to Democracy Inaction, the book mocked standard American textbooks by introducing readers to American political and judiciary systems in a hilarious and entirely inaccurate way. To do this, Stewart and other writers turned serious subjects into satirical text, resorting to parody and mockery. For example, Thomas Jefferson, America’s Founding Father, has been credited with writing the foreword of the book.

Additionally, Stuart made the subject matter more interesting by using notorious political scandals to explain the system. Furthermore, the hilarious details have been checked and corrected by Stanley K. Schultz, a Professor of History, whose remarks and corrections appear in red throughout the book. Jon Stewart’s book has won many accolades, and its three CD audio book won the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album.

However, despite receiving kudos for his work, the author suddenly found himself embroiled in a controversy because the fifth chapter of the book contained manipulated photographs of the then-US Supreme Court Judges whose heads were superimposed on aged nude bodies. Readers were further encouraged to check their knowledge by matching each Supreme Court Justice with an appropriate robe. Walmart, the famous department store, canceled their order of America (the Book) as they feared their customers might deem the controversial images to be too outrageous. However, the controversy didn’t affect sales and the book subsequently became a best-seller.

Today, Jon Stewart’s controversial book is back in the spotlight, confronting yet another controversy. According to Newser, Jon Stewart’s America (the Book) is one of 15,000 books that will not be made available to prisoners serving sentences in Texas state prisons, as per the stipulations of the Texas’ penitentiary system.

The policy implemented in the state of Texas prohibits prisoners from gaining access to any books that provide information about crime, riots, sex, and destructive substances. FanSided reports that the controversial nude images in America (the Book) may have been the reason for the ban because the state has also prohibited prisoners from reading a Shakespearean book which depicts nudity on the cover page.

It may come as a surprise to learn that, while Jon Stewart’s book is banned, Hitler’s Mein Kampf has been deemed acceptable for the prisoners. It appears that the Texas prison system doesn’t want its prisoners to be affected by nudity because of the lack of personal privacy in prisons.

[Featured Image by Brad Barket/Getty Images]

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