However, after a few minutes of incredulous laughter, the uneasy feeling sets in that there are millions of Americans watching this and not laughing. Not only that, but nodding, turning to each other and muttering agreement.I know someone who knows someone who swears blind that Fox reported the London bombings of last year like this: “A major European capital has been the victim of a major terrorist attack. We’ll tell you which European capital, after these messages.”I find it far, far more worrying that millions of US citizens use Fox as a primary news source, than a few hypothetical young people who prefer jokes to facts.Perhaps this also contributes to why US audiences laugh so loud, and so excitedly at The Daily Show. This can grate to a British ear and, when you’re performing, it can become genuinely unhelpful, to the point where you are thinking, “Oh, come on, it’s not that funny.” But once again, you have to remind yourself what it must feel like to hold a US passport nowadays.There is always much debate about what political comedy is for.

Journalists since the dawn of time have wondered whether political comedy has an agenda, and if so, whether it has the ability to change anything. Jon Stewart has always insisted that The Daily Show is a comedy show, nothing more nothing less, saying: “We just make comedy about things we care about.”Before each recording, he takes questions from the audience. A few weeks ago a woman put up her hand and said “I’d just like to thank you for providing such catharsis for all of us.” As questions go, it lacked some fundamental elements, but she was clearly not alone in her sentiments. Maybe we should all cut them a little slack next time they whoop at a joke and our toes begin to curl And at least they’re whooping at good jokes. If whooping has a place in the modern world, and it doesn’t, then it’s there.Satire is something that is alternately pronounced dead, then flourishing with life, then dead again, then showing signs of life, then in a persistent vegetative state with other forms of comedy campaigning to have it put out of its misery.

The truth is that some people will always find comedy to be a useful way of releasing tension, whatever the cause. Being of no specified religion and as someone who views the world with a mixture of suspicion and panic, I am certainly one of those people.I’m writing this on a flight from London back to New York – you can probably imagine what security has been like. There’s an armed guard at the front of the plane, who everyone self-consciously smiles at as they walk past. The little animated plane is crawling across the screen in front of me and a row of Hasidic Jews are watching the second showing of some film with Lindsay Lohan in. They seem to be enjoying it – I don’t know why I find that so surprising.

I still can’t quite believe that I’m working on The Daily Show. If I’m not performing on it tomorrow, I’ll certainly be watching it It’s great. You should watch it too.’The Daily Show with Jon Stewart’ is on More 4 Monday-Friday at 8.30pm. One in five British children under the age of 14 cannot find the UK on a map of the world, reveals new research to be published tomorrow.