The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Episode: Fox News Clarifies Trump Loves “Miners” & Female Reporters Are on Trump’s St List | Annie Leibovitz**
Date: December 11, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of The Daily Show, hosted by Debbie Lydic and Desi Lining, delivers sharp political satire and media critique, focusing on Donald Trump’s recent rally performance, his treatment of female reporters, and bizarre Fox News moments. The show then shifts gears with Lewis Black’s raucous “Back in Black” segment on 2025’s wildest TikTok trends. The highlight of the episode is a compelling, insightful interview with iconic photographer Annie Leibovitz, discussing her powerful new photo collection "Women."

News Headlines & Trump Coverage

Trump’s Rally: Affordability, Insults, and "Miners" Confusion

[02:02–07:16]

• Trump's Rally Tone & Recurring Biden Jabs

  • Trump continues to use “Sleepy Joe” and “Crooked Joe” nicknames for Biden, despite Biden being out of office.
  • Debbie Lydic jokes:
    • “Get over Joe Biden already. It’s like if Mike Tyson was still showing up at Evander Holyfield’s house trying to bite his other ear. And not for nothing, Joe Biden is retired. Now he’s allowed to be sleepy. What’s your excuse?” (02:53)
  • Trump claims: “Let me tell you, Black people love Trump. I got the biggest vote with Black people. They know a scam better than anybody.”
  • Lydic’s sarcastic reply:
    • “Okay, that’s racist. White people get scammed too… At this point, white people falling for shit could be its own Oscar category.” (03:55)

• Fox News Gaffe: “Miners” Caption Confusion

  • Trump says, “Do we love minors? I love minors.” (04:40)
  • Debbie quips about the awkward closed-captioning moment:
    • “You can actually see that the person doing the closed captions is also confused. And then ee. Oh, delete, delete, delete.” (05:19)

Trump vs Female Reporters

[05:26–07:16]

• Verbal Tirade Clips:

  • Trump is heard berating female reporters:
    • “You are an obnoxious. A terrible. Actually, a terrible reporter. It’s not the question that I mind, it’s your attitude… Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person? You know nothing about nothing… Quiet, quiet, quiet. You’re really obnoxious…” (05:47–06:32)
  • Lydic exclaims:
    • “This guy is exhausting. It’s like he won’t stop until he gives every woman in the country resting Melania face.” (06:45)

• On Trump’s Attitude Toward Women:

  • Trump: “…When she gets up there with that beautiful face and those lips that don’t stop. Up, up, up, like a little machine gun.” (07:02)
  • Lydic, sarcasm fully engaged: “Never mind. I’ll take the insults.” (07:16)

Satirical Analysis: “Manopause”

[07:30–10:11]

• Send-Up of Trump’s Behavior:
  • Michael (field reporter):
    • “Isn’t it obvious? The moodiness, the sweating, his sleeping problems, the brain fog… The president is going through menopause.” (07:35)
    • Jokes about “Dude-o-pause,” “Manopause,” and outrageous symptoms.
  • This sketch satirizes media attempts to explain Trump’s volatility, lampooning the medicalization of men’s emotions.
  • Standout comic riff:
    • “There was a time in his life when those folds were as tight as a drum. Smooth, supple, sopping wet. But now he’s going through a bottle of neck lube a week just to feel anything at all.” (08:26)

Lewis Black: “Back in Black” – 2025’s Strangest TikTok Trends

[12:21–18:41]

• Slang Sensation “6, 7”

  • Black rails against 2025's bizarre dictionary entry, the phrase “6, 7.”
    • “Seriously, what is wrong with these kids? I mean, I thought RFK Jr. was supposed to be curing autism, not making it worse...” (13:59)

• Teen Craze: Senior Assassin

  • High schoolers are “shooting” classmates with water pistols in a game called “senior assassin.”
  • Black’s take:
    • “A school shooter’s culture is not your costume. But in a way, it’s nice to see kids having some fun with traumatic events.” (14:50)

• Kool Aid Man Challenge

  • Teens break through fences imitating the Kool-Aid Man.
    • “Off evolution. We’ll take it from here. Back in my day, if you got brain damage, at least it came with a scholarship to Florida State.” (15:29–16:09)

• Heartwarming or Weird?: Picking Up Teenagers One Last Time

  • Parents pick up their fully grown teens in TikTok videos.
    • “I think we can safely assume one thing — that man is divorced.” (16:51)
    • Self-deprecating: “I remember the last time my dad held me — it was when I was one minute old. And then he said, are you sure this is mine?” (16:57)

• Black’s Satirical Challenge

  • Proposes his own trend: “the Pickin Up Lewis Black challenge. What happens is you come over and carry me wherever I need to go.” (18:08)

Interview: Annie Leibovitz on “Women”

[20:03–36:55]

Introduction and Cultural Impact

• Debbie Lydic: “My guest tonight is a legendary photographer whose powerful new collection… is called Women. Please welcome Annie Leibovitz.” (20:03)
• Leibovitz responds, self-effacing:
  • “I don’t know how I got talked into this.” (20:30)
  • “I love this show, and you’re amazing.” (20:54)

The Demi Moore Photograph & Representation of Pregnancy

• Lydic wonders at the historic 1991 pregnant Demi Moore cover:
  • “At that time, I had never seen pregnant women being shown like that… and there she was, just standing in her beauty and power and strength.” (21:17)
• Leibovitz reflects:
  • “We really didn’t know what we were doing… at the end of our cover sitting, I said, do you want me to photograph you nude with the second baby? And she said, sure, that’d be great…” (21:50)
  • On Susan Sontag’s influence: “Susan Sontag, actually, said, ‘this is really important.’” (22:07)
• Discussing Rihanna’s pregnancy reveal:
  • “She took it to a whole new place… she’s so smart, such an interesting person. She’s really mesmerizing.” (23:17)

Research, Portraiture, and Creative Process

• Leibovitz on research:
  • “You have to know who you’re walking in to see and how they’ve been photographed before and who they are and what they do. I always think I’m photographing not so much what someone looks like but what they do and who they are.” (24:31–24:52)
• On capturing “superpowers”:
  • Lydic: “You have a way of illuminating their superpower…”
  • Leibovitz: “I’m there with the other person. It’s a very psychological situation… as I get older, I really want us to look as best as we can, whoever we are.” (25:26–26:13)

Drive and Career

• Leibovitz:
  • “I love what I do… Rolling Stone, then Vanity Fair, then Vogue… my brothers and sisters seem to have the same problem, really. We’re all very ambitious, driven, kind of workaholics.” (26:29–27:15)

Male-Dominated Field & Early Days

• “I wasn’t really aware of it as much. I used it to my advantage because no one really took me seriously or thought I could do anything… you could really be somewhere and no one really paid you any attention.” (27:36–27:59)

“Women” Collection: Scope, Generations, and Representation

• On the creation of “Women”:
  • “…Hillary Clinton came to me over a year ago and said, we want to commemorate the original women’s book from 1999…I thought, well, maybe it’s out of print, let’s reprint it.” (28:26–28:53)
  • Key moment: Las Vegas Showgirls series led to the realization: “let’s do the book on women because we don’t know what we look like.” (29:48–30:06)
• Diversity of subjects:
  • “It’s not just celebrities and star athletes. You have inspiring women from all walks of life… there is a difference between—we couldn’t have done this book 25 years ago.” (35:19–36:07)
• On societal change:
  • “We are really in this quiet, roaring confidence, as Chimamanda says… I just think we’re an incredible set of people right now as women, and it’s much different from 25 years ago.” (36:03–36:19)

Notable Subjects & Their Stories

• Michelle Obama:

  • “She’s so incredible. I think she also told me she was just…driving a car by herself now, and she was just really finding herself.” (32:45–33:36)

• Leibovitz’s mother:

  • “She was afraid of being older… didn’t like the picture at first. My father said, I don’t like the picture because she’s not smiling. But it’s an amazing photograph over time because when I look at it, I realize it really feels like the camera’s not there… there’s no camera there. And I think that’s really what you want to achieve in a portrait.” (34:01–34:52)

• On the Showgirls photos:

  • “I don’t think it’s two different people. They’re the same person… I’m still trying to sort it out, but it’s mesmerizing to me.” (31:26–32:24)

Closing Thoughts

• Lydic: “This is such an incredible collection of beautiful photos… do not go backward, whatever the White House wants to bring our way.” (36:19)
• Leibovitz: “No, it’s a tough time. But that’s what’s interesting about Gloria’s essay—she addresses that… We’re not going backward.” (36:30–36:46)

Notable Quotes by Timestamp

• Debbie Lydic:

  • “Can you just try being nice to a woman just once?” (06:58)
  • “Never mind. I’ll take the insults.” (07:16)

• Lewis Black:

  • “Every time I think we might be reaching the end of civilization, I open TikTok. And remember, we already have.” (13:02)
  • “A school shooter’s culture is not your costume.” (14:50)

• Annie Leibovitz:

  • “I always think I’m photographing not so much what someone looks like but what they do and who they are.” (24:52)
  • “I don’t think it’s two different people. They’re the same person… I’m still trying to sort it out, but it’s mesmerizing to me.” (32:24)
  • “There’s no camera there. And I think that’s really what you want to achieve in a portrait.” (34:52)

Interview Timestamps & Segments

• Annie Leibovitz Interview Start: [20:03]
• Demi Moore Photo Discussion: [21:17–23:10]
• On Research/Portraiture: [24:20–25:35]
• Drive/Family Background: [26:13–27:15]
• Women in Photography: [27:26–28:15]
• Showgirls Series and Book Genesis: [28:26–30:06]
• Michelle Obama & Leibovitz’s Mother: [32:32–34:52]
• Collection Diversity & Societal Change: [35:19–36:19]

Episode Takeaways

• The show blends political satire, media commentary, and cultural introspection with impeccable comedic timing.
• Trump’s rallies and Fox News stumbles provide rich material for daily satire, especially concerning communication missteps and gendered animosity in politics and media.
• Annie Leibovitz’s insights on representation, storytelling, and the evolution of women’s place in culture cap off the episode with profundity and optimism.
• Lewis Black’s “Back in Black” segment captures the absurdity of contemporary youth trends and viral fads, putting society’s quirks under a comedic microscope.

For anyone who missed the episode, this summary highlights the sharp wit, biting commentary, and meaningful reflection that define The Daily Show’s Ears Edition.