by Thinus Ferreira
The South African comedian Trevor Noah is upsizing his late-night talk show done from his New York highrise with The Daily Show that will expand this week from a half-hour show to 45 minutes on Comedy Central.
With less original and new content on television because of the global Covid-19 pandemic that has had a massive negative impact on the South African and international TV and film industry, and coupled with the success of the renamed "The Daily Social Distancing Show", Comedy Central is expanding the show with an additional 15 minutes per episode.
The Daily Show is broadcast in the United States from Mondays to Thursdays and seen a day later in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa from Tuesdays to Fridays at 22:30 on the African channel feed of ViacomCBS Networks Africa's Comedy Central (DStv 122).
It will be the first time in the 24-year history of The Daily Show that episodes will be longer says Comedy Central in a statement.
"The news of supersized Daily Show episodes comes at a moment in time when viewers are heading to host Trevor Noah not just for satire and escapism, but also for an honest point of view and as a source of trustworthy information."
This week is the 6th week of "The Daily Social Distancing Show" that Trevor Noah now anchors from his home without the help of a live audience or the New York-based studio. The show has seen linear TV ratings rise as well as digital gains over the last month.
