[youtube=http://youtu.be/SXcmc2AZ6ZE]
Nobody knew where to turn after the horrific events of 9/11 and even the nation’s trusted funnymen temporarily left our screens. But when they returned, the emotional impact was incredible. David Letterman went back on the air on September 17, 2001 and spoke movingly about Mayor Rudy Giuliani as well as New York City’s fire department and policemen. A similarly choked-up Jon Stewart came back a few days later, and arguably tried a lighter approach (“luckily we can edit this”) while keeping to what remains his most moving broadcast. Stewart spoke about how his new view from his apartment was of the Statue of Liberty and how, “Any fool can blow something up. Any fool can destroy. But to see these guys, these firefighters and these policemen and people from all over the country, literally with buckets, rebuilding . . . that’s extraordinary. And that’s why we have already won.”