Jon Stewart flames ‘Newsweek’, says he never called ‘Harry Potter’ creator JK Rowling “antisemitic”

(NOTE LANGUAGE) Jon Stewart is casting curses — and spells — at Newsweek for its coverage of comments he made about Harry Potter.

The magazine published a headline on Tuesday reading, “Jon Stewart accuses [creator] JK Rowling of antisemitism in Harry Potter.” The article then expanded on comments that Stewart made about how the goblins in the Potter films, who run Gringotts, the bank of the wizarding world, reflect common antisemitic tropes.

But Stewart is now saying he wasn’t accusing Rowling of antisemitism.

During a podcast, a portion of which he posted to Twitter Wednesday, Stewart explained that his “lighthearted conversation amongst colleagues and chums” during an installment of the podcast “a month ago” was taken “out of context.”

Stewart explained that in his comments, he was merely pointing out how such tropes are so “embedded in society that they’re invisible, even in a considered process like movie making.”

“This morning I wake up, it’s trending on Twitter, ‘Jon Stewart accuses JK Rowling…of antisemitism,” he said. “So let me just say this…as clearly as I can. I do not think JK Rowling is antisemitic…I do not think the Harry Potter movies are antisemitic. I really love the Harry Potter movies — probably too much for a gentleman of my considerable age.”

“So let me say this instead, to Newsweek: Your business model is f***ing arson,” Stewart continued, noting that the publication’s headline caused, “all the sh**heads [online to] pile into this ridiculously out of context nonsense.” He added, “Get a f***ing grip.”