Comedy: Trevor Noah makes history as the second comedian to receive the Erasmus Prize

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The Erasmus Prize for Europe was awarded to Trevor Noah. He is the first comedian to receive it since Charlie Chaplin in 1965.

The prize is awarded each year to a "person or institution that has made an exceptional contribution to the humanities, social sciences or the arts in Europe and beyond."

The Erasmus Prize is awarded each year to a person or organization that has made a significant contribution to the humanities, social sciences, or the arts in Europe and beyond. The prize is endowed with €150,000.

The Foundation strives to represent these ideals in its selection of award recipients by emphasizing the importance of tolerance, cultural plurality, and undogmatic, critical thinking. The Board of Directors of the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation awards the Erasmus Prize. The Foundation has His Majesty the King as its patron.

According to a press release from the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation, Noah promotes the "Erasmus spirit" with his witty, sarcastic, yet inclusive political humor.

According to the organization, Charlie Chaplin was the only humorist to receive the Erasmus Prize in its 65 years of existence, in 1965, after being presented with it by His Highness Prince Bernhard.

The foundation praised Noah for "his astute reflections on such issues" and noted that his tenure as host of The Daily Show correlates with the presidencies of Donald Trump, Covid-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement. She also said he has "gained a young, diverse and global audience while bringing a breath of fresh air to a highly polarized media landscape"

Noah was also praised for making a name for himself "in the arena of top-notch political satire" and becoming "an inspiration for burgeoning talent and a curator of comedic performances in Africa"

SOURCE: News24