Roedy: What really works for The Daily Show is, obviously, Jon Stewart. Finding a Jon Stewart in local markets around the globe would require hitting a real home run. That said, the strategy is to do just that: take a local personality and provide political commentary. There’s not a lot of that actually; it’s a void around the world. It’s been in the UK for some time, but in other countries, it really hasn’t developed. We decided to do it in Germany, but in a much smaller way. We have a personality there that we are testing in just five-minute clips in which he provides commentary on the politics of Germany.

You are both American. When you look globally for opportunities in comedy programming and you review shows produced locally in other countries, can you see the humor, or do you have to rely on the locals to say, "Oh, that’s really funny!"?

Roedy: Although I’ve lived outside the States longer than I’ve lived here, I rely heavily on local management. Over the past 20 years, we’ve built up an incredible array of talent. Indians manage our channels in India; Chinese manage our Mandarin channels. They are tapped in completely to the local culture, including comedy, which makes for a very interesting collaboration.

Is there also a global market for Spike TV, MTV’s channel that specifically targets male viewers?

Herzog: Oh God, we certainly think so. We haven’t had an opportunity to spend a lot of time on it yet, but the idea of a network devoted to men should, theoretically, work everywhere.

So testosterone transcends world cultures . . .

Roedy: I don’t think Americans have an exclusive on that.

Herzog: Comedy Central is 15 years old, and Spike, by comparison, is still in its infancy. We certainly have some work to do on it here domestically, but I think we are on our way to a big idea. And as this company has always done, we would like to think it has applications beyond the U.S. at some point.

Roedy: The key to this strategy is that the formats we use internationally largely originated in the States. The Comedy Central idea, as well as MTV and Nickelodeon, all began in the U.S., and now they are successful around the world. It establishes the brand, it establishes an on-air look and it establishes the product that, in many cases, can travel. And, if it doesn’t travel, we can still use the format. Because Comedy Central has been so successful in the United States, it becomes easier to make it a success globally.