Egypt's most popular satirist begins a resident fellowship at Harvard University

FILE - In this Monday, June 2, 2014 file photo, Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef, who is known as “Egypt’s Jon Stewart," shares a light moment with journalists during a press conference in Cairo. Youssef has joined Harvard's Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government as a resident fellow for the spring semester, almost a year after his program was taken off the air for lambasting Egyptian presidents and military men. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Monday, June 2, 2014 file photo, Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef, who is known as “Egypt’s Jon Stewart," speaks during a press conference in Cairo, Egypt. Youssef has joined Harvard's Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government as a resident fellow for the spring semester, almost a year after his program was taken off the air for lambasting Egyptian presidents and military men. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2014 file photo, Egyptian satirist Bassem Youssef poses for a photograph during an interview with The Associated Press in Cairo. Youssef has joined Harvard's Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government as a resident fellow for the spring semester, almost a year after his program was taken off the air for lambasting Egyptian presidents and military men. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty, File) (The Associated Press)

Egypt's most popular satirist Bassem Youssef has joined Harvard's Institute of Politics at the John F. Kennedy School of Government as a resident fellow for the spring semester, almost a year after his program was taken off the air for lambasting Egyptian presidents and military men.

Youssef was often described as the Jon Stewart of Egypt. His political satire was the first of its kind in Egypt and started during the 2011 uprising that forced longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak to step down. His program developed a following at a time when Egyptians were aspiring to hold their politicians accountable. But in April 2014, his program was taken off the air as space for criticism of authorities shrank. On Thursday, Youssef tweeted he was "proud" to join Harvard for a semester.