The shooting at French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo was a topic of solemn recognition for late night comedy hosts on this side of the Atlantic.

Jon Stewart opened his show saying: “I know very few people go into comedy, you know, as an act of courage — mainly because it shouldn’t have to be that. It shouldn’t be an act of courage, it should be taken as established law. But those guys at Hebdo had it, and they were killed for their cartoons.”

The Daily Show crew then segued over to another European story: The dreaded Nazi cows of England — with some special commentary from “Senior Moo-slim Correspondent Aasif Mandvi.”

Conan O’Brien also opened his show with a recognition of the attack: “In this country we just take it for granted that it’s our right to poke fun at the untouchable, or the sacred. But today’s tragedy in Paris reminds us, very viscerally, that it’s a right that some people are inexplicably forced to die for.”

And then on to the opening monologue: According to a new report, the average college freshman only reads at a 7th-grade level, “Or, if you’re an optimist — every 7th-grader now reads at a college freshman level! Yes! USA, USA, USA!”