Prepare to laugh, as Comedy Central takes on the topic of the Berkeley Pit as a tourist attraction.

You have to admit the premise is naturally funny, said Miles Kahn, a producer for 'The Daily Show' with Jon Stewart. Charging admission to see a huge body of toxic water?

"We've got tons of material," Kahn said, just before filming started on the final interview with Montana Tech chemistry professors Andrea and Don Stierle.

'The Daily Show' is the cable channel's half-hour spoof of a nightly news broadcast. In the upcoming Butte piece, correspondent Jason Jones explores the pros and cons of promoting the Pit.

At least that's what they say it's about. People interviewed tell a different story.

"It's gonna be a very crude comedy skit," said county planning director Jon Sesso, who's long been involved with the Berkeley Pit Public Education Committee.

Sesso and the others interviewed have a pretty good idea what the final product will be because the interviews were done twice. The first time was relatively serious with the camera fixed on the people answering questions. Then when Jones gets his turn on camera, he's free to play around with the questions, add gestures -- even drop his drawers if he chooses, and that's just what he did with the Stierles.

"Their goal was to make this thing edgy, but I thought they went a little beyond the edge," said Andrea Stierle. "That was truly not what I anticipated." And while she was disturbed by that part and wishes they hadn't brought the piece down to that level, she still doesn't regret agreeing to the interview, while quickly adding, "I may change that once I see it." The Stierles' Pit connection is their research into microbes living in the water that may have potential to help fight cancer, depression and even migraine headaches.

"We agreed to do this because we really like and admire Jon Stewart," Stierle said. "We were seeing this more as a chance to champion Butte. We wanted to make sure that a Butte story was told with respect as well as humor." But as they quickly learned, "it's not about being interviewed; it's about creating a comedy scenario.

"We did our best, and they'll do what they can to make this situation silly because that is what they do," she said. "They've got the editing tools." Sesso said that while he, too, "tried to put Butte's best foot forward," he felt like an actor in a comedy skit by the time it was all over.

He doesn't regret it either, though, and said he takes comfort in that regular watchers of the show expressed no qualms over his going on.

"If you watch it, you get it, and you understand that it's all about comedy and you take it as it is," Sesso said. "Let's face it. It's a cable TV show. It's on the comedy channel. It's not like it's on '60 Minutes' or even a syndicated news program." Stierle said she's still hoping the exposure will be good for Butte "in some weird way," and Sesso agreed.

"I have the faint hope that they will at least grant Butte some recognition as a town worth visiting and a place where we're pretty good-spirited and good-hearted and know a good joke when we hear one," he said. "We're just gonna have to laugh and move on." The third Butte interview was with Fritz Daily, a longtime critic of how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has handled the Pit Superfund site.

In an e-mail, Daily said he stressed his belief that the Pit is "a potential disaster in the making, just like an earthquake or a hurricane." As for the interview style, Daily said: "It was much different than any interview I have done in the past. It lasted for over four hours. To be quite frank, I don't know what direction the interview is going to take." The Daily Show contracted with Bozeman's Right Angle Communications to do the filming. They spent six hours with the Stierles and also interviewed people at the viewing stand. Roughly 20 hours of footage will be boiled down into a four- to five-minute segment.

Producer Miles Kahn said the main gist of the story will come through even though it will be "mired in our comedy, irreverence, and sarcasm." "We don't just come here to make fun of small towns," said Kahn, who's based in New York City. "The impact is almost always a short spike in tourism after it airs." Other small towns the show has visited recently are Homer, Alaska; Turbotville, Pa.; and Dish, Texas.

"If Butte has a good sense of humor about the things that are good and bad about Butte, they shouldn't be scared," Kahn said.

Reporter Roberta Forsell Stauffer may be reached via e-mail at roberta.stauffer@lee.net.