Barghouti on The Daily Show
Moustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian advocate of non-violent resistance and head of the Palestinian National Initiative alternative party to Hamas and Fatah, was on The Daily Show earlier this week. I had the opportunity to have dinner with Dr. Barghouti in a small group some time ago, and to hear him speak at a somewhat larger gathering last night. He’s a very interesting, very compelling person.
One thing that comes to mind thinking about this is how rare it is to see Palestinian perspectives in the American media. There’s not much of a percentage in it. If you present content that offends U.S. political orthodoxies you get in hot water and there’s no real upside. A wise man suggested to me yesterday that it might be helpful to not only watch the interview, but if you enjoy it write a note to The Daily Show telling them you appreciated it.
Might do some good.
24 Responses to “Barghouti on The Daily Show”
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October 30th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
It’s a pretty decent interview by American television standards. The full, website-only version is worth watching.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:24 pm
how rare it is to see Palestinian perspectives in the American media.
I’d suggest that the language barrier plays its part, and that applies to Israeli pols as well — Bibi’s ease not just with English but with the lexicon and stylistics of US cablenews-ese has always given him a certain advantage in that regard.
On the wider point: The Daily Show’s bookers do very good work, and have a certain freedom to go beyond the usual Sunday-show plugathons.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
NPR used to do pretty good on-the-ground coverage of daily lives of Palestinian civilians, but I know what you mean — there was never any sense that there was a political entity representing their interests (or even claiming to do so)
October 30th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
I’d suggest that the language barrier plays its part, and that applies to Israeli pols as well — Bibi’s ease not just with English but with the lexicon and stylistics of US cablenews-ese has always given him a certain advantage in that regard.
There are plenty of Palestinians, Egyptians, Lebanese or Jordanians who studied in the US and speak English as well as Bibi.
Not to mention Arab-Americans who may have a different perspective on the conflict. But they’re never on TV, don’t have a column in the NY Times or the Washington Post, or a TV show.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
It’s amazing how we have to bend over backwards to justify including someone like Barghouti. It’s a good example of how free our press isn’t.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:34 pm
Yes it was a good informative interview that lives up to TDS standards — but what stood out for me was that heckler, and how professionally Jon handled him.
One time he yelled “Liar”; this kind of stuff I’ve seen before. But Jon’s reaction “We have Joe Wilson in the audience”, and the honesty and maturity* he showed in bringing the outburst into the discussion is something I don’t remember seeing on TV. These kind of things — and this is what I remember seeing — the people on TV either try to brush off the incident, as a way of minimizing the heckler, or they freak out right back at them.
Then he, later as he was likely being escorted out, yelled (what I heard) “This is fascism! I’m going now…”** (Jon: “OK, well you’re welcome at the sadir…”)
*it may be that I’m word searching here
**Is this what you guys heard him say?
October 30th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Also, it was funny to see Stewart take a stand on this never ending conflict just one day after completely winging an interview with the author of Freakeconomics, spending ten minutes mocking hippies and spreading disinformation on global warming, and literally “hurting America”.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
The unedited interview with Mustafa Barghouti and Anna Baltzer is even more compelling — much more compelling in fact. (The edited version gives more time to Jon Stewart and takes out a few of the more trenchant statements.) You can access the full interview here:
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-october-28-2009/exclusive—anna-baltzer—mustafa-barghouti-extended-interview-pt–1
Part 2:
http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-october-28-2009/exclusive—anna-baltzer—mustafa-barghouti-extended-interview-pt–2
Sorry for urls, couldn’t get the link tag to work….
October 30th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Jeffrey Goldberg, professional zionut, is already on the job:
October 30th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
Actually ndm, Goldberg smears Stewart in retaliation, by comparing him to McArdle.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Yes it was a good informative interview that lives up to TDS standards — but what stood out for me was that heckler, and how professionally Jon handled him.
Yeah Joe Wilson is the gift that keeps on giving.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
You know, I got 3/4 of the way through the whole interview and realized I don’t give a damn. If it’s that hard to have a reasonable discussion about simple human needs, if the extremists control both the conversation and the weapons, if any attempt to understand one side means being enemy number one to the other side, then to hell with it all.
After four decades of following this stuff, I just can’t give a damn about the P/I conflict anymore. If the whole place went up in a mushroom cloud tomorrow, I would be hard pressed to feel a thing.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
You don’t even mention Anna Baltzer, who is brilliand AND hot as shit? (And only 30!)
October 30th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
brilliant*. Guess I’m not.
October 30th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
Re: # 6, I take your point but I wish Stewart also took the heckler to task (politely) for the rudeness while making the outburst part of the discussion. Even if the heckler were 100% right on the merits, he’d still be wrong because that’s not how you conduct yourself in civil society.
October 30th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
I thought Bhargouti was very interesting; Baltzer was an unimpressive and unnecessary add-on.
October 30th, 2009 at 7:15 pm
One thing that comes to mind thinking about this is how rare it is to see Palestinian perspectives in the American media.
Living in Virginia, I pick up Channel 30.5 (Al Jazeera English) on free over-the-air tv. Not American media, but it’s media available in America.
October 30th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Mr. Barghouti is hero, that’s all I’ve got to say.
October 30th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
Actually ndm, Goldberg smears Stewart in retaliation, by comparing him to McArdle.
It really is a tight competition between Jeffrey “Pony” Goldberg and David Bernstein for Jew-Baiting Jew of 2009, but Bernstein will surely have to come up with a few quick slanders next week to keep up in the standings.
October 30th, 2009 at 9:44 pm
Mr. Barghouti is a cousin of the murdering rapist, Marwan Barghouti, who is currently serving a life term for murder in an Israeli slammer. As for Ms. Balzer, she needs a weekend with Clarence Thomas’ favorite movie actor to set her straight.
October 30th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
My God you’re a piece of shit SLC. Two people come on advocating non-violence, and you say one has a criminal family member and the other needs to be fucked (or knowing you, raped)?
October 30th, 2009 at 11:32 pm
My God you’re a piece of shit SLC. Two people come on advocating non-violence, and you say one has a criminal family member and the other needs to be fucked (or knowing you, raped)?
SLC is the kind of guy who’d vote against a bill designed to stop gang rape among US contractors simply because it could be seen as a blow against Halliburton. He is basically what the conservative movement has been reduced to, what’s at it’s core.
October 31st, 2009 at 12:21 am
re Mrs SLC:
Mrs SLC is a third cousin once removed of Hafez al-Assad, and is currently pleasuring herself with a dildo cast from the late Syrian dictator’s male member, while breathily moaning “Hama Rules! Hama Rules!” to everyone within a half-mile radius of the backalley where she spends her nights.
October 31st, 2009 at 4:37 am
Two people come on advocating non-violence
What does it mean, exactly? “Non-violence” is nothing, what do they advocate as the goal and what is the way to achieve it?
Do they advocate for the right of return? If not, it’s all bullshit already. If they do, how do they imagine achieving it with “non-violence”, do they advocate economic sanctions against Israel? I doubt it.
There is no point to “why can’t we all get along” crap. Injustice must be confronted directly. With non-violence or with violence or some combination – but it must be stopped and rolled back.