I was recently interviewed with my After Zionism co-editor, Ahmed Moor, on New York’s great indy radio, Beyond The Pale on WBAI 99.5. We spoke with hosts Alex Kane and Lizzy Ratner. Here’s the interview, discussing the reality on the ground in Palestine and why moves towards one-state are growing.
Category Interviews
“After Zionism” book launch in Sydney
The following event took place in Sydney at independent bookstore Gleebooks on 2 October with Sydney Peace Foundation head Stuart Rees chairing proceedings and journalist Peter Manning interrogating me. It was recorded and edited by Green Left TV’s Paul Benedek:
“After Zionism” contributor imagines Abrahamic state for Middle East
In my recently released book, After Zionism, there’s a range of views that don’t fit neatly into traditional categories. On yesterday’s ABC Radio National’s Religion and Ethics Report… with Andrew West, one of the book’s contributors offered his vision: There is a stalemate in the Middle East – no longer any tangible peace process between Israel…
Speech in support of Wikileaks and against 11 years of war in Afghanistan
This month is the 11th anniversary of the Afghan war, a disastrous conflict that has achieved nothing more than destruction for Afghans and foreigners. Yesterday Sydney’s Stop the War Coalition held a rally to mark this anniversary as well as supporting Wikileaks and Julian Assange in their struggle to tell the truth about Afghanistan, via…
Launching Phil Monsour’s “Ghosts of Deir Yassin” CD in Sydney
Last weekend I was honoured to launch in Sydney the wonderful new CD by musician Phil Monsour called Ghosts of Deir Yassin. It’s about Palestine, identity, memory and recognising the reality of Israeli behaviour in the Middle East. Folk music at its most moving. Here’s my introductory speech:
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on media outrage over Alan Jones and Facebook
Last night I appeared on ABCTV News24’s The Drum (video here) talking about the current media feeding frenzy over broadcaster Alan Jones and his offensive remarks towards Prime Minister Julia Gillard. The amount of time and energy spent on this issue, I argued, was utterly disproportionate to the comment itself. It was crude and wrong…
“After Zionism” discussion at Washington DC’s Palestine Centre
The following event took place to a packed room on 13 September with my co-editor on After Zionism, Ahmed Moor, the head of the Palestine Centre, Yousef Munayyar and me: Transcript is here.
“After Zionism” debate at New York’s Brecht Forum
The following discussion was held on 18 September at the Brecht Forum with the founder of Mondoweiss Phil Weiss and yours truly:
“After Zionism” featured at University of Sydney’s Sydney Ideas
The first public event for my new book with Ahmed Moor, After Zionism, took place on 2 August: The Israel/Palestine ‘peace process’ has failed and the occupation has never been more pervasive. The prospect of a two-state solution, a position advocated by all Western countries, is increasingly criticised as being at odds with the realities…
London’s Frontline Club discussion about “After Zionism” and the one-state solution
This week I appeared at London’s famous Frontline Club talking about my new book with Ahmed Moor, After Zionism. It was a sell-out with a refreshingly young audience (photos here). The other speakers were Palestinian Ghada Karmi and Israeli Dimi Reider. It was a 90 minute event that signalled the growing mainstream acceptance of only…
BBC Persian TV interview on Israeli threats against Iran
Here’s my interview in London on BBC Persian TV on 21 August 2012 (starts at 11:26) about Iran’s relationship with Israel, Netanyahu’s threats against the Islamic Republic and the avoidance of the real issue in the Middle East; the Palestinians. I argue that an Israeli or American military strike against Iran would be disastrous and…
Talking “After Zionism” on Sydney’s 2SER Radio
I was interviewed this week about my new book on Sydney’s 2SER’s The Third Degree: We’re talking Palestine and Israel, the gaps in our knowledge, the flaws in the so called ‘peace talks’, and the reasons why many are calling for the creation of one nation state. In conversation with Antony Loewenstein, independent journalist, commentator…
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on Israel/Palestine and uranium sales to UAE
I appeared last night on ABCTV’s The Drum (video here) alongside the Sydney Morning Herald’s Judith Whelan and… … former NSW Liberal leader Kerri Chikarovski. Aside from arguing against Australia selling uranium to UAE – seriously, do we need to provide a brutal dictatorship with a toxic and deadly resource? – and challenging the corporate media to…
The Wire radio on illegal Israeli colonies
I was interviewed yesterday by the daily current affairs show, The Wire, talking about Israel’s recently released Levy report on settlements. Illegality? What illegality? There’s some classic delusional but typical Zionist lobbying in the piece, by Vic Alhadeff, saying the report is in fact good for peace. Seriously, does the Israel lobby receive its daily…
“After Zionism” on Radio Adelaide
I was interviewed this morning on Radio Adelaide about my just released book: Nobody likes conflict, but it is ever-present in our world. The conflict between Zionism and Palestine is still burning after a century, and it seems too late for a two-state solution. “After Zionism” is a new book that brings together some of…
Talking #LeftTurn on The Small Picture Podcasts
I was interviewed last week by Stuart Beaton for The Small Picture Podcasts. We talked #LeftTurn, the mainstream media and alternative political realities. He’s based in China:
#LeftTurn on Sydney’s 2SER Radio
I was interviewed last week by Jessica Minshall on Sydney’s 2SER Radio’s The Third Degree on my recent book #LeftTurn and Australian politics and media in general:
Footage of my 2012 PEN Free Voices lecture
I was invited this year to give the 2012 Sydney PEN “Free Voices” lecture on free speech, censorship and war. It was delivered at the Sydney Writer’s Festival in May and in Melbourne in June. ABC published an extract recently. Film footage of the Sydney event is now available. May you be provoked:
ABC Radio National on free online culture
I appeared on ABC’s Radio National’s Common Knowledge program this week talking about the concept of free music and online culture: …There’s been an online debate burbling way… in the music scene, unleashed by 20 year-old Emily White who recently completed an internship at the American radio network, National Public Radio. She’d been working on the…
ABCTV News 24’s The Drum on refugees and media troubles
I appeared last night on ABC TV’s The Drum (video here) alongside former Howard government minister Peter Reith and 2UE host John Stanley. The main issues were asylum seekers – I argued that neither major side of politics in Australia has any desire to alleviate suffering and seemingly prefer ways to privatise the system and…
#LeftTurn on Triple J’s Sunday Night Safran
I was interviewed last weekend, with my #LeftTurn co-editor Jeff Sparrow, on ABC Triple J’s Sunday Night Safran,… … on the book, Iraq, war, Israel, Palestine and pirates:
Melbourne Triple R radio on PEN lecture and freedom of speech
This week I gave the 2012 Free Voices PEN lecture in Melbourne. I was interviewed about the issues on Melbourne’s … Triple RRR Spoke program:
Talking #LeftTurn on Radio Adelaide
This morning I appeared on Radio Adelaide discussing the main issues in #LeftTurn: What are your thoughts on global warming? Serious concern? Doesnt exist? Or perhaps you maintain a blissful state of confusion? ”˜Left Turn: Political Essays for the New Left’ is a new book that offers passionate and challenging accounts from politicans, journalists and…
The Wire on Palestinian hunger-striker Mahmoud Sarsak
Growing numbers of Palestinians are going on hunger-strikes to protest their inhumane treatment and incarceration by Israel. I was interviewed by The Wire on one particular case, footballer Mahmoud Sarsak, and the struggle for Palestinian rights in general:
ABC Triple J Hack on Syria, social media and not trusting what we see
The conflict in Syria continues to worsen. I was interviewed on Wednesday’s ABC Triple J Hack program about the role of social media, especially related to the war zone: Children being placed on tanks and used as human shields, that’s happening in Syria according to the United Nations. With the viral nature of social media…
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on refugees, #LeftTurn and Obama’s “kill list”
I appeared last night on ABC TV News24’s The Drum (video here) alongside ABC’s Stephen Long and The Australian’s… Adam Creighton. We talked about asylum seekers – I argued that keeping refugees for longer in detention will only benefit the private contractor Serco and worsen the mental health of both staff and detainees. Regarding austerity in…
ABC TV News interview about freedom of speech in West and beyond
During last week’s Sydney Writer’s Festival, before my PEN lecture on free speech, I was interviewed by ABC TV News about the growing threat to our freedoms in the West, as governments and private companies monitor and collect our digital details: [video… ogg=”/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/586444_20120517-Sydney-Writers_video2.ogg” mp4=”/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/586444_20120517-Sydney-Writers_video2.m4v” width=”400″ height=”224″]
ABC Radio National interview on free speech and human rights
The last four days have involved extended time at the Sydney Writer’s Festival. There was the first public event for my forthcoming book with Jeff Sparrow, Left Turn. There wasn’t a spare seat in the house. They’ll be far more about this title in the next days and weeks, so stay tuned. The following day…
New Zealand radio interview about Wikileaks
I was interviewed last week by the independent program Earthwise. We discussed the importance of Wikileaks and its challenge to the mainstream media:
ABCTV News24”²s The Drum on Afghanistan and Murdoch scandal
Last night I appeared on ABCTV’s The Drum (video here) talking about a range of Australian issues, Afghanistan and Murdoch thuggery in Britain. Having just returned from Pakistan and Afghanistan, I talked about the reality of life in the latter under Western occupation and what’s likely to happen once most troops leave at the end…
Radio Adelaide on Holocaust Remembrance Day and Israel 2012
I was interviewed this morning by Radio Adelaide… on the issue below and modern Zionist politics: The April/May period marks a very important time in the Jewish calendar – it is Yom HaShoah or Holocaust Remembrance Day. In Hebrew, Yom HaShoah… directly translates to the ”˜day of calamity, devastation or ruin’; and since 1953, it is a…
ABCTV News24’s The Drum on Israel/US/Iran and Syria
Last night I appeared on ABCTV’s The Drum (video here) discussing both domestic and international affairs. The key part of the show began when this week’s meeting between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu was discussed. The New York Times tells the world that, “Israel should not doubt this president’s mettle. Neither should Iran.” Netanyahu, speaking…
ABC Radio National on beards, cider and extreme retro
Sometimes it’s time to talk about issues apart from politics (even for me). I was the guest on yesterday’s ABC Radio National’s Common Knowledge: What’s behind the… kooky ad campaign… featuring two delivery girls on a tandem bicycle and with golden plaits and the faces of bearded men? Who is it targeting and what is the surreal…
Anyone can make a revolution (but the web won’t be enough)
Last last year I was invited to chair a panel at the Sydney Opera House’s Festival of Dangerous Ideas called, “Anyone Can Make A Revolution”. It was an attempt to understand the reality of the Arab revolutions and the influence (or not) of the internet: In Egypt and Tunisia we have seen ordinary people come…
Do Neo-Nazis have the right to free speech in Australia? (hint: yes)
This morning I was interviewed on Radio Adelaide about the limits (if any) of free speech in Australia: It’s festival season, the Fringe, Adelaide Festival, WOMAD – and we’re all picking out which events we’ll go to – but what about the neo-Nazi aligned Hammered festival? It’s to be held in Queensland– unsurprisingly it will…
Al Jazeera’s Listening Post on Western murder of Iranian nuclear scientists
The recent murder of an Iranian nuclear scientist by (probably) Israel or America was a huge international story but most of the Western media coverage refused to call the killing by its rightful name, murder. I was asked by Al Jazeera’s The Listening Post to comment about this press issue (my comment appears around 8:53):
ABCTV News24 on Iran, faltering economy and racism
Last night I appeared on ABCTV’s The Drum (video here) alongside Joe Stella and The Punch editor Tory Maguire. We talked about the faltering global economy – why oh why is the IMF treated with such respect after years of failed forecasts and neo-liberal “reforms” that have only caused misery for millions globally? – and…
ABCTV News24 on the economy, Afghanistan and Murdoch thuggery
I appeared last night on ABCTV News24’s The Drum (video here). I argued that chequebook journalism is only problematic when the public increasingly distrusts the media and presumes exploitation is taking place. The mainstream media far too often simply accepts the allegedly unbiased reports released by think-tanks and interest groups. More skepticism required and independent…
ABC Radio PM interview on far Right violence and mainstreaming anti-Muslim belief
The following story appeared on ABC Radio’s PM yesterday: MARK COLVIN: Researchers in Europe say the financial crisis and the immigration debate are fuelling support for far right groups. Young men, in particular, are joining them via social media. The same sets of issues are politicising young Australians but commentators here say there isn’t the…
ABC’s The Book Show discusses On Utoya, Right terror and Norway massacre
The recent release of the e-book On Utoya about the Norway massacre and Right racism continues to generate necessary discussion about the highly political act of murdering dozens of Left activists. My chapter is about Israel and the far Right. This morning I was interviewed on ABC Radio National’s The Book Show alongside Overland editor…
The Wire on Gilad Shalit release and Israeli kidnapping of Palestinians
There’s so much blather in the mainstream press about the Gilad Shalit deal this week. Mostly written by the Israeli Foreign Ministry. I was invited onto current affairs show The Wire yesterday to offer a different perspective and argue that the press humanises one man, Shalit, while Arabs are largely invisible and faceless:
ABC interview on BDS, Palestine and far-right love affair with Zionism
The ongoing blind establishment embrace of Israel and condemnation of BDS as akin to Nazi Germany shows no sign of abating in Australia. Yesterday’s ABC Radio National Breakfast featured a story on the issue and included a brief interview with me explaining the growing alliances between the fascist right and Israel; a mutual hatred of…
ABC interview on Palestine, UN statehood and one-state solution
Debate around Palestinian statehood is becoming increasingly polarised, but necessarily so. While Israel continues to build illegal settlements in the West Bank, a two-state solution is dead and buried. That only leaves eternal apartheid or a one-state solution, my favoured option, a truly democratic state. Last week I was extensively interviewed by ABC radio on…
ABCTV News24 on climate change, Murdoch thuggery and asylum seekers
I appeared last night on ABCTV News24’s The Drum (video here). The Federal government is introducing its carbon tax legislation into the parliament and yet I argued it’s legitimate to ask why so many polluters are receiving such concessions. It’s an attempted political fix that hasn’t convinced many Australians. Simply put, many people are skeptical…
Sydney radio on BDS, Palestine and slamming faux anti-Semitism claims
I was interviewed this week by 2SER’s The Wire on why boycotting Israel is a legitimate tactic in the face of Zionist occupation and calling these actions anti-Semitic, as many in the political and media elites do, simply demeans the word’s real meaning.
PressTV interview on BDS, Palestinian rights and faux anti-Semitism
The debate around Israel/Palestine in Australia has descended into calling critics (and backers of BDS) Nazis. Yes, that dignified. And the Zionist establishment is leading the charge, completely undermining its argument that the memory of the Holocaust should be holy. For them, Israel must be protected no matter what, even if dead Jews must be…
Sydney’s 2SER Radio on aid to Palestine and Zionist lobby pressure
I recently wrote about progressive unions in Australia being pressured by the Zionist lobby, conservative politicians and elements within the Labor Party to stop supporting Palestine. I was interviewed on Sydney 2SER radio’s AidWorks program about this issue and why BDS so scares Israel firsters opposed to Palestinian rights. The segment starts around 16.38:
ABCTV News24 on massacre in Norway and refugee swap with Malaysia
I appeared on ABCTV News 24’s The Drum last night (video here) talking refugees and the mass killings in Norway. I argued that the Australian government’s refugee swap deal with Malaysia was nothing more than an attempted political fix to allow Julia Gillard to say she’s stopped the boats. But the human rights conditions in…
Talking Murdoch hacking on Portland indy radio
I was interviewed last week by a progressive Portland radio station, 620KPOJ, on the Murdoch phone hacking scandal and the empire’s pernicious effect on democracy (interview begins around 21 minutes):