My Guardian feature (plus a collection of my photographs): Stewart immigration detention centre is situated on the outskirts of Lumpkin, Georgia, a ghost town seven days a week. Visitors and detainees arriving at the centre – capacity: 2,000, all male – are greeted by a huge painted sign on a water tank: “CCA: America’s Leader…
Showing all posts tagged Australia
Radio New Zealand interview on Profits of Doom
My book Profits of Doom has just been released in an updated edition. I was extensively interviewed last weekend by Wallace Chapman on the Radio New Zealand program, Sunday Morning. It’s rare having this much time to discuss issues:
My Politics in the Pub speech on Gaza and Palestine
Last week I spoke at Sydney’s Politics in the Pub about the recent Gaza conflict and implications for global attitudes towards Israel. Thanks to Cathy Vogan for filming the event:
ABCTV Big Ideas on IQ2 debate over technology
In August I was involved in an IQ2 Squared debate in Sydney (and my side won, for the record, despite the audience starting off backing the other team.) This was broadcast by ABCTV1’s Big Ideas: Are we becoming enslaved to our technology? This was a decent Intelligence Squared debate with the audience split between the…
ABCTV Big Ideas on a reporter's focus since 9/11
During the recent Byron Bay Writer’s Festival this event, broadcast by ABCTV1’s Big Ideas, was a robust discussion on the rights, responsibilities and pressures of conflict reporting in a post 9/11 world: In this session writers Abbas El-Zein, Antony Loewenstein and Washington Post journalist David Finkel deliver strikingly different perspectives on the Iraqi and Afghan…
ABCTV Big Ideas on identity in modern Australia
I recently attended the Wordstorm literary festival in Darwin and participated in the following event that was recorded and broadcast by ABCTV1’s Big Ideas: This panel brings together a group of Australians of Italian, Chinese, Indigenous, Jewish, and Vietnamese descent to talk over the notion of home. What is it? Where is it? What is…
Why Jewish dissent over Israel signifies move away from tribalism
My weekly Guardian column: The South African national high school debating team was recently in Bangkok for the world debating championships. During the competition, the team uploaded a picture of themselves at the tournament’s opening ceremony to Facebook, and controversy ensued. “Team South Africa wearing Palestinian badges and Keffiyehs to show our opposition to the…
Public talk on From Iraq to Gaza: The Politics of Fear
Last Friday I gave the following speech at Sydney’s… Lebanese Muslim Association forum on terrorism, Gaza, ISIS and Western governments spreading fear and anger towards the Islamic faith. Labor MP Tony Burke and Liberal MP Craig Laundy both pledged to bring harmony to the community and yet both their parties have flamed bigotry. Government surveillance is…
2SER Fourth Estate on media coverage of Palestine
This week I was invited onto 2SER’s Fourth Estate media program: In the wake of Mike Carlton’s resignation from the SMH over Israel/Palestine, the panel discuss the pitfalls of interacting with readers and dealing with vicious feedback. Plus, compassion fatigue and the media and typos, when are they newsworthy?
News flash; debating Israel and Islam is healthy sign of democracy
This Friday the Lebanese Muslim Association has organised an event titled, “From Iraq to Gaza: The Politics of Fear”. I’ll be speaking alongside many others. Daring to be critical of the dominant narrative over Palestine or terrorism has upset Rupert Murdoch’s resident race-baiter Andrew Bolt. There’s also a “story” in today’s Murdoch Australian that features…