Mehdi Hasan‘s appearance in a heated election debate on CNN is a reminder of his growing position in the United States, becoming one of the few British broadcasters to “make it” in the country.
The 45-year-old, born in Swindon, has made a name for himself in the UK for his fiery presence on Question Time and his confrontational approach appears to be going down well in the polarized US media landscape.
After building a reputation as a left-wing commentator, Hasan received his own show on MSNBC in 2021. Although he was abandoned last year, he remains a staple of the so-called “progressive” talk show circuit and writes a column for The Guardian.
But his rise has not been without controversy: Hasan, who is Muslim, was criticized for historical comments in which he compared homosexuals to “pedophiles” and non-Muslims to “animals.”
Although he has apologized for his hate-filled rant, he continues to attract controversy for his outspoken views on the war between Israel and Hamas, which he has repeatedly described as “genocide.”
Mehdi Hasan, seen last night on CNN, has established himself as a familiar figure in the American left-wing media landscape.
Hasan is a staple of left-wing talk shows and can be seen here on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
Hassan made recent headlines last night when he clashed with right-wing commentator Ryan Girdusky on CNN, with Girdusky criticizing him for comparing him to a Hezbollah terrorist.
Girdsky was kicked off Abby Philip’s show after telling Hassan, “I hope your pager doesn’t go off,” in reference to A wave of booby-trapped pager explosions swept across Lebanon last month, targeting Hezbollah fighters.
In response, Hasan accused Girdsky of ordering his murder.
Born to Indian parents in Swindon, Hasan graduated from Oxford University and worked for the BBC, Sky, Channel 4 and New Statesman before joining Al Jazeera in 2012.
Ironically, due to his far-left views, Hasan previously revealed how Spectator’s then editor Boris Johnson gave him his first break in journalism after meeting him at a panel debate in Oxford.
“I made fun of him in my speech,” Hasan told the Press Gazette. “And then I blatantly walked up to him in the dressing room and said, “Can I intern at The Spectator?” because I thought it would be fun. And he, strangely, said yes.
Hasan did a two-week internship at the magazine and remembers Mr. Johnson.Singing Christmas carols and signing Christmas cards in the office,” which he called “a little over the top.”
The promising journalist worked at Al Jazeera’s English channel from 2012 to 2015, before joining its Upfront panel discussion in the United States.
Haasan later hosted the Medhi Haasan Show on Peacock from 2020 and MSNBC from 2021 to 2023.
Hassan pictured at the Labor Party conference in 2012. He is now a US citizen.
He has criticized Israeli policy toward Gaza, characterizing Israel’s attacks on the Palestinian enclave as “genocide” and recognizing the volatility of anti-Semitism in anti-Semitic groups and condemning Hamas.
He became a US citizen in 2020.
Although he was an ardent leftist, Hasan was open to dissenting views from the mainstream.
Although he personally opposed abortion, he criticized the overturning of Roe v. Wade, judging that the law defended a woman’s right to choose.
The canning of Hasan’s MSNBC show came after his fierce criticism. Israel sparked a backlash, although the network insisted that was not the reason for his departure.
Hasan clashed with senior adviser Mark Regev in October last year. Israeli P.M Benjamin NetanyahuThey told him: “Your government kills children.”
The presenter also faced pressure after homophobic and offensive comments circulated online, including comparing homosexuals to “pedophiles” and non-Muslims to “animals”. Fox News reported.
‘We know that it is important to maintain moral authority. Once we lose the moral authority, we are no different from the rest of the non-Muslims, from the rest of the people who live like animals, breaking any rule to satisfy any whim,” Hasan said in a revealing clip. Since 2009.
Hassan had previously addressed the controversy when it resurfaced in 2019.
Writing in X, the journalist said: ‘Like many journalists (people?), I said things many years ago that I now deeply regret.
Hassan hosted his own show on MSNBC before it was canceled.
‘For me, the main one is that more than a decade ago, when I was 20, when I was not a public figure, I gave a lot of lectures to students about Islam/extremism. And I said stupid and offensive things.
‘Speaking without notes and trying to be bombastic, I made stupid comments about non-Muslims, especially atheists.
‘I shudder when I hear or reread those comments again. I made stupid offensive analogies with animals. Argh, I’m embarrassed to write about all this again.’
He added: “Growing up in a conservative faith community, where you don’t interact with *real* gay people, I made insensitive comments, for which I have previously apologized.”
Last August, Hassan participated in a social media debate with Jordan Peterson in which the psychologist criticized her for “not really being brown.”
Following the racist attack in Florida, Hassan shared a monologue in which he pleaded with conservatives to stop hating.
“This brown Muslim is asking the white conservative community to put its house in order,” he said.
“Crack down on the hate mongers you empower, condemn the right to white supremacist ideology.”
In response, Peterson posted on X: ‘You’re not actually dark. More of a light tan. Just like the “white” ones. Plus, you’re a Caucasian guy by definition.
Hassan used his latest column in The Guardian to describe Israel as a “rogue nation” and call for its removal from the United Nations.
