Mehdi Hasan is a British author and political commentator who has worked in the American media for about five years. He had a show on Peacock, he had a show on MSNBC, and he regularly pops into cable news round-table discussions. His background: his parents were Indian immigrants in Britain, and he was born and raised Muslim, and I believe he is still practicing. He’s gotten a lot of attention this year for his commentary on Israel and Palestine, especially within the context of the American presidential race.
Well, Hasan was asked to appear on a crowded CNN panel to discuss Donald Trump’s Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden. As Hasan was trying to make the point of “if you don’t want to be called a Nazi, stop doing Nazi sh-t” (I’m paraphrasing), a man on the panel said something absolutely shocking to Hasan. The man? Ryan James Girdusky, who was trying to defend the Nazi rally. Girdusky called Hasan an antisemite and within the cross-talk, Hasan said, “I am in support of the Palestinians, so I am used to it.” Girdusky replied, “I hope your beeper doesn’t go off.” That was a reference to the Israeli operation to weaponize Hezbollah members’ beepers. As in, supporting Palestinians = Hezbollah. Hasan asked, “Did you guest just say I should be killed on live TV?”
Girdusky to Hasan: I hope your beeper doesn’t go off pic.twitter.com/YmHhYnkDZ3
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 29, 2024
This was Abby Phillip’s show on CNN, and she quickly tried to handle the situation. She apparently invited Hasan to stay on the show but he walked off, and Girdusky has now been banned:
CNN says commentator Ryan Girdusky will no longer be welcome on the network after his offensive remark to fellow guest Mehdi Hasan tonight.
“There is zero room for racism or bigotry at CNN or on our air,” the network said in a statement shared by host Abby Phillip tonight.
Earlier tonight on NewsNight with Abby Phillip, Girdusky was ushered off the show during a commercial break after making a crass comment suggesting Hasan was a member of a terrorist organization. In a video accompanying CNN’s statement, Philip apologized again for the incident just as she did earlier on her show.
Phillip also says in her video message that, although Hasan did not reappear after the commercial break, CNN did not ask him to leave as it had with Girdusky, and that the choice was Hasan’s. “In fact we really wanted him to come back and finish the show,” she said, adding that she hopes he’ll return to the show soon.
I have no issue with the way CNN handled this and Girdusky should absolutely be banned from CNN and other networks. He should also lose his other jobs and I hope that happens by the end of the day. Where I will blame CNN is that no political commentary or debate should have been staged this way, with a half-dozen people sitting at a table talking over one another. Stop with the both-sidesism and stop platforming known bigots, racists and insurrectionists just because “the other side should have a voice too.”
Phillip: I want to apologize to Mehdi Hasan for what was said at this table. It was completely unacceptable when we get this discussion started, you'll see that Ryan is not at the table… I want to apologize to the viewers at home pic.twitter.com/wyPaStHUex
— Acyn (@Acyn) October 29, 2024
Photo courtesy of The Daily Show.
I love that CNN is pretending to be surprised by this. Like the kids used to say back in the day: NOT. I stopped watching CNN years ago, because of their desperate need to cater to right wing crazies. I also find their constant both-sidesism galling. Democrats are not perfect, but they are not the ones who convince lunatics to charge the capital. That network has been the breeding ground for right wingers who’ve gone on to stardom at fox, including Glenn Beck and Tucker Carlson. Their panels are unwatchable as rightwingers are platformed to lie with abandon and interrupt the host. I regret that someone as smart and as talented as Mehdi Hassan cannot find his footing on a reputable network. But his politics of support for Palestinians is just not palatable ever for so-called lefty MSNBC.
It’s wild.
The pandering CNN does to the people who want to destroy our democracy, destroy vulnerable people’s civil rights (anyone who isn’t a straight white male) etc- and despite it all, they can’t shake their roots. That they were at one time a highly respected fact driven news organization that attempted to remain without bias.
Because to every MAGA I have the misfortune of being related to, they still see cnn as a liberal gay rights agenda pushing shill. And cnn has lost nearly all credibility with the progressive individuals who did turn to them for unbiased news.
CNN’s cowardice and refusal to clearly stand up to and define the facts of the decline of our country and the absolute truth that both parties and their leaders are not the same – to point out the promised rapid descent into fascism being shouted from the rooftops and to act as though it’s just two differing political parties is sickening.
And it’s netting them nothing. The MAGAs remember CNN’s glory days and hate them for once being a bastion of real news. And the democrats see their refusal to acknowledge the insanity unfurling in front of all of us and their continued gaslighting of the nation with the notion that it’s just different policies on the table and not democracy on the chopping block.
They have made themselves irrelevant by refusing to do their jobs. Disseminate factual information without bias to the masses as a check on the power of the power hungry. CNN is done
CNN: Cr*p News Network
I loved the expression on Ryan’s face,it was an ‘oh shit’ expression..like he was going through everything he is about to lose.
Yep, it finally hit him…just a little too late.
Vile. Someone has a bright future as a resident “martyr for truth” on Fox News.
Amazing watching the awareness dawned on him that he was not on Fox or some similar racist and openly racist supporting platform.
I have zero idea who this Girdusky is, so I looked him up: Ryan James Girdusky is the founder of the 1776 Project PAC. This New York-based group that promotes misinformation and fringe view(s)…
Why did CNN book him to talk about anything?
CNN has a long history of putting terrible Republicans on the air. Hasan isn’t my favorite progressive. Beyond working for The Intercept, he was a hard core Bernie Bro in 2020 and crapped all over Kamala Harris during her first presidential bid.
he is still crapping all over her. Can’t stand that guy.
He certainly has a problem letting women speak. Just talks right over them.
I’ve stopped watching CNN because they platform horrible people like this and Scott Jennings for the sake of both-sidesism. CNN is getting the blowback they deserve here. Hopefully they stop platforming these vile people across the board
I have stopped watching all TV news. The “both sides” has been BS since 2016 and they just continue to give these facists a platform. Screw CNN and all of them. Complicit a-holes.
Same here. But the format of this particular program lends itself to right wingers being deplorable and insulting. This is not the first incident of its kind on this format. It’s just the most extreme. I think CNN wants this kind of sensationalism to drive ratings. And overall, their insistence on having some deranged Nazi disguised as a “reasonable” Republican on every panel makes me sick. Hard pass on the entire 💩 show.
#FAFO
An interesting thread from a former tv booker about this:
https://x.com/mattsheffield/status/1851101861312410023?t=LoyrPUOQ9QlydzE5Ph3afQ&s=19
What does CNN expect? They bring on people the caliber of Girdusky and try to pretend he has a credible view of things. Good on Mehdi Hasan for not letting it slide!
Mainstream media is losing the people’s trust
I’m old enough to remember Jon Stewart criticizing CNN’s Crossfire, where they gave a platform to Tucker Carlson to do this exact kind of performative “we’ll hear from both sides” nonsense, but on a smaller scale.
What did they expect? They have people on that don’t think Black people are intelligent and that “Mexicans are rapists”.
Stop with the both-siderism and stop platforming known bigots, racists and insurrectionists just because “the other side should have a voice too.”
This part! There should be no discussion about bigotry, racism and overthrowing the government. It should be condemned over and over, not be given a side.
If that’s the way they feel about Ryan then the should also get rid of is it Scott Jennings who does nothing but white/sane wash the biggest racist of them all.
I’m Jewish and support Israel, but even I recognize that no nation is above criticism. I was appalled by Gidursky’s remark. I thought everyone there handled it far more gracefully than I would have, I probably would’ve blurted out “what the f*** did you just say?”
I gave up on CNN a long time ago because of their coverage of US politics. Watching them just made me want to throw something at my TV, which is terribly unfair to my perfectly nice TV.
Ever since billionaire John Malone took over at CNN it’s gone far too right-wing. This is a guy who donated $250K to Trump’s 2017 inaugural committee. He admires Rupert Murdoch and Fox News, and has opined that the US “needs Fox News or something like it. Because otherwise, everything’s leftist.” That is what’s wrong with CNN and why I rarely watch it. In fact, Anderson Cooper’s godawful interview with MVP Harris got me so riled I vowed never to watch his show again. So it doesn’t surprise me that something like this happened and it’s a good first step to ban Girdusky and boot him off the show, but that a show like that even happened in the first place is shameful.
Wtf. That’s just. No words.
“Stop with the both-sidesism and stop platforming known bigots, racists and insurrectionists just because “the other side should have a voice too.” Agree, agree, a thousand times agree.