Podcasts Culture Point of Inquiry Negin Farsad: Red States and Muslim Comedy

Negin Farsad: Red States and Muslim Comedy

Published: June 3, 2014, 5:05 p.m.

This week, we welcome Negin Farsad, a groundbreaking Iranian American comedian. A TED speaker and TED Fellow, she was named one of the\xa0Huffington Post's 50\xa0Funniest\xa0Women. She's been seen on Comedy\xa0Central, MTV, CNN, MSNBC, and in her movie\xa0The Muslims are Coming!, a documentary following some of the funniest Muslim comedians as they travel America's Red States, cracking people up and demolishing stereotypes.

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\nHost Josh Zepps and Farsad discuss everything from the gray areas in religious identification, to the situation for Muslims in post-9/11 America, and the theocracy in Iran. How does one of the best educated and culturally Western populations in the Middle East coexist with the theocratic totalitarianism of Iran's regime? What can Western liberals do to help moderates in these countries lessen the influence of Islam's radicals? Does any cultural action on the part of the West do more harm than good? And just what\xa0can\xa0you do with two masters degrees from Columbia? Apparently, comedy!\n