“Israelism,” a timely documentary exploring changing Jewish attitudes toward Israel, has been acquired by newly-launched distributor Watermelon Pictures for North America.
The film, the directorial debut of Erin Axelman and Sam Eilertsen, premiered at the 2023 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and went on to win multiple awards, including an audience award at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. It will be released in theaters and on digital platforms nationwide early this summer.
As per the synopsis, “Israelism” is an “eye-opening and essential exploration of the dramatic shift in Jewish attitudes toward Israel, informed by Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, revealing a deepening generational divide over modern Jewish identity.”
The film centers on two young American Jews, Simone Zimmerman and Eitan, who are raised to defend the state of Israel at all costs. Eitan joins the Israeli military, while Zimmerman supports Israel on “the other battlefield:” America’s college campuses. When...
The film, the directorial debut of Erin Axelman and Sam Eilertsen, premiered at the 2023 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and went on to win multiple awards, including an audience award at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. It will be released in theaters and on digital platforms nationwide early this summer.
As per the synopsis, “Israelism” is an “eye-opening and essential exploration of the dramatic shift in Jewish attitudes toward Israel, informed by Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, revealing a deepening generational divide over modern Jewish identity.”
The film centers on two young American Jews, Simone Zimmerman and Eitan, who are raised to defend the state of Israel at all costs. Eitan joins the Israeli military, while Zimmerman supports Israel on “the other battlefield:” America’s college campuses. When...
- 5/10/2024
- by Alex Ritman
- Variety Film + TV
In “Golda,” Helen Mirren, acting with deft skill and control beneath one of those startling transformative prosthetic makeup jobs, portrays Golda Meir during the three-week cataclysm of the Yom Kippur War, which shook Israel to its bones in the fall of 1973. As the actor stands before us, we can believe our eyes that this is the Iron Lady of Israel. For here is that frown, those beetle brows, that coarse wavy hair tied into a bun like challah bread, that pugnacious nose, that stare of implacability designed to bore a hole in its beholder. Here, as well, is the woman who lit a thousand cigarettes, chain-smoking her way through the war-room anxiety and through the secret medical treatments she was undergoing at the time for lymphoma.
Yet the voice that emerges from this formidable figure is not what we might expect. It’s light, fast, and American, and Mirren gets it exactly right.
Yet the voice that emerges from this formidable figure is not what we might expect. It’s light, fast, and American, and Mirren gets it exactly right.
- 2/20/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
Ari Emanuel returned to his hometown today to decry “the virus of antisemitism and hate and division” that is “spreading and attacking the foundations of our culture.”
In an op-ed for the Chicago Tribune, the Windy City-born Endeavor CEO called out the “cartoonish Kanye clown show,” Dave Chappelle, the Republican Party and Donald Trump for “the normalization of white supremacy, antisemitism and racism” in American society. “In the last year, we’ve seen how antisemitic conspiracies from the far right about Jewish control of politics, finance and Hollywood have become mainstreamed,” the former agent to the ex-Celebrity Apprentice host wrote (see the full op-ed below)
“So yes, keep our eye on the bigger picture — of course condemn cartoonish antisemitism and racism and hate, but also condemn more subtle and insidious forms of conspiracy theories that have no basis in fact,” Emanuel concluded in the op-ed.
Today’s piece by the sharp-elbowed exec,...
In an op-ed for the Chicago Tribune, the Windy City-born Endeavor CEO called out the “cartoonish Kanye clown show,” Dave Chappelle, the Republican Party and Donald Trump for “the normalization of white supremacy, antisemitism and racism” in American society. “In the last year, we’ve seen how antisemitic conspiracies from the far right about Jewish control of politics, finance and Hollywood have become mainstreamed,” the former agent to the ex-Celebrity Apprentice host wrote (see the full op-ed below)
“So yes, keep our eye on the bigger picture — of course condemn cartoonish antisemitism and racism and hate, but also condemn more subtle and insidious forms of conspiracy theories that have no basis in fact,” Emanuel concluded in the op-ed.
Today’s piece by the sharp-elbowed exec,...
- 12/9/2022
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
The New Republic’s new editor Gabriel Snyder announced four new hires on Wednesday, marking the political magazine’s first move to replenish its ranks since over a dozen staffers quit in December, which forced a suspension in publication.
“This is the first wave of new hires we’ll be making, including in the DC office, so I’ll have more exciting updates soon on the staffing front in addition to continuing to add to our roster of contributors,” said Snyder in his editor’s letter, which was obtained by TheWrap.
See Photos: The Scene at TheGrill 2014: TheWrap’s...
“This is the first wave of new hires we’ll be making, including in the DC office, so I’ll have more exciting updates soon on the staffing front in addition to continuing to add to our roster of contributors,” said Snyder in his editor’s letter, which was obtained by TheWrap.
See Photos: The Scene at TheGrill 2014: TheWrap’s...
- 1/7/2015
- by Travis Reilly
- The Wrap
The Daily Beast has hired former Wired editor Noah Shachtman as executive editor, TheWrap has learned. Shachtman will start Feb. 1. Acting interim executive editor John Avlon has been promoted to editor in chief, filling the role vacated by Tina Brown shortly after the site split from Newsweek in August 2013, according to an internal memo. Also read: Peter Beinart Leaving Daily Beast for Atlantic and Haaretz, Ending Open Zion (Updated) Shachtman most recently ran Foreign Policy’s newsroom as executive editor, but earned his digital stripes as co-founder and editor of Wired’s “Danger Room” blog, which focuses on national security.
- 1/17/2014
- by L.A. Ross
- The Wrap
On Tuesday night’s Crossfire on CNN, Daily Beast columnist Peter Beinart and The Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol squared off over the issue of a recent framework reached with Iran designed to halt their progress towards acquiring a nuclear weapon. Beinart went after Kristol for his hawkish “track record” and insisted that he and others like him “tried to learn a lesson” from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
- 11/27/2013
- by Noah Rothman
- Mediaite - TV
Peter Beinart is leaving Daily Beast for Atlantic Media and Haaretz — meaning Open Zion, the blog he founded that runs on the Daily Beast but is funded by the New American Foundation will close at the end of the year. “Peter Beinart has been a valuable voice at The Daily Beast since our launch in the fall of 2008, penning memorable pieces like The Rise of the New, New Left, which spurred debate across the web this past September,” said John Avlon, executive editor for the Daily Beast. Also read: Daily Beast Will Continue Post-Tina Brown, Embrace Digital (Exclusive) Avlon added that.
- 11/4/2013
- by Sara Morrison
- The Wrap
The 7th annual Other Israel Film Festival (Oiff), running November 14-21 in Manhattan, announced today that this year’s fest has nabbed the North American premiere of Dror Moreh’s new television series, "The Gatekeepers," expanded from the director's eponymous Oscar-nominated 2012 documentary on the chillingly complex world of the Israeli Secret Service. Moreh will attend the premiere to speak to audiences after the screening. Other guests and presenters at this year’s festival include "60 Minutes" host Bob Simon; Daily Beast columnist Peter Beinart, and Oscar- winning filmmaker Michael Moore.Our Toh! interview with Moreh out of the 2012 Telluride Film Festival is here.
- 10/28/2013
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
Commenting for the first time, the White House said Monday that Obama sees Anthony Weiner's behavior as a "distraction" from the real issues-but declined to press for his resignation. See the latest batch of racy pics, his online messages with a teenager, and more.
Plus, Peter Beinart on why Weiner shouldn't quit.
Related story on The Daily Beast: The Media's Selective Sex Scandal Savagery
Obama: Weiner a 'Distraction'
The White House stopped short of demanding Representative Anthony Weiner's resignation, Monday but spokesman Jay Carney made it clear they wish the scandal would go away."The president feels, we feel at the White House, this is a distraction," Carney said when asked about Weiner. "Obviously, as Congressman Weiner has said himself, his behavior was inappropriate, his dishonesty was inappropriate, but the president is focused on his job." House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and other top Democrats have urged therepresentative to step down,...
Plus, Peter Beinart on why Weiner shouldn't quit.
Related story on The Daily Beast: The Media's Selective Sex Scandal Savagery
Obama: Weiner a 'Distraction'
The White House stopped short of demanding Representative Anthony Weiner's resignation, Monday but spokesman Jay Carney made it clear they wish the scandal would go away."The president feels, we feel at the White House, this is a distraction," Carney said when asked about Weiner. "Obviously, as Congressman Weiner has said himself, his behavior was inappropriate, his dishonesty was inappropriate, but the president is focused on his job." House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and other top Democrats have urged therepresentative to step down,...
- 6/13/2011
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
Anemic jobs numbers, cratering home prices, stock market plunges-the only upside to all these depressing figures, says Gary Rivlin, is they may force Washington to stop obsessing over the deficit and fix unemployment.
It was only a month ago that the Obama administration was reassuring us that the economy was on the right track.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Boehner's Voodoo Economics
Then the Department of Labor (Pdf) released its latest jobs numbers. Now the only reason for optimism might be numbers so frighteningly bad that maybe they'll start talking about unemployment again in Washington and spend less time worrying about the impact of the deficit in the year 2030.
The U.S. economy added only 54,000 jobs in May. That compares to the 220,000 or so jobs the economy had added in each of the last three months.
May's numbers were so anemic that the president, speaking at a Chrysler plant in Toledo,...
It was only a month ago that the Obama administration was reassuring us that the economy was on the right track.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Boehner's Voodoo Economics
Then the Department of Labor (Pdf) released its latest jobs numbers. Now the only reason for optimism might be numbers so frighteningly bad that maybe they'll start talking about unemployment again in Washington and spend less time worrying about the impact of the deficit in the year 2030.
The U.S. economy added only 54,000 jobs in May. That compares to the 220,000 or so jobs the economy had added in each of the last three months.
May's numbers were so anemic that the president, speaking at a Chrysler plant in Toledo,...
- 6/6/2011
- by Gary Rivlin
- The Daily Beast
There is no better moment for the ex-governor, who would snare most of the social-conservative votes that might have gone to Mike Huckabee and Haley Barbour-and in 2016 would be old news and face a stronger primary field, writes Peter Beinart.
Sarah Palin showed up at the Rolling Thunder bikers' rally Sunday and said nothing, thus throwing the press into a frenzy. Now she's headed to various other patriotic sites, which will send the press into further spasms. Everywhere she goes, she's mobbed. Which leads me to this admittedly far-fetched thought experiment: if I were Sarah Palin why wouldn't I run for president?
Related story on The Daily Beast: Why Obama's Still Untouchable in 2012
There will be never be a better moment. A conventional politician might bide his or her time, amass a record of solid governance, and wait for 2016, when there won't be an incumbent on the ticket. But Palin doesn't want to govern,...
Sarah Palin showed up at the Rolling Thunder bikers' rally Sunday and said nothing, thus throwing the press into a frenzy. Now she's headed to various other patriotic sites, which will send the press into further spasms. Everywhere she goes, she's mobbed. Which leads me to this admittedly far-fetched thought experiment: if I were Sarah Palin why wouldn't I run for president?
Related story on The Daily Beast: Why Obama's Still Untouchable in 2012
There will be never be a better moment. A conventional politician might bide his or her time, amass a record of solid governance, and wait for 2016, when there won't be an incumbent on the ticket. But Palin doesn't want to govern,...
- 5/31/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
Nearly a decade after the 9/11 attacks, President Obama confirmed that U.S. agents killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a firefight deep inside Pakistan on Sunday. He has since been buried at sea. Peter Beinart, Bruce Riedel, and more Daily Beast contributors weigh in on the momentous achievement.
Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?By Paul Wolfowitz
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
The president acted bravely in choosing to strike at Osama bin Laden. Will he act on behalf of the people of Libya next? Former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz makes the case for further decisive action in the Middle East, in the current issue of Newsweek.
More >>
If My Dad Were Still HereBy Max Giaccone
Max Giaccone was 10 years old on 9/11, when the towers fell and he lost his father. In this week's Newsweek, Giaccone on what Osama bin Laden's death means to him.
Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?By Paul Wolfowitz
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
The president acted bravely in choosing to strike at Osama bin Laden. Will he act on behalf of the people of Libya next? Former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz makes the case for further decisive action in the Middle East, in the current issue of Newsweek.
More >>
If My Dad Were Still HereBy Max Giaccone
Max Giaccone was 10 years old on 9/11, when the towers fell and he lost his father. In this week's Newsweek, Giaccone on what Osama bin Laden's death means to him.
- 5/2/2011
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
Nearly a decade after the 9/11 attacks, President Obama confirmed that U.S. agents killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a firefight deep inside Pakistan on Sunday. He has since been buried at sea.
Plus, Howard Kurtz on Obama's greatest achievement, Peter Beinart on the fate of the war on terror, Andrew Sullivan's live blog of the night's astounding events, and reactions from around the globe
Related story on The Daily Beast: Britain's Crush on Obama
President Obama confirmed Sunday night that al Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden was killed in a firefight deep in Pakistan-ending a nearly decade-long manhunt. No Americans were harmed in the operation, and U.S. agents captured the terrorist's body. "Justice has been done," the president said in a press conference.
According to U.S. officials, two U.S. helicopters swept in to Abbottabad, Pakistan, between 1:30 and 2 a.m. Sunday monring. Twenty to 25 U.
Plus, Howard Kurtz on Obama's greatest achievement, Peter Beinart on the fate of the war on terror, Andrew Sullivan's live blog of the night's astounding events, and reactions from around the globe
Related story on The Daily Beast: Britain's Crush on Obama
President Obama confirmed Sunday night that al Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden was killed in a firefight deep in Pakistan-ending a nearly decade-long manhunt. No Americans were harmed in the operation, and U.S. agents captured the terrorist's body. "Justice has been done," the president said in a press conference.
According to U.S. officials, two U.S. helicopters swept in to Abbottabad, Pakistan, between 1:30 and 2 a.m. Sunday monring. Twenty to 25 U.
- 5/2/2011
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
Bin Laden's death gives the U.S. a golden opportunity to bury the war on terror-a distraction, Peter Beinart argues, that distorted America's foreign policy for too long.
Plus, full coverage of bin Laden's death.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Britain's Crush on Obama
No human's death is ever a blessing. But this comes close. Many modern revolutionaries have committed terrible crimes in pursuit of a vision that, at least in theory, had moral value. Osama bin Laden's vision, by contrast, was both totalitarian and parochial. And he murdered freely in its pursuit. He was evil in both ends and means.
But we have more to be grateful for than this one villain's demise. We must give thanks for something broader: The war on terror is over. I don't mean that there is no threat of further jihadist attack. In the short term, the threat may even rise. I...
Plus, full coverage of bin Laden's death.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Britain's Crush on Obama
No human's death is ever a blessing. But this comes close. Many modern revolutionaries have committed terrible crimes in pursuit of a vision that, at least in theory, had moral value. Osama bin Laden's vision, by contrast, was both totalitarian and parochial. And he murdered freely in its pursuit. He was evil in both ends and means.
But we have more to be grateful for than this one villain's demise. We must give thanks for something broader: The war on terror is over. I don't mean that there is no threat of further jihadist attack. In the short term, the threat may even rise. I...
- 5/2/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
In an address that offered a vigorous defense of liberal values and traditional entitlement programs, President Obama laid out his vision for a plan that would cut $4 trillion from the deficit over the next 12 years. Howard Kurtz, Eleanor Clift, John Avlon, Grover Norquist and more Daily Beast contributors weigh in.
How China Could Help Obama Win the Budget BattleBy Peter Beinart
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
The most innovative part of Obama's speech was how he used China. Americans know that China is doing well, in some ways better than us. They're afraid, and a little envious and Obama played into that: "Go to China and you'll see businesses opening research labs and solar facilities." He went on to talk about the new investments being made by governments like South Korea and Brazil. The message was clear: These countries that are sneaking up on...
How China Could Help Obama Win the Budget BattleBy Peter Beinart
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
The most innovative part of Obama's speech was how he used China. Americans know that China is doing well, in some ways better than us. They're afraid, and a little envious and Obama played into that: "Go to China and you'll see businesses opening research labs and solar facilities." He went on to talk about the new investments being made by governments like South Korea and Brazil. The message was clear: These countries that are sneaking up on...
- 4/13/2011
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
The deal brokered by Barack Obama and John Boehner helps the president regain his rep as a strong leader, and allows Boehner to tell his base that they've succeeded in shifting the agenda. It's a win for both men, Peter Beinart writes.
During the cold war, conspiracy theorists would sometimes suggest that the American and Soviet militaries were secretly in cahoots. Each needed its civilian overlords to keep the money flowing, and to make that happen, each needed the other to appear menacing. "Hey Vasily, we've got a difficult budget vote coming up. Would you mind sending a sub into the Persian Gulf?" "No worries, Rick, and we're super-pumped about your big war game next spring." Or something like that.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
I'm beginning to suspect that something similar is happening between Barack Obama and John Boehner. Think about who lost in last week's budget deal.
During the cold war, conspiracy theorists would sometimes suggest that the American and Soviet militaries were secretly in cahoots. Each needed its civilian overlords to keep the money flowing, and to make that happen, each needed the other to appear menacing. "Hey Vasily, we've got a difficult budget vote coming up. Would you mind sending a sub into the Persian Gulf?" "No worries, Rick, and we're super-pumped about your big war game next spring." Or something like that.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Should We Hit Gaddafi Next?
I'm beginning to suspect that something similar is happening between Barack Obama and John Boehner. Think about who lost in last week's budget deal.
- 4/11/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
The right won that state's budget fight, reigning in unions' collective bargaining clout. Peter Beinart on how that victory ensures a Democratic victory in 2012.
We're still roughly a year away, but it's already possible to predict the central dynamic of the 2012 presidential race: The more conservatives win, the more Republicans will lose.
Related story on The Daily Beast: The New Gop Warmongers
The latest evidence is Wisconsin. For conservatives, who yearn to walk in the footsteps of Reagan and Thatcher, last week's vote was thrilling; the equivalent of the air traffic controllers and mine workers' fights of the 1980s. They're right to be thrilled. Even if public sector unionism limps on, in policy terms, the right has already won. The mainstream debate is no longer about whether public employees should keep their benefits. It is about whether governors should cut those benefits via negotiation or firing squad.
And that's only one aspect of the broader,...
We're still roughly a year away, but it's already possible to predict the central dynamic of the 2012 presidential race: The more conservatives win, the more Republicans will lose.
Related story on The Daily Beast: The New Gop Warmongers
The latest evidence is Wisconsin. For conservatives, who yearn to walk in the footsteps of Reagan and Thatcher, last week's vote was thrilling; the equivalent of the air traffic controllers and mine workers' fights of the 1980s. They're right to be thrilled. Even if public sector unionism limps on, in policy terms, the right has already won. The mainstream debate is no longer about whether public employees should keep their benefits. It is about whether governors should cut those benefits via negotiation or firing squad.
And that's only one aspect of the broader,...
- 3/14/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
Obama's decisive response to the protests across the Middle East-and the conservative backlash-have exposed the hypocrisy of the right's shallow rhetoric on liberty and human freedom. Peter Beinart on why the supposedly idealistic American right turns out to be pretty pessimistic.
The past few weeks have been clarifying. Ever since he took office, the press has been calling Barack Obama a ruthless realist who lacks the passion for democracy and liberty of his predecessor, George W. Bush. The fact that Bush's war on terror provided a pretext for all manner of tyrants to crack down on their political opponents or that the Bush administration itself tortured terror suspects rarely intruded on the narrative. Bush was an idealist because he invaded Iraq, despite the fact that democracy became the war's primary public rationale only after America failed to find weapons of mass destruction. And Bush was an idealist because he spoke...
The past few weeks have been clarifying. Ever since he took office, the press has been calling Barack Obama a ruthless realist who lacks the passion for democracy and liberty of his predecessor, George W. Bush. The fact that Bush's war on terror provided a pretext for all manner of tyrants to crack down on their political opponents or that the Bush administration itself tortured terror suspects rarely intruded on the narrative. Bush was an idealist because he invaded Iraq, despite the fact that democracy became the war's primary public rationale only after America failed to find weapons of mass destruction. And Bush was an idealist because he spoke...
- 2/22/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
Haley Barbour's refusal to denounce Confederate license plates is just the latest example of a Republican Party that is regressing on race-and damaging its electoral future.
"I don't go around denouncing people," said Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour this week. "That's not going to happen. I don't even denounce the news media." Cute line. It implied that not only does Barbour see nothing objectionable in the effort to issue a Mississippi license plate for former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest, but he considers the real villains those journalists with the audacity to bring the issue up.
They still don't get it. By "it," I mean the new politics of race. And by "they," I mean leading members of the Republican Party.
Is Barbour a racist? Probably not in the sense that he harbors a consuming hatred of African Americans. But he is a guy with a nostalgic view of pre-civil rights Mississippi,...
"I don't go around denouncing people," said Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour this week. "That's not going to happen. I don't even denounce the news media." Cute line. It implied that not only does Barbour see nothing objectionable in the effort to issue a Mississippi license plate for former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard Nathan Bedford Forrest, but he considers the real villains those journalists with the audacity to bring the issue up.
They still don't get it. By "it," I mean the new politics of race. And by "they," I mean leading members of the Republican Party.
Is Barbour a racist? Probably not in the sense that he harbors a consuming hatred of African Americans. But he is a guy with a nostalgic view of pre-civil rights Mississippi,...
- 2/18/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
The uprising in Egypt was swift, relatively bloodless-and lacked a real leader. Former Hillary Clinton adviser Anne-Marie Slaughter on how the new generation is anti-leadership.
Follow the leader. It's a game we play as children and an assumption we still make as adults: Effective action in any organization requires some to lead and others to follow.
Related story on The Daily Beast: America's Naivete About Egypt
That assumption motivated the various news stories this past week on who was really leading the protesters in Tahrir Square, captured in a New York Times headline on February 8: "A Quest for an Opposition Leader." The story listed Facebook activist Wael Ghonim, Nobel Prize winner Mohamed ElBaradei, Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie, Ghad party leader Ayman Nour, and another Nobel Prize winner, the chemist Ahmed Zewail.
But in reading the story, it is quickly clear that the "quest" comes from the Times and not the protesters,...
Follow the leader. It's a game we play as children and an assumption we still make as adults: Effective action in any organization requires some to lead and others to follow.
Related story on The Daily Beast: America's Naivete About Egypt
That assumption motivated the various news stories this past week on who was really leading the protesters in Tahrir Square, captured in a New York Times headline on February 8: "A Quest for an Opposition Leader." The story listed Facebook activist Wael Ghonim, Nobel Prize winner Mohamed ElBaradei, Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie, Ghad party leader Ayman Nour, and another Nobel Prize winner, the chemist Ahmed Zewail.
But in reading the story, it is quickly clear that the "quest" comes from the Times and not the protesters,...
- 2/15/2011
- by Anne-Marie Slaughter
- The Daily Beast
Forced to choose between national interests and national ideals, the Obama administration, and many of its fiercest domestic critics, chose ideals. That's a remarkable achievement, writes Peter Beinart. Plus, Mike Giglio on Egypt's Facebook freedom fighter.
Ever since the financial crisis hit, Americans have been feeling bad about ourselves. Our infrastructure is moldering; we owe everyone money; barely anyone thinks we're the future anymore. All that may be true. But now and then an episode comes along that reveals what an unusual, and impressive, great power the United States still is. That's what the Egyptian revolution has done.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Al Qaeda's Deadly New Nest
Yes, of course, the Egyptians made their own revolution; America played a bit role. And yes, we guiltlessly buttressed Mubarak's tyranny for decades. But in the last three weeks, America has nonetheless vindicated George W. Bush's 2004 pledge to the oppressed...
Ever since the financial crisis hit, Americans have been feeling bad about ourselves. Our infrastructure is moldering; we owe everyone money; barely anyone thinks we're the future anymore. All that may be true. But now and then an episode comes along that reveals what an unusual, and impressive, great power the United States still is. That's what the Egyptian revolution has done.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Al Qaeda's Deadly New Nest
Yes, of course, the Egyptians made their own revolution; America played a bit role. And yes, we guiltlessly buttressed Mubarak's tyranny for decades. But in the last three weeks, America has nonetheless vindicated George W. Bush's 2004 pledge to the oppressed...
- 2/14/2011
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
Wael Ghonim worked a day job at Google, but at night he was organizing a revolution. In this week's Newsweek, Mike Giglio on how the man once known only as El Shaheeed sparked an uprising.
The telephone call from Cairo came late on Thursday, Jan. 27. "I think they're following me," the caller told the friend on the other end. "I'm going to destroy this phone."
Related story on The Daily Beast: Facebook Chat Gets Hijacked
And then the line went dead.
Soon after, so did cellphones across Egypt, and then the Internet, as authorities cut communication in a last-ditch effort to halt the protests gripping the country.
The only trace the caller left was in cyberspace, where he had delivered a haunting message via Twitter: "Pray for #Egypt."
Three days later in Washington, D.C., Nadine Wahab, an Egyptian émigré and media-relations professional, sat staring at her computer, hoping rumors...
The telephone call from Cairo came late on Thursday, Jan. 27. "I think they're following me," the caller told the friend on the other end. "I'm going to destroy this phone."
Related story on The Daily Beast: Facebook Chat Gets Hijacked
And then the line went dead.
Soon after, so did cellphones across Egypt, and then the Internet, as authorities cut communication in a last-ditch effort to halt the protests gripping the country.
The only trace the caller left was in cyberspace, where he had delivered a haunting message via Twitter: "Pray for #Egypt."
Three days later in Washington, D.C., Nadine Wahab, an Egyptian émigré and media-relations professional, sat staring at her computer, hoping rumors...
- 2/14/2011
- by Mike Giglio
- The Daily Beast
Hosni Mubarak and his family were convinced everything they did was for the good of Egypt and never understood that it was time for them to leave, writes Christopher Dickey in this week's Newsweek.
The night before he finally stepped down as Egypt's president, the protesters in Tahrir Square heard Hosni Mubarak deliver his final address as their head of state. "A speech from a father to his sons and daughters," he called it, and like many of his orations in the past, it was filled with lies, although he may have believed some of these himself. He would stay as president until September, he promised, because the country needed him for a transition to democracy. This, after three decades of autocracy. The hundreds of thousands gathered in the square wanted to hear him say only one word: "Goodbye." Amid their screams of fury, one woman could be heard shouting into a phone,...
The night before he finally stepped down as Egypt's president, the protesters in Tahrir Square heard Hosni Mubarak deliver his final address as their head of state. "A speech from a father to his sons and daughters," he called it, and like many of his orations in the past, it was filled with lies, although he may have believed some of these himself. He would stay as president until September, he promised, because the country needed him for a transition to democracy. This, after three decades of autocracy. The hundreds of thousands gathered in the square wanted to hear him say only one word: "Goodbye." Amid their screams of fury, one woman could be heard shouting into a phone,...
- 2/14/2011
- by Christopher Dickey
- The Daily Beast
Obama reached for the center, as Congress' "prom night" seating chart led to a civil, if subdued, reception. Will it help the Dems? Did Paul Ryan break through? Tunku Varadarajan, Peter Beinart, Eleanor Clift, Meghan McCain, and other Daily Beast contributors weigh in. Plus, watch video of the speech and read full transcript.
A Triumphantly Unmemorable AddressBy Tunku Varadarajan
Related story on The Daily Beast: Nice Rhetoric, but Need Real Results
Obama's speech shows he is a man newly aware of his limitations. Tunku Varadarajan on why that's a good thing.
More >>
Obama Tries Out Bill Clinton's MessageBy Peter Beinart
Facing a Republican majority, the president had to drop his campaign-era themes for this State of the Union and pick up Clinton's-talking about "winning the future" to underscore his energy and youth. And it worked.
More >>
A Grownup Speech to Please Folks at Home, Not PunditsBy Howard Kurtz
President Obama...
A Triumphantly Unmemorable AddressBy Tunku Varadarajan
Related story on The Daily Beast: Nice Rhetoric, but Need Real Results
Obama's speech shows he is a man newly aware of his limitations. Tunku Varadarajan on why that's a good thing.
More >>
Obama Tries Out Bill Clinton's MessageBy Peter Beinart
Facing a Republican majority, the president had to drop his campaign-era themes for this State of the Union and pick up Clinton's-talking about "winning the future" to underscore his energy and youth. And it worked.
More >>
A Grownup Speech to Please Folks at Home, Not PunditsBy Howard Kurtz
President Obama...
- 1/26/2011
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
Cut off from the world by his iPhone earbuds and hoodie, neighbors and classmates say alleged murderer Jared Lee Loughner was a deeply disturbed young man who'd been wandering the neighborhood with an especially strange look in his eyes in recent days. But is he a calculating killer on a political mission-or a desperate young man battling severe mental illness? Eve Conant, Claire Martin and Masada Siegel report.• Jared Lee Loughner appeared in court on Monday. He did not enter a plea but confirmed that he understood the charges against him. He had a shaved head and a cut on his right temple. He was mostly silent, but appeared to smirk in front of the judge. • Loughner refuses to cooperate with officials and hasn't spoken since his arrest other than his courtroom appearance. • He'll be represented by Judy Clarke, the lawyer who defended Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and worked on Timothy McVeigh's legal team.
- 1/10/2011
- by Eve Conant & Claire Martin
- The Daily Beast
Like Gabrielle Giffords, Harry Mitchell and Ann Kirkpatrick were under siege during the health-care debate and appeared on Sarah Palin's "crosshairs" map. They tell Shushannah Walshe about death threats-and the need to cancel town-hall events.• Sarah Palin responded to critics today in an email to Glenn Beck, saying, "I hate violence. I hate war. Our children will not have peace if politicos just capitalize on this to succeed in portraying anyone as inciting terror and violence."
For Arizona Congressman Harry Mitchell, the threats were verbal, conveyed in messages left at his office. "I cannot tell you how much I wish a panty bomber would come in and just fucking blow your place up," one hissed. Another promised to "disembowel him with a rusty pitchfork."
Related story on The Daily Beast: Sarah Palin: Her Year
For his colleague in the Arizona delegation, Ann Kirkpatrick, besides emails calling her a "whore,...
For Arizona Congressman Harry Mitchell, the threats were verbal, conveyed in messages left at his office. "I cannot tell you how much I wish a panty bomber would come in and just fucking blow your place up," one hissed. Another promised to "disembowel him with a rusty pitchfork."
Related story on The Daily Beast: Sarah Palin: Her Year
For his colleague in the Arizona delegation, Ann Kirkpatrick, besides emails calling her a "whore,...
- 1/10/2011
- by Shushannah Walshe
- The Daily Beast
Tina Brown, Peter Beinart, John Avlon, Michelle Goldberg, and other Daily Beast writers and contributors pick their favorite books of 2010.
Tina Brown
Related story on The Daily Beast: This Week's Hot Reads
It takes a daring biographer to turn her sharp eye on her own life as Antonia Fraser does so movingly and beautifully in her memoir Must You Go? My Life with Harold Pinter. It's a compelling diary of a passionate love affair, marriage, and 40-year conversation of two soul mates in the milieu of London's chattering classes.
Harvard superstar professor Niall Ferguson wrote a superb book, High Financier, that I hope every Wall Street banker is receiving along with their fat bonus checks because Siegmund Warburg was a banker with style, integrity, and a serious intellect-rare qualities these days.
Daily Beast columnist Peter Beinart's The Icarus Syndrome is one of the most important books of the last...
Tina Brown
Related story on The Daily Beast: This Week's Hot Reads
It takes a daring biographer to turn her sharp eye on her own life as Antonia Fraser does so movingly and beautifully in her memoir Must You Go? My Life with Harold Pinter. It's a compelling diary of a passionate love affair, marriage, and 40-year conversation of two soul mates in the milieu of London's chattering classes.
Harvard superstar professor Niall Ferguson wrote a superb book, High Financier, that I hope every Wall Street banker is receiving along with their fat bonus checks because Siegmund Warburg was a banker with style, integrity, and a serious intellect-rare qualities these days.
Daily Beast columnist Peter Beinart's The Icarus Syndrome is one of the most important books of the last...
- 12/18/2010
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
The towering figure of U.S. foreign policy died yesterday at the age of 69. Jonathan Alter, Peter Beinart, and Sir Harold Evans remember the top diplomat's brilliant drive and contributions all over the world.
An American in FullBy Jonathan Alter
Related story on The Daily Beast: Egypt's Church Bombing: Was Al Qaeda Responsible?
Richard Holbrooke was a larger-than-life figure on the U.S. political landscape who shaped his times as much as any secretary of state. Jonathan Alter reflects on his impact on Bosnia, Afghanistan and Foggy Bottom.
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A Dominant Diplomatic ForceBy Peter Beinart
Richard Holbrooke pushed harder and cared more than other American foreign policy players. Peter Beinart on Holbrooke's special blend of superpower swagger and moral passion.
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Richard Holbrooke's Brilliant DriveBy Harold Evans
The gifted diplomat dedicated his life to making the world a more just and peaceful place-typical of the dedicated diplomats now vilified by the anarchists at WikiLeaks,...
An American in FullBy Jonathan Alter
Related story on The Daily Beast: Egypt's Church Bombing: Was Al Qaeda Responsible?
Richard Holbrooke was a larger-than-life figure on the U.S. political landscape who shaped his times as much as any secretary of state. Jonathan Alter reflects on his impact on Bosnia, Afghanistan and Foggy Bottom.
More >>
A Dominant Diplomatic ForceBy Peter Beinart
Richard Holbrooke pushed harder and cared more than other American foreign policy players. Peter Beinart on Holbrooke's special blend of superpower swagger and moral passion.
More >>
Richard Holbrooke's Brilliant DriveBy Harold Evans
The gifted diplomat dedicated his life to making the world a more just and peaceful place-typical of the dedicated diplomats now vilified by the anarchists at WikiLeaks,...
- 12/14/2010
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
Richard Holbrooke was a larger-than-life figure on the U.S. political landscape who shaped his times. Jonathan Alter reflects on his impact on Bosnia, Afghanistan, and Foggy Bottom.
The tributes to Richard Holbrooke now pouring in are out of proportion to the various positions he held over the years as an assistant secretary and ambassador. They are more befitting a head of state than a "special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan," arguably the most grueling and thankless job in the whole government.
And yet Holbrooke belongs to a tiny group of diplomats-men like George Kennan and Chip Bohlen-who shaped their times as much as any secretary of state.
With the WikiLeaks revelations casting a harsh light on the work of diplomats, Holbrooke's career is a useful reminder that we depend on indefatigable men and women working killer hours with killer travel to keep us all from getting killed by war or terrorism.
The tributes to Richard Holbrooke now pouring in are out of proportion to the various positions he held over the years as an assistant secretary and ambassador. They are more befitting a head of state than a "special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan," arguably the most grueling and thankless job in the whole government.
And yet Holbrooke belongs to a tiny group of diplomats-men like George Kennan and Chip Bohlen-who shaped their times as much as any secretary of state.
With the WikiLeaks revelations casting a harsh light on the work of diplomats, Holbrooke's career is a useful reminder that we depend on indefatigable men and women working killer hours with killer travel to keep us all from getting killed by war or terrorism.
- 12/14/2010
- by Jonathan Alter
- The Daily Beast
Richard Holbrooke pushed harder and cared more than other American foreign-policy players. Peter Beinart on Holbrooke's special blend of superpower swagger and moral passion.
There will probably never be another American diplomat like Richard Holbrooke. The reason is partly personal. Most diplomats are careful, reserved, discreet... diplomatic. Holbrooke was the opposite. He didn't merely court reporters; he stalked them. And when they didn't write enough about him, he wrote about himself. He did not do subtle. When he bore down on people, he had about as much respect for personal space as Lyndon Johnson in a men's room. As Democratic doyenne Pamela Harriman once put it, "he's not entirely housebroken."
Related story on The Daily Beast: An American in Full
In all these ways, Holbrooke was part of the sociology of 20th-century American Jewry. He entered the Foreign Service in the 1960s, when it was still something of a Wasp club.
There will probably never be another American diplomat like Richard Holbrooke. The reason is partly personal. Most diplomats are careful, reserved, discreet... diplomatic. Holbrooke was the opposite. He didn't merely court reporters; he stalked them. And when they didn't write enough about him, he wrote about himself. He did not do subtle. When he bore down on people, he had about as much respect for personal space as Lyndon Johnson in a men's room. As Democratic doyenne Pamela Harriman once put it, "he's not entirely housebroken."
Related story on The Daily Beast: An American in Full
In all these ways, Holbrooke was part of the sociology of 20th-century American Jewry. He entered the Foreign Service in the 1960s, when it was still something of a Wasp club.
- 12/14/2010
- by Peter Beinart
- The Daily Beast
The whistleblower's latest document dump exposes Saudi Arabia's plot against Iran, a corrupt Afghan's $52 million payday, Putin and Berlusconi's "bromance," and more. See nine of the most startling details.
1. Yemen Takes the Fall for U.S. Drones
Related story on The Daily Beast: An American in Full
Leaked documents reveal that Yemen has been covering up for the U.S in the fight against al Qaeda by saying publicly that attacks initiated by the State Department were directed by Yemen. "We'll continue saying the bombs are ours, not yours," Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh told General David Petraeus in January 2010. The coverup, made necessary by severe distrust of the U.S. in the Middle East, prompted Yemen's prime minister to joke about how the president had "lied" to his parliament about the strikes.
2. China Hacked Google-and the Dalai Lama
The Chinese government was behind the much-publicized cyberattack on Google's computer network this year,...
1. Yemen Takes the Fall for U.S. Drones
Related story on The Daily Beast: An American in Full
Leaked documents reveal that Yemen has been covering up for the U.S in the fight against al Qaeda by saying publicly that attacks initiated by the State Department were directed by Yemen. "We'll continue saying the bombs are ours, not yours," Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh told General David Petraeus in January 2010. The coverup, made necessary by severe distrust of the U.S. in the Middle East, prompted Yemen's prime minister to joke about how the president had "lied" to his parliament about the strikes.
2. China Hacked Google-and the Dalai Lama
The Chinese government was behind the much-publicized cyberattack on Google's computer network this year,...
- 11/29/2010
- by The Daily Beast
- The Daily Beast
From Kate Middleton to Ireland's economy, your all-ages conversational guide to impressing your friends and loved ones.
There are two things you need to get through Thanksgiving. Both require a good sense of timing: a well-made drink and a well-delivered insight. The Daily Beast can't help you with the former but when it comes to the latter, we've got your back. Here's some diversionary banter to keep Aunt Gloria at bay when she asks, yet again, why you're still living at home. Try one of these lines out on Cousin Tim to get him to stop yammering about the wonders of his new girlfriend Katie. You don't need to know much to fake your way through Thanksgiving banter-just more than that wisecracking uncle sitting next to you.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Fashion Flash: Paint The Town Red
1. Politics: President Obama is trying to emerge from his midterm doldrums.
There are two things you need to get through Thanksgiving. Both require a good sense of timing: a well-made drink and a well-delivered insight. The Daily Beast can't help you with the former but when it comes to the latter, we've got your back. Here's some diversionary banter to keep Aunt Gloria at bay when she asks, yet again, why you're still living at home. Try one of these lines out on Cousin Tim to get him to stop yammering about the wonders of his new girlfriend Katie. You don't need to know much to fake your way through Thanksgiving banter-just more than that wisecracking uncle sitting next to you.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Fashion Flash: Paint The Town Red
1. Politics: President Obama is trying to emerge from his midterm doldrums.
- 11/24/2010
- by Samuel P. Jacobs
- The Daily Beast
You can’t buy the kind of publicity Playgirl magazine has received for getting Levi Johnston to pose naked.
Well, actually, I guess you can. What did the magazine pay the ex-future-second-son-in-law anyway? Given all the ink and pixels that have been spilled over this, it was pretty good deal for Playgirl, especially since the word now is that he didn’t even do the whole lumberjack.
Not surprisingly, the magazine is said to be eagerly looking for other famous folks willing to disrobe.
We have some suggestions.
But let’s face it: Jake Gyllenhaal and Chris Evans are never going to pose naked for Playgirl. The same goes for virtually every other person on our annual Hot 100 list. These folks are at the very peak of their careers, and they need neither the money nor the, uh, exposure.
That said, there are plenty of other familiar faces (and bodies...
Well, actually, I guess you can. What did the magazine pay the ex-future-second-son-in-law anyway? Given all the ink and pixels that have been spilled over this, it was pretty good deal for Playgirl, especially since the word now is that he didn’t even do the whole lumberjack.
Not surprisingly, the magazine is said to be eagerly looking for other famous folks willing to disrobe.
We have some suggestions.
But let’s face it: Jake Gyllenhaal and Chris Evans are never going to pose naked for Playgirl. The same goes for virtually every other person on our annual Hot 100 list. These folks are at the very peak of their careers, and they need neither the money nor the, uh, exposure.
That said, there are plenty of other familiar faces (and bodies...
- 11/25/2009
- by Brent Hartinger
- The Backlot
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