Iranian-American Muslim woman schools US TV hosts on nuclear weapons, being American

Iranian-American blogger and fashion designer Hoda Katebi has become a sensation after brilliantly putting down two rude American TV hosts, who kept asking her politically-motivated questions during a program that was about her new book on fashion.

The 23-year-old was invited onto Chicago’s WGN News morning show to promote her new book Tehran Streetstyle, but after a brief discussion of Hoda's childhood in Oklahoma, and her experiences wearing the hijab, or headscarf, the two hosts, Larry Potash and Robin Baumgarten, started bombarding her with questions that were unrelated.

“Let’s talk about nuclear weapons. Some of our viewers may say we cannot trust Iran. What are your thoughts?” asked Potash.

While the question first caught Hoda off guard, the up and coming blogger and designer who has studied international relations and Middle Eastern politics at the University of Chicago, came back with a brilliant response, teaching the host a thing or two about America's history.

“I don’t think we can trust this country,” Katebi replied by speaking about America's policies in the Middle East. “I’m a pacifist, I don’t believe in violence, but also, when we look at the legacy of imperialism and colonization in the Middle East, we see the legacy of this country and all of the violence that it has not only created but also created the capacity for. A lot of these weapons in the Middle East are completely brought in by the United States.”

At this point, Baumgarten entered the discussion trying to save her co-host, but she was also in for a treat from Hoda.

“A lot of Americans might take offense to that. You’re an American. You don’t sound like an American,” Baumgarten told her.

Unfazed by the bias, Hoda came back with an even stronger response.

"That’s cause I’ve read,” she told the host. “It’s really important that we look beyond these really simple narratives that we’re told, whether it’s about Muslim women, whether it’s about the legacy of this country,"

The program ended abruptly after the hosts briefly questioned Hoda about her upcoming fashion show.

The Aftermath

After the dramatic exchange, Hoda took to her personal website to discuss Postash's question and the other possible ways that she could handle it.

“So hindsight is 20/20, and I honestly should have just stopped him right there and questioned why he thought it was okay to make this ridiculous comment and pose it as a question. (I think I was too excited to answer the question than question his premises),” she explained.

She then discussed Baumgarten's point about "sounding American," wondering what the host meant by that statement.

“Are they saying that Americans must not question their government, must see the world in black and white, and chose simplicity over nuanced understandings? In that case, you all are doing it right,” she added, accusing the hosts of pushing stereotypes about Muslims.

On Wednesday, Hoda wrote on twitter that the female host had apologized to her.

She elaborated more on another TV show on Thursday, saying she held nothing against WGN and was rather concerned with the treatment that Muslims were getting in the US.

"This is really about the normalization of stereotypes that feed into systematic anti-Muslim racism," she said, noting that the network had changed their mind about an invitation for her to appear next to the two hosts to discuss the matter on air. 

Many twitter users expressed support for Hoda after the incident.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir