• About
  • Support AJW
  • Jewish Community Directory
  • Subscription Information
  • Contact Us
American Jewish World
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • All
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • Australia & New Zealand
    • Europe
    • Israel/Mideast
    • Latin America
    • Minnesota
    • US & Canada
    On trumpet, Frank London

    On trumpet, Frank London

    Editorial: In the ghetto

    Editorial: In the ghetto

    Natalie Fine Shapiro’s artworks bring the colors of spring

    Natalie Fine Shapiro’s artworks bring the colors of spring

  • Arts
    • All
    • Blue Box
    • Books & Literature
    • Music
    • Televison & Film
    • Theater & Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

    A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

    On trumpet, Frank London

    On trumpet, Frank London

    Surviving the hell of death camps

    Surviving the hell of death camps

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health & Wellness
    • Home & Garden
    • Travel & Culture
    Jewish Cubans survive the island’s economic collapse

    Jewish Cubans survive the island’s economic collapse

    My time with the Greek Jewish community

    My time with the Greek Jewish community

    Tracing family roots in Germany

    Tracing family roots in Germany

  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • AJW Digital Archives
  • News
    • All
    • Africa
    • Asia
    • Australia & New Zealand
    • Europe
    • Israel/Mideast
    • Latin America
    • Minnesota
    • US & Canada
    On trumpet, Frank London

    On trumpet, Frank London

    Editorial: In the ghetto

    Editorial: In the ghetto

    Natalie Fine Shapiro’s artworks bring the colors of spring

    Natalie Fine Shapiro’s artworks bring the colors of spring

  • Arts
    • All
    • Blue Box
    • Books & Literature
    • Music
    • Televison & Film
    • Theater & Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

    A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

    On trumpet, Frank London

    On trumpet, Frank London

    Surviving the hell of death camps

    Surviving the hell of death camps

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health & Wellness
    • Home & Garden
    • Travel & Culture
    Jewish Cubans survive the island’s economic collapse

    Jewish Cubans survive the island’s economic collapse

    My time with the Greek Jewish community

    My time with the Greek Jewish community

    Tracing family roots in Germany

    Tracing family roots in Germany

  • Editorial
  • Opinion
  • AJW Digital Archives
No Result
View All Result
Morning News
No Result
View All Result
Home Arts

Jon Stewart on filming in — and talking about — the Middle East

American Jewish World by American Jewish World
May 23, 2020
in Arts
0
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

READ ALSO

A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

On trumpet, Frank London

Stewart’s directorial film debut, Rosewater, is based on the memoir of an Iranian journalist who was arrested after appearing on The Daily Show

By TALIA LAVIN
NEW YORK (JTA) — Jon Stewart’s directorial film debut, Rosewater, is set to premiere at film festivals in the United States and Canada this September. So the Hollywood Reporter took the opportunity to grab some golden quotes (and glam shots) of the iconic Daily Show comedian about filming in the Middle East — and his own take on the region’s politics.
Rosewater tells a story that Stewart was drawn to because of his own real-life involvement: The film is adapted from the memoir of Maziar Bahari, a journalist taken captive by the Iranian government just days after appearing on a Daily Show segment. Clips of the segment were used in Bahari’s interrogation as “proof” that Bahari was acting as a spy (although perhaps this just confirms that Revolutionary Guard members in Iran are not widely known for their senses of humor).
Stewart filmed the movie in Amman, Jordan, which proved challenging due to the lack of an established film industry in the area.
Israel, despite its well-established film infrastructure, was not considered as a location, Stewart told the Hollywood Reporter: “You’ve already got a Jewish guy directing it. They’re already putting out seven-minute pieces, the Iranian press, that I’m a CIA and a Mossad agent. So the last thing we want to do is add fuel to that.”
Even so, the Iranian government has used Stewart’s Jewishness to discredit the upcoming film, postulating in state media that Rosewater was sponsored by Stewart’s Jewish “masters.”
“I guess I’m still waiting for the money,” Stewart said to suggestions that a “Zionist lobby” helped him fund the film.

Comedian and host Jon Stewart speaks onstage at Spike TV’s Don Rickles: One Night Only on May 6 in New York City. (Photo: Theo Wargo / Getty Images for Spike TV)
Comedian and host Jon Stewart speaks onstage at Spike TV’s Don Rickles: One Night Only on May 6 in New York City. (Photo: Theo Wargo / Getty Images for Spike TV)

Back at home in his regular role as one of TV’s most recognizable faces, and a pioneer of the faux-news genre, Stewart has received criticism from the opposite end of the Middle East spectrum.
At first, Stewart drew ire from vocal Zionists when he expressed sympathy for the Palestinians in Gaza and drew attention to the asymmetrical nature of the conflict.
Then he ran a popular segment attesting to the difficulty of having rational, dispassionate conversations about the Israel-Gaza conflict, due to the polarizing nature of the conflict (but it’s funnier than we’ve made it sound).
On accusations of being a “self-hating Jew,” Stewart made a strong distinction between anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism — a heated topic of discussion in recent weeks, as anti-Semitic incidents have vastly increased in Europe.
“Look, there’s a lot of reasons why I hate myself — being Jewish isn’t one of them,” Stewart told the reporter. “So when someone starts throwing that around, or throwing around you’re pro-terrorist, it’s more just disappointing than anything else. I’ve made a living for 16 years criticizing certain policies that I think are not good for America. That doesn’t make me anti-American. And if I do the same with Israel, that doesn’t make me anti-Israel.
“You cannot outsmart dogma, no matter what you do. If there is something constructive in what they’re saying, hopefully I’m still open enough… to take it in and let it further inform my position. But I’m pretty impermeable to yelling. As soon as they go to, ‘Your real name is Leibowitz!’ that’s when I change the channel.”

Related Posts

A wedding in Hebron gets complicated
Books & Literature

A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

May 21, 2025
On trumpet, Frank London
Music

On trumpet, Frank London

May 19, 2025
Surviving the hell of death camps
Books & Literature

Surviving the hell of death camps

April 20, 2025
Kim Kivens treads the boards in CDT’s production of ‘Grease’
Theater & Performing Arts

Kim Kivens treads the boards in CDT’s production of ‘Grease’

April 20, 2025
Entering the age of invisibility
Books & Literature

Entering the age of invisibility

January 27, 2025
Jewish cast members talk about the relevance of ‘Parade’
Theater & Performing Arts

Jewish cast members talk about the relevance of ‘Parade’

January 22, 2025
Next Post

Editorial: Who by fire

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

RECENT ARTICLES

A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

A wedding in Hebron gets complicated

May 21, 2025
Editorial: Repression in the guise of fighting antisemitism

Editorial: Repression in the guise of fighting antisemitism

May 20, 2025
On trumpet, Frank London

On trumpet, Frank London

May 19, 2025
Editorial: In the ghetto

Editorial: In the ghetto

April 21, 2025
Surviving the hell of death camps

Surviving the hell of death camps

April 20, 2025

About

Since 1912 the AJW has served as an important news resource for the Jewish community. The Jewish World unites the main Jewish communities in St. Paul and Minneapolis, as well as those in Duluth, Rochester and smaller cities, and bridges the divides between the various Jewish religious streams.

Quick Links

  • About the AJW
  • Advertising Information
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Subscription Information
  • Jewish Community Directory

Contact Us

The American Jewish World
3249 Hennepin Ave., Suite 245
Minneapolis, MN 55408

Tel: 612.824.0030 / Fax: 612.823.0753
editor@ajwnews.com

  • Buy JNews
  • Landing Page
  • Documentation
  • Support Forum

© 2025 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Food
  • Health & Wellness
  • Lifestyle
  • Opinion
  • About the AJW
  • Jewish Community Directory
  • Support AJW
  • Subscription Information
  • Contact Us

© 2025 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.