I was one of the few people who first spoke about the new comedic guy who Egypt who satirizes the news. Read
This post dated March 2011, when no one knew who this guy was. I dubbed him the Jon Steward of Arabia then and loved his show with passion. But now I am starting to see some push back against this show of his. A number of Facebook groups have emerged chronicling his insults and attacks (
here).
Slowly, the former surgeon has been gaining fans and rocking the boat with his jokes and zingers. I loved him and thought he was the missing breeze the comedic world in Arabia has been missing. Naturally, his success has made a lot of people happy as he was their cash cow. A Little known TV network took a chance with him, and ended up making a killing in advertising revenues.
As his popularity skyrocketed and his fan base grew, Bassem Youssef started to creep into politics and developing idea of his own. He was prompted by his popularity, and he started biting more than he could chew. In a second he has turned himself into a leader of those lazy people who are too tired to do their own research on crucial issues. It's really the easiest thing in the world to shoot someone down, he is like that cynical colleague who shoots down every idea before it picks steam.
Another issue with him is his repeated attacks on news anchors and talking heads. The world according to Bassem Youssef is pretty simple. There are two kinds of people he makes fun of. the ones he calls Mubarak folks, and lunatic Muslims. He has bullied so many of them and has even stepped on their own freedom of speech. Some of those names have sued him for defamation.
I do not think Egypt needs that cynicism, they need someone to tell them calm down, go to work and everything will be OK. "You Got Screwed", "Your President Hates Your Country" are examples of the last thing people who live in a transitional phase. Egyptians are emotional people and when you come such statements on TV, some of your audience are not on the joke. So causing chaos, confusion and distrust are few of the things Bassem Youseef and his show promote.
Bassem Youseef talks on his show like he hates current day Egypt, but remember there would be no chance for this once promising surgeon to be able to say what he has been saying now. The Mubarak folks would have sent him away in some dark corner. He seems to forget that, at least he is broadcasting from downtown Egypt with a lot of freedom--and a large bank account.
He disguises his jokes are creative thinking and pass them as noble ideas. It seems that he would ally himself with any force to embarrassed the president of Egypt. Like the day he appeared on CNN talking about a video of the president speaking about Israelis. It did get him on CNN, and he did put his president to shame, I hope it feels good knowing he is damaging the Egyptian brand on the world's stage with his lame attempts at being a serious journalist.
I have no love in my heart for Islamic parties, but I know this, if they won an election, I have to give them the benefit of the doubt. They need to be given a chance. Like Bassem Youseef, those people are educated and love Egypt. He is no better than them, and he certainly should not be putting words on their mouth. He needs to understand that he has now more responsibility, enough with getting the rest of the world to laugh at the Egyptians Laughing with them is something that we all agree on.
He is a gifted comedian, like the 90 million Egyptians who are well known for their humor and funny take on things. He just used more graphics and props, and I give him that he does know how to take advantage of his face expressions. I think he needs to take a serious look at his next step, does he want to tell jokes or does he want to be a political analyst? You really cannot do both! You can either take the president to take, or you can tell jokes about him.
Other issues with this comedian is his lax use of sexual terms and suggestive languages to force the laughs. Dirty jokes are known to be easy to come up with, but he should not be telling them during prime time when many families are watching with their little ones. He belongs to a group of exclusive elite media who fault the conservatives for existing. I see a difference between freedom of speech and incitement parties like the one on every night with Bassem Youssef. There's a lot to make fun of, complicating the already heated political scene in Egypt hardly helps.
Some independent observers and media personalities have taken issues with the show. So the media has never been kind to Islamists, and some of them Islamists are pretty dumb no question. But they are not all the same, and they are not all on the same level. I think his sketches and shows should come with a warning like Tobacco, and alcoholics drinks. My question to him, is it worth to make a million dollar if the price was sending your country in further chaos?
باسم يوسف الوسادة الرئاسية فى برنامج البرنامج.
