Comedian Hasan Minhaj, who was recently accused of "faking Islamophobia" in a New Yorker article, has responded to the controversy in a video. He shared his perspective on the piece, which accused him of fabricating details about his life in his stand-up sets. In his pointed clarification, Minhaj said that he believed the article portrayed him in a negative light, making him appear like a "psycho." In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, the comedian said, “There were omissions and factual errors in The New Yorker article that misrepresented my life story, so I wanted to give people the context and materials I provided The New Yorker with full transparency.” The New Yorker's September issue carried a piece questioning the veracity of the autobiographical stories in his stand-up comedy. It also suggested that the details he shared in his stand-up did not accurately represent his experiences as a Muslim American and an Asian American. The magazine stood by its reporting, and in a statement in response to Minhaj's video, said that the comedian himself confirmed that he selective embellishes information to prove a point. In his video, Minhaj said, "I am going to do the most Hasan Minhaj thing ever: I am going to do a deep dive on my own scandal, with graphics, because there is so much evidence I gave the New Yorker that they ignored that I want to show you." In the video, Minhaj gave details of stories from his stand-up routines that were scrutinised by the magazine. He said, "I know the news coming out of the Middle East right now feels devastating and hopeless and I've been asked by a lot of people to give my perspective on what is happening in the region. I've also been asked, 'Wait a second, aren't you a liar now?' For those of you who don't know, back in September, the New Yorker ran a piece on me called Hasan Minhaj's Emotional Truths, in which a reporter fact-checked my stand-up specials and found some fact inaccuracies that they wanted to ask me about. so I sat down with them to explain my writing process and why I make certain creative choices in my standup." "With everything that’s happening in the world, I’m aware even talking about this now feels so trivial. But being accused of ‘faking racism’ is not trivial. It’s very serious, and it demands an explanation," he added. He continues, "To everyone who read that article, I want to answer the biggest question that’s probably on your mind: Is Hasan Minhaj secretly a psycho? Underneath all that pomade, is Hasan Minhaj just a con artist who uses fake racism and Islamophobia to advance his career? Because after reading that article, I would also think that.” Minhaj said that he took a while to respond to the article's accusations because of the state of the world at the moment, and because he’s been “processing” the criticism that has come his way in the wake of the article. He said, “I just want to say to anyone who felt betrayed or hurt by my stand-up, I am sorry. I made artistic choices to express myself and drive home larger issues affecting me and my community, and I feel horrible that I let people down." “The reason I feel horrible is because I’m not a psycho. But this New Yorker article definitely made me look like one. It was so needlessly misleading, not just about my stand-up, but also about me as a person. The truth is, racism, FBI surveillance and the threats to my family happened. And I said this on the record," he added. Here’s our official statement. I stand by the story and encourage people to read it in full. pic.twitter.com/QqPzc9njT3 — Clare Malone (@ClareMalone) October 26, 2023 In his video, Minhaj provided audio recordings of the interview to prove that his statements had been misrepresented in the New Yorker article. Having made a name for himself on The Daily Show, Minhaj rose to greater heights with his autobiographical comedy special Homecoming King. He followed it up with his Netflix news series Patriot Act.
