Here’s what Johnathan Swan said to US media (“Morning Joe” on MSNBC) when back stateside after the interview.
1:50-3:58
Now Johnathan Swan jokes (when Joe says people will put up posters in Islamabad of Johnathan, and “by the way if you or your family is going to Islamabad this weekend, and you see posters of Johnathan up, and you can’t read exactly what’s underneath that thing”, like people have nothing better to do then fixate on this two bit “journalist” and make posters of him)
at 2:38; “Its probably Anti-Semitic. They hated me there”
He can’t admit his hit job of an interview went as can be expected with the way he did his interview. Had to go
play the race card.
Next time someone wants to do an interview with a Pakistani official, IMHO, the government should vet them more throughly; asking if they think they will get a fair interview or will go home to “
play the race card”?
Get over yourself Johnathan.
P.S. when Morning Joe says “you can’t
read exactly what’s underneath
that thing”, he is also “otherizing” Pakistan in a subtle way. This is the game of language the media uses to slowly manipulate the American/Western public into thinking of other countries as less than. It maybe a subconscious slip of the tongue what it was something I thought was telling.
Ultimately, I think the government knew exactly who this Axios “Journalist” (after how he interviewed Trump last year) was, a sound bite evolution of the 30 year media circus we’ve had in the US. Even the Op-Ed in the Washington Post was timed to get the case across. The main interviewee in the Morning Joe Video laid out Pakistani cooperation too. So the Government knows it can’t have it all its way and prepared for what was bound to come with the PTV full version of the interview once enough attention was brought by the “Absolutely Not” statement. Well played Imran Khan and team.