Hooman Majd, an Iranian-American writer and the author of the best-selling book "The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran," will speak at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Thursday, Oct. 22, about the people, culture and paradoxes of Iran.
Majd's talk begins at 7:30 p.m. in the University Memorial Center's Glenn Miller Ballroom and is sponsored by the student-funded and managed Cultural Events Board. Doors for the public event will open at 6:45 p.m. Tickets, which are free, are required for the event and are available in the UMC at The Connection.
Majd is a regular commentator on National Public Radio, Public Broadcasting Service and other news media outlets where he offers his thoughts on current events in Iran, including the election this summer. He has worked as a translator and adviser for two Iranian presidents, Mohammad Khatami and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"With growing tensions between the United States and Iran, and prevailing misconceptions of the Muslim world, the Cultural Events Board is bringing a speaker whom many have dubbed 聭uniquely American and Iranian,' " said Vera Awachie, vice chair of the Cultural Events Board. "Hooman Majd realizes that most Iranians and Americans have more in common than each perceives."
In his book "The Ayatollah Begs to Differ," Majd presents portraits of Iranians from women cab drivers to reform-minded ayatollahs to show that Iran is a country that is "deeply religious yet highly cosmopolitan, authoritarian yet with democratic and reformist traditions."
He has written for The New York Times, GQ, The New Yorker, the Financial Times and is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post. He has appeared on "Real Time With Bill Maher," "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," PBS's "Charlie Rose Show" and CNN. He also has spoken at George Washington University, Creighton University and Manhattan College within the past year. He will speak at Penn State University on Oct. 15.
The son of an Iranian diplomat, Majd was born in Tehran, Iran, in 1957. He attended boarding school in England before coming to America, where he now resides, to attend college after the Islamic Revolution in 1979. He lives in New York and regularly travels back to Iran.
Majd had a long career in the music and film industries in the United States before turning his focus toward journalism. He worked at Island Records and Polygram Records as well as Palm Pictures, where he produced the 2000 movie "The Cup" and James Toback's movie "Black and White."
For more information about the event or tickets contact the Cultural Events Board at 970-402-3591 or vice.chair.ceb@gmail.com.