WGN anchor told a Muslim blogger that she didn't 'sound like an American.' Her response went viral. [View all]

She’s a hashtag; she’s a meme. Chicago fashion blogger Hoda Katebi’s response to a WGN-TV news anchor who told her that she doesn’t “sound like an American” when she criticizes U.S. policy in the Middle East has been reported by media in Russia, England and Dubai. More than 10 million people have seen online clips of the contentious interview.

The controversy started in late January, when Katebi, 23, and author of the 2016 book “Tehran Streetstyle,” was interviewed by WGN Morning News anchors Larry Potash and Robin Baumgarten for a segment on Iranian fashion.

When Katebi, who wears a hijab, or Muslim headscarf, pushed back against the idea that Western dress in 1970s Iran connoted more freedom for women, the interview got political. Potash asked her whether Iran can be trusted when it comes to nuclear weapons, and Katebi responded with a critique of U.S. “imperialism” in the Middle East, citing “all of the violence that (the U.S.) hasn’t only created, but created the capacity for.”

“A lot of Americans might take offense to that,” Baumgarten responded. “You’re an American. You don’t sound like an American when you say things.”

Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/ct-life-muslim-blogger-viral-02212018-story.html