I have written and published deeply researched, original political analysis and media criticism for over a decade and a half.
Since 2011, I have been a member of the Gulf/2000 Project, an exclusive academic forum and online resource service, focused on the Persian Gulf region and Middle East. Previously housed at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University, the forum is now operated by The Sage Institute for Foreign Affairs.
My political journalism, analysis and commentary has been featured in numerous publications — and cited in many articles and books.
Select Media Appearances
The Insurgents: Iran Responds ft. Nima Shirazi (April 16, 2024)
There’s been a lot of speculation about how Iran was going to respond to Israel bombing their consulate on April 1st. We got our answer this weekend and the response took the form of a very deliberate barrage of missiles and drones, telegraphed days in advance, on military targets in Israel that, according to who you ask, was either the worst thing to ever happen or a pathetic failure that Israel (along with its usual allies) repelled easily.
Nima Shirazi has not only been talking and writing about Iran, Palestine and Israel for a long time, but also co-hosts the Citations Needed podcast, which does a fantastic job analyzing the various tactics the media uses to manufacture certain narratives, so he was really the perfect guest to talk about all this with. This would normally be a subscriber-only episode, but it’s pertinent and really informative so we’ve gone ahead and unlocked it.
The Real News Podcast: Demystifying Iran and the ‘Resistance Axis’ (March 8, 2024)
Israel’s genocide in Gaza has unleashed a low-grade regional war that is gradually escalating towards what could become an all-out conflict. The central players in this simmering showdown are the members of the informal Resistance Axis, which include Hezbollah in Lebanon, a number of armed Palestinian groups including Hamas, the Syrian and Iranian governments, the Houthis or Ansarallah in Yemen, and Iraq’s armed Popular Mobilization Forces. Numerous strikes against Israeli and US military and commercial targets have already been carried out by these groups across the region, from US military bases in Iraq to Israel-linked commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
As the possibility of a regional conflagration looms, corporate media outlets are turning their attention to the Resistance Axis—and often regurgitating stale, Orientalist narratives that have been deployed for decades to justify US and Israeli aggression in the region. Central to this media narrative is the presentation of Iran as a kind of puppet master overseeing and coordinating the activities of the Resistance Axis. What this narrative fails to take into account is that it is not Iran that created the Resistance Axis, but decades of US and Israeli aggression. Journalists Rania Khalek and Nima Shirazi join The Real News for a conversation on the media narratives spun around the Resistance Axis and Iran, and how such portrayals have primed the US public to support forever wars in West Asia for decades.
Pod Casty For Me: Absolute Power (1997) with Nima Shirazi (September 8, 2023)
Have a seat in your favorite concealed armchair, because it's time for our episode on Eastwood's 1997 not-quite-Clinton crime family thriller ABSOLUTE POWER! We're joined by Nima Shirazi, co-host of the Citations Needed podcast, to break down the film's parallels to the not-yet-broken Lewinsky scandal, the William Goldman of it all, and whether this film is just Clint explaining that his absent parenting style is good, actually. Check it out!
Topics include: Judy Davis's Hillary haircut, Clint's friend Leon Panetta, near-death experiences, live sports alibis, accidentally having chemistry with your real-life daughter, the film's surprising connection to JACKASS FOREVER, we devise a perfect plan to replace the US presidency with a completely incorruptible institution (jk), and more!
West Wing Thing: Institutional Memory w/ Special Guests Nima Shirazi & Adam Johnson from Citations Needed (August 23, 2022)
With only one episode left to go, the boys are joined by the hosts of the very great Citations Needed to enjoy the cast's bout with senior-itis. Will CJ stay on at the White House or go on to make a fortune helping a billionaire whitewash his reputation? And will he or won't he? Time is running out for Bartlett to pardon Toby.
Delete Your Account: The People's Elbow (April 5, 2020)
On this herculean episode of Delete Your Account After Hours, friends of the show Nima Shirazi, Brett Payne and Bryan Quimby tag-team to give Kumars a primer on pro wrestling. Nima is a NYC-based political analyst who cohosts the podcast Citations Needed, Brett and Bryan are the hosts of Street Fight Radio, and together they share their wrestling fandom, breaking down their favorite personalities, labor issues in the industry, and the intersections between wrestling and conservative politics, including Trump’s history with the WWE.
Reply Guys: America's Next Top War Criminal with Nima Shirazi (January 8, 2020)
Hosts Kate Willet and Julia Claire talk with Nima Shirazi, co-host of the Citations Needed podcast, about the situation in Iran.
Talking Simpsons: The Springfield Files With Nima Shirazi (September 19, 2018)
Citations Needed is one of the best politics podcasts out there and the show's co-host, Nima Shirazi, is lending us his Simpsons expertise to dive into this crossover classic episode! Homer sees an alien that may also be Santa Claus, and everyone from Leonard Nimoy to Scully and Mulder wants to see if the truth is out there in Springfield. Plus we explain a ton of specifically 1995 references and explore other conspiracies (as well as the musical Hair!). So listen to find out how a whale could be so heavy!
Al Jazeera: The Listening Post - Pro-war pundits on US airwaves (May 21, 2018)
In 2003, false intelligence and a news media willing to publicize it helped justify the invasion of Iraq. The politicians responsible for launching the invasion have largely escaped repercussions for their role in misleading governments and the public. Much less have US media outlets learned lessons from the way that military institutions were allowed to drive narratives that promoted the conflict.
Radio War Nerd: Iran Protests, Politics & the MeK Cult, with Nima Shirazi (January 20, 2018)
Nima Shirazi joins Radio War Nerd Episode 117 to make sense of recent Iran protests, Iranian politics, western media hacks & the weird, sick MeK cult that's become the darling of corrupt Washington DC interventionists.
This is a 25+ minute preview of the episode, which is available in full for subscribers.
BRIC TV: Straight Up - The Iran Nuclear Deal (September 17, 2015)
Journalists break down everything you need to know about the Iran Nuclear Deal over a few drinks. Straight Up, hosted by Jarrett Murphy of City Limits, tackles the hard topics with a few brews. In this episode, Ali Gharib of The Nation and Nima Shirazi of Muftah/Wide Asleep In America talk to host, Jarrett Murphy (City Limits) on the history and context of the tensions between the US and Iran. What exactly is the Nuke deal and what will happen if Congress passes the plan? What is it like to be Iranian American journalists covering this beat and most finally, is the threat of war a real possibility?
FAIR: CounterSpin (September 4, 2015)
Going into Labor Day weekend, the word is that Barack Obama has enough votes to pass the deal on Iran’s nuclear program. The debate over the pact has featured a wealth of misinformation about Iran and the pact itself, no reason to imagine that that will suddenly change. What should we look for going forward? We’ll speak with Nima Shirazi, writer at the blog Wide Asleep in America, editor at the online magazine, Muftah.
Al Jazeera: The Listening Post - Game of drones (February 16, 2013)
What are the implications of US news outlets concealing the truth about drones in the interest of national security? Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), better known as drones, have crept into modern warfare as quietly as the airborne killing machines themselves and, on the whole, media reporting on them has been just as subdued.
