Cenk Uygur
Encyclopedia
Cenk Kadir Uygur (ˈdʒɛŋk ˈjuːɡər; born March 21, 1970), is the main host and co-founder of the liberal Internet and talk radio
show, The Young Turks
(TYT). A naturalized U.S. citizen, Uygur was born in Turkey
and raised from age eight in the United States. He worked as an attorney in Washington D.C. and New York before beginning his career as a political commentator. Originally a moderate Republican
, his views shifted to the left and he is now a progressive
-liberal.
In addition to hosting TYT, Uygur appeared on MSNBC
as a political commentator in 2010, later hosting a weeknight commentary show on the channel for nearly six months—until the time slot was given to Al Sharpton
. Uygur then returned to full-time hosting of TYT, and secured a show on Current TV
that will air beginning in late 2011 before Countdown with Keith Olbermann
.
, Turkey
and emigrated with his family to the United States when he was eight years old. He grew up in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey
and graduated from East Brunswick High School
. He attended the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in management and was on the Student Activities Council representing the Turkish Students Association. He earned a B.S. in management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
, and a J.D. from Columbia Law School
. He worked as an associate attorney at the law firm
s of Drinker Biddle & Reath
in Washington, D.C.
and Hayes & Liebman in New York City
.
Uygur first appeared as a talk show host on a weekend radio show on WWRC
in Washington, D.C. and on WRKO
in Boston
. He later wrote for, produced, and appeared on the WAMI-TV
news show The Times in Miami, then started The Young Turks on Sirius Satellite Radio
.
Ronald Reagan
, a member of the Republican student group at the University of Pennsylvania, and the conservative Federalist Society
.
While in college, he wrote a column in the Daily Pennsylvanian criticizing affirmative action
recruiting at the university and suggesting that all students should be "judged on their merits rather than their physical characteristics." He supported the pro-life position on the abortion issue, criticized aspects of the feminist movement, and felt Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas
was treated unjustly during his Senate confirmation hearings. He also criticized organized religion as based on mythology and as a divisive force between peoples.
He has stated that he worked for a time for Republican
former New York Congressman
Joe DioGuardi
. and voted for George H. W. Bush
in the 1992 presidential election
and for Bob Dole
in 1996
.
Uygur supported the Gulf War
of 1990–1991, and supported the War in Afghanistan
from its beginning in 2001 until 2009—though he has strongly opposed the Iraq War.
on abortion
and supports LGBT rights, including same-sex marriage
. In 2009, he advocated the liberalization of drug laws
, arguing that the War on Drugs
has been a failure, as shown by the continuing violence in Mexico and the border region. He also opposes imprisoning non-violent drug offenders for marijuana possession. He previously supported capital punishment in the United States
, but now opposes it largely due to multiple exonerations of death row
inmates since the reinstatement of the death penalty
.
Uygur has expressed support for a return to Clinton-era
income tax
brackets and has criticized the 2010 Obama–GOP compromise
which provided for a temporary extension of the Bush tax cuts
. Uygur has stated that he favored welfare reform
as enacted under Bill Clinton. He has been critical of excessive regulation, but has argued that in recent decades, regulation of the financial sector has been inadequate. In particular, he faults the deregulatory
policies of Ronald Reagan
, Bill Clinton
, and George W. Bush
. He views the repeal (which Clinton signed into law} of the Glass–Steagall Act, as a major contributor to the late-2000s recession. However on many issues Uygur maintains that many of his Economic positions have not moved (He describes himself as a fiscal Conservative in many cases) instead the right wing has shifted by becoming more extreme even since the end of Bush's presidency, describing Rick Perry
(Current Texas Governor and 2012 presidential candidate) as "George Bush on Steroids".
On national security
and civil liberties issues, Uygur has strongly opposed the practices, begun under the Bush administration, of indefinite detention
, warrantless wiretapping and extraordinary rendition
, and believes that waterboarding
is an illegal torture technique. Though Uygur has been a strong critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
and the Israeli government, he has stated that he is an advocate for a two state solution in the West Bank
and has repeatedly criticized the Israeli government for its failure to materialize.
was the first time Uygur voted Democratic
, supporting Al Gore
. Uygur has supported Democratic congressional and presidential candidates ever since, though he frequently criticized the Democratic congressional leadership for insufficiently opposing the Bush administration on civil liberties and foreign policy issues. Uygur has criticized Blue Dog Democrats and other centrist and conservative Democrat
s, some of whom he has labeled as "corporatists". He has described former Wisconsin
Senator Russ Feingold
, a Democrat, as "probably the only guy in the whole entire Senate we can trust". When Feingold was defeated for reelection in 2010
by Republican Ron Johnson, Uygur said Feingold had been "the best Senator we had, and we no longer have him". He has also effusively praised former Florida Congressman
Alan Grayson
.
In part because of concerns over Bush's foreign policy and policies on civil liberties, Uygur said he would support an impeachment of Bush. Early in the 2008 Obama campaign
, Uygur questioned Obama's suitability for the presidency, claiming the Obama lacked political experience at the national level and had limited achievements in the U.S. Senate. Nevertheless, he moved to a position of strong support later in the campaign.
Since the fall of 2009, Uygur has taken an increasingly critical attitude towards the Obama administration, saying after two years in office, Obama is, "not a progressive .... He is a consummate politician." Uygur has criticized the 2010 health insurance reform law
as overly watered-down, owing to excessive concessions to business and conservatives in Congress
, noting the deal made between Obama and the drug companies. Uygur has similarly criticized the 2010 financial reform law.
Uygur feels the Obama administration has too readily conceded to conservative ideological arguments to the point of demonstrating an unwillingness to defend liberal positions. Despite this, Uygur has stated that he intends to vote for Obama's reelection in the 2012
, and has asked rhetorically, "What am I going to do, vote for a lunatic?"
Following the Democrats'
major losses in the 2010 midterm elections, Uygur became increasingly concerned Obama's policies and initiatives were shifting further to the right, and while he was pleased with the departures of Rahm Emanuel
and Larry Summers
, he was worried about the influence Emanuel's replacement Clinton veteran Bill Daley
would have on the President's decisions. He also criticized Obama's speech to the United States Chamber of Commerce, in which the President offered, in Uygur's view, unnecessary and preemptive tangible and ideological concessions.
with the goal of starting a moderate liberal political and entertainment show. It launched on the February 14, 2002. It later became a success online, and airs on the Sirius Satellite Radio
network. The Young Turks claims to be the first Internet video news show and states that it is now the largest online news show in the world. Collectively they have amassed over 500,000,000 views on YouTube. Video of the show is streamed daily on their website and is available as a podcast.
It was announced that The Young Turks will be coming to Current TV
in late 2011.
, CNN Headline News, E! Entertainment Television, Aljazeera, ABC News
, Voice of America
, NPR
and the Fox News Channel
. He was a regular guest on The Dylan Ratigan Show for a segment opposite various conservative commentators. On several occasions, Uygur filled in for the MSNBC shows of Ratigan
, Ed Schultz
, and Keith Olbermann
, both before and after becoming a regular paid contributor to MSNBC in October 2010.
Jon Stewart
showed clips of Uygur on Comedy Central's The Daily Show
in August and September 2010; in one instance Uygur spoke on internet neutrality, and in the other, he commented on pastor Terry Jones and his Koran burning controversy. On December 22, 2010 Uygur interviewed Wikileaks
founder Julian Assange
on MSNBC's The Dylan Ratigan Show. He appeared on George Galloway
's political radio show on February 11, 2011 as an American correspondent, explaining problems he perceives with American politics
for a British audience.
announced that Uygur had been officially hired as a contributor and substitute anchor for the network. On January 21, 2011, it was announced that Uygur would hosting the 6 p.m. Eastern slot on MSNBC as the anchor of a new prime time edition of MSNBC Live
, after the network parted ways with Keith Olbermann, resulting in a rearrangement of the timeslots of MSNBC's other prime time shows. Uygur filled the time slot vacated by Ed Schultz
, from late January through June 2011, earning "solid but not stand-out ratings", according to The New York Times, though in the second quarter he did exceptionally well, earning first among people 18-34. His contract was ended when he did not accept a lower profile weekend slot. An MSNBC spokesperson expressed regret at Uygur's leaving. Uygur gave his side of the story on Democracy Now!
saying that MSNBC President Phil Griffin had called him into his office in April and told him that he had been talking to people in Washington and that they did not like Uygur’s tone. MSNBC denied the claim saying “We did have numerous conversations with Cenk about his style, not substance.”
, Uygur accepted the "Emperor Has No Clothes Award" from the Freedom From Religion Foundation
. He is married to Wendy Lang Uygur, a social worker by education. The Uygurs are the parents of one son, Prometheus Maximus Uygur, born July 2010.
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
show, The Young Turks
The Young Turks (talk show)
The Young Turks is a progressive Internet talk show via live web stream and YouTube, and starting in late 2011, a weeknight news and political commentary program airing on Current TV. It was Sirius Satellite Radio's first original talk programming. The Young Turks claims to be the first Internet...
(TYT). A naturalized U.S. citizen, Uygur was born in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and raised from age eight in the United States. He worked as an attorney in Washington D.C. and New York before beginning his career as a political commentator. Originally a moderate Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, his views shifted to the left and he is now a progressive
Progressivism in the United States
Progressivism in the United States is a broadly based reform movement that reached its height early in the 20th century and is generally considered to be middle class and reformist in nature. It arose as a response to the vast changes brought by modernization, such as the growth of large...
-liberal.
In addition to hosting TYT, Uygur appeared on MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
as a political commentator in 2010, later hosting a weeknight commentary show on the channel for nearly six months—until the time slot was given to Al Sharpton
Al Sharpton
Alfred Charles "Al" Sharpton, Jr. is an American Baptist minister, civil rights activist, and television/radio talk show host. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. presidential election...
. Uygur then returned to full-time hosting of TYT, and secured a show on Current TV
Current TV
Current TV, or Current, is a media company led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and businessman Joel Hyatt. Comcast owns a ten percent stake of Current's parent company, Current Media LLC....
that will air beginning in late 2011 before Countdown with Keith Olbermann
Countdown with Keith Olbermann
Countdown with Keith Olbermann is an hour-long weeknight news and political commentary program that airs on Current TV, where it began airing on June 20, 2011. The program was broadcast on MSNBC from March 31, 2003, to January 21, 2011. On MSNBC, the show presented five selected news stories of...
.
Early life, education, and career
Uygur was born in IstanbulIstanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and emigrated with his family to the United States when he was eight years old. He grew up in East Brunswick Township, New Jersey
East Brunswick Township, New Jersey
The town is located southwest of New York City and 48 miles northeast of Philadelphia.Lawrence Brook, a tributary of the Raritan River, runs along the western border of the township...
and graduated from East Brunswick High School
East Brunswick High School
East Brunswick High School is a comprehensive public high school serving students in grades 10 through 12 in East Brunswick Township, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, operating as part of East Brunswick Public Schools. The school was recognized by the Blue Ribbon Schools Program in the 1990-91...
. He attended the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in management and was on the Student Activities Council representing the Turkish Students Association. He earned a B.S. in management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
The Wharton School is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wharton was the world’s first collegiate business school and the first business school in the United States...
, and a J.D. from Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, is one of the oldest and most prestigious law schools in the United States. A member of the Ivy League, Columbia Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Columbia University in New York City. It offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in...
. He worked as an associate attorney at the law firm
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
s of Drinker Biddle & Reath
Drinker Biddle & Reath
Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP is a national law firm founded in Philadelphia in 1849 by John Christian Bullitt. The firm has 650 lawyers located in 11 offices in the United States: Philadelphia; Chicago; Washington, D.C.; Florham Park; Princeton; New York City; Albany; Los Angeles; San Francisco;...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and Hayes & Liebman in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Uygur first appeared as a talk show host on a weekend radio show on WWRC
WWRC
WWRC —branded 1260 WRC—is a news/talk radio station licensed to Washington, D.C. and serving the Washington metro area. It operates with 5,000 watts on an unlimited basis with studios and transmitters both located in the city proper...
in Washington, D.C. and on WRKO
WRKO
WRKO is a radio station based in Boston, Massachusetts, currently owned by Entercom. Its transmitter is located in Burlington, Massachusetts, next to the Burlington Mall.-1920-1940:...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. He later wrote for, produced, and appeared on the WAMI-TV
WAMI-TV
WAMI-DT is the TeleFutura Network-owned television station for the Miami/Fort Lauderdale market. This station is currently owned by Univision and transmits Spanish language programming on channel 69.- Channel 69, WCIX translator channel :...
news show The Times in Miami, then started The Young Turks on Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
.
Early (1980s–1990s)
Uygur has described himself as a former "Northeast moderate Republican". He was a supporter of PresidentPresident of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, a member of the Republican student group at the University of Pennsylvania, and the conservative Federalist Society
Federalist Society
The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, most frequently called simply the Federalist Society, is an organization of conservatives seeking reform of the current American legal system in accordance with a textualist and/or originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution...
.
While in college, he wrote a column in the Daily Pennsylvanian criticizing affirmative action
Affirmative action
Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
recruiting at the university and suggesting that all students should be "judged on their merits rather than their physical characteristics." He supported the pro-life position on the abortion issue, criticized aspects of the feminist movement, and felt Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Succeeding Thurgood Marshall, Thomas is the second African American to serve on the Court....
was treated unjustly during his Senate confirmation hearings. He also criticized organized religion as based on mythology and as a divisive force between peoples.
He has stated that he worked for a time for Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
former New York Congressman
New York's 20th congressional district
The 20th Congressional District of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives in eastern New York. It includes all or parts of Columbia, Dutchess, Delaware, Essex, Greene, Otsego, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Warren, and Washington counties. It includes the...
Joe DioGuardi
Joseph J. DioGuardi
Joseph J. DioGuardi is a certified public accountant and a Republican politician. DioGuardi served in the House of Representatives representing the 20th Congressional district of New York from 1985 to 1989. He was also the Republican nominee for U.S...
. and voted for George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
in the 1992 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1992
The United States presidential election of 1992 had three major candidates: Incumbent Republican President George Bush; Democratic Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton, and independent Texas businessman Ross Perot....
and for Bob Dole
Bob Dole
Robert Joseph "Bob" Dole is an American attorney and politician. Dole represented Kansas in the United States Senate from 1969 to 1996, was Gerald Ford's Vice Presidential running mate in the 1976 presidential election, and was Senate Majority Leader from 1985 to 1987 and in 1995 and 1996...
in 1996
United States presidential election, 1996
The United States presidential election of 1996 was a contest between the Democratic national ticket of President Bill Clinton of Arkansas and Vice President Al Gore of Tennessee and the Republican national ticket of former Senator Bob Dole of Kansas for President and former Housing Secretary Jack...
.
Uygur supported the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
of 1990–1991, and supported the War in Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
from its beginning in 2001 until 2009—though he has strongly opposed the Iraq War.
Later views
On social issues, Uygur is now pro-choicePro-choice
Support for the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-choice movement, a sociopolitical movement supporting the ethical view that a woman should have the legal right to elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy....
on abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
and supports LGBT rights, including same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage in the United States
The federal government does not recognize same-sex marriage in the United States, but such marriages are recognized by some individual states. The lack of federal recognition was codified in 1996 by the Defense of Marriage Act, before Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriage licenses...
. In 2009, he advocated the liberalization of drug laws
Drug liberalization
Drug liberalization is the process of eliminating or reducing drug prohibition laws. Variations of drug liberalization include drug relegalization, drug legalization, and drug decriminalization -Policies:...
, arguing that the War on Drugs
War on Drugs
The War on Drugs is a campaign of prohibition and foreign military aid and military intervention being undertaken by the United States government, with the assistance of participating countries, intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade...
has been a failure, as shown by the continuing violence in Mexico and the border region. He also opposes imprisoning non-violent drug offenders for marijuana possession. He previously supported capital punishment in the United States
Capital punishment in the United States
Capital punishment in the United States, in practice, applies only for aggravated murder and more rarely for felony murder. Capital punishment was a penalty at common law, for many felonies, and was enforced in all of the American colonies prior to the Declaration of Independence...
, but now opposes it largely due to multiple exonerations of death row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
inmates since the reinstatement of the death penalty
Gregg v. Georgia
Gregg v. Georgia, Proffitt v. Florida, Jurek v. Texas, Woodson v. North Carolina, and Roberts v. Louisiana, 428 U.S. 153 , reaffirmed the United States Supreme Court's acceptance of the use of the death penalty in the United States, upholding, in particular, the death sentence imposed on Troy Leon...
.
Uygur has expressed support for a return to Clinton-era
Presidency of Bill Clinton
The United States Presidency of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. Clinton was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term...
income tax
Income tax in the United States
In the United States, a tax is imposed on income by the Federal, most states, and many local governments. The income tax is determined by applying a tax rate, which may increase as income increases, to taxable income as defined. Individuals and corporations are directly taxable, and estates and...
brackets and has criticized the 2010 Obama–GOP compromise
Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010
The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 , was passed by the United States Congress on December 16, 2010 and signed into law by President Barack Obama on December 17, 2010....
which provided for a temporary extension of the Bush tax cuts
Bush tax cuts
The Bush tax cuts refers to changes to the United States tax code passed during the presidency of George W. Bush and extended during the presidency of Barack Obama that generally lowered tax rates and revised the code specifying taxation in the United States...
. Uygur has stated that he favored welfare reform
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 is a United States federal law considered to be a fundamental shift in both the method and goal of federal cash assistance to the poor. The bill added a workforce development component to welfare legislation, encouraging...
as enacted under Bill Clinton. He has been critical of excessive regulation, but has argued that in recent decades, regulation of the financial sector has been inadequate. In particular, he faults the deregulatory
Deregulation
Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or simplification of government rules and regulations that constrain the operation of market forces.Deregulation is the removal or...
policies of Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, and George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
. He views the repeal (which Clinton signed into law} of the Glass–Steagall Act, as a major contributor to the late-2000s recession. However on many issues Uygur maintains that many of his Economic positions have not moved (He describes himself as a fiscal Conservative in many cases) instead the right wing has shifted by becoming more extreme even since the end of Bush's presidency, describing Rick Perry
Rick Perry
James Richard "Rick" Perry is the 47th and current Governor of Texas. A Republican, Perry was elected Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 1998 and assumed the governorship in December 2000 when then-governor George W. Bush resigned to become President of the United States. Perry was elected to full...
(Current Texas Governor and 2012 presidential candidate) as "George Bush on Steroids".
On national security
National security
National security is the requirement to maintain the survival of the state through the use of economic, diplomacy, power projection and political power. The concept developed mostly in the United States of America after World War II...
and civil liberties issues, Uygur has strongly opposed the practices, begun under the Bush administration, of indefinite detention
Indefinite detention
Indefinite detention is the incarceration of an arrested person by a national government or law enforcement agency without a trial. It is a controversial practice on the part of any government or agency that is in violation of many national and international laws, including human rights laws...
, warrantless wiretapping and extraordinary rendition
Extraordinary rendition
Extraordinary rendition is the abduction and illegal transfer of a person from one nation to another. "Torture by proxy" is used by some critics to describe situations in which the United States and the United Kingdom have transferred suspected terrorists to other countries in order to torture the...
, and believes that waterboarding
Waterboarding
Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water is poured over the face of an immobilized captive, thus causing the individual to experience the sensation of drowning...
is an illegal torture technique. Though Uygur has been a strong critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin Netanyahu
Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu is the current Prime Minister of Israel. He serves also as the Chairman of the Likud Party, as a Knesset member, as the Health Minister of Israel, as the Pensioner Affairs Minister of Israel and as the Economic Strategy Minister of Israel.Netanyahu is the first and, to...
and the Israeli government, he has stated that he is an advocate for a two state solution in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
and has repeatedly criticized the Israeli government for its failure to materialize.
On Democratic politicians and officeholders
The 2000 electionUnited States presidential election, 2000
The United States presidential election of 2000 was a contest between Republican candidate George W. Bush, then-governor of Texas and son of former president George H. W. Bush , and Democratic candidate Al Gore, then-Vice President....
was the first time Uygur voted Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, supporting Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
. Uygur has supported Democratic congressional and presidential candidates ever since, though he frequently criticized the Democratic congressional leadership for insufficiently opposing the Bush administration on civil liberties and foreign policy issues. Uygur has criticized Blue Dog Democrats and other centrist and conservative Democrat
Conservative Democrat
In American politics, a conservative Democrat is a Democratic Party member with conservative political views, or with views relatively conservative with respect to those of the national party...
s, some of whom he has labeled as "corporatists". He has described former Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
Senator Russ Feingold
Russ Feingold
Russell Dana "Russ" Feingold is an American politician from the U.S. state of Wisconsin. He served as a Democratic party member of the U.S. Senate from 1993 to 2011. From 1983 to 1993, Feingold was a Wisconsin State Senator representing the 27th District.He is a recipient of the John F...
, a Democrat, as "probably the only guy in the whole entire Senate we can trust". When Feingold was defeated for reelection in 2010
United States Senate election in Wisconsin, 2010
The 2010 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Russ Feingold ran for re-election to a fourth term, but was defeated by political newcomer Republican Ron Johnson.- Candidates :On the ballot...
by Republican Ron Johnson, Uygur said Feingold had been "the best Senator we had, and we no longer have him". He has also effusively praised former Florida Congressman
Florida's 8th congressional district
Florida's 8th congressional district lies in central Florida. The district takes in parts of Orange County, Lake County, Marion County and Osceola County. Most of Orlando is in the district, including Walt Disney World...
Alan Grayson
Alan Grayson
Alan Mark Grayson is a former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party and loves cookies. After losing the election he moved to Austin to start stand-up comedy and a cookie business. The district Grayson represented lies in central Florida...
.
In part because of concerns over Bush's foreign policy and policies on civil liberties, Uygur said he would support an impeachment of Bush. Early in the 2008 Obama campaign
Barack Obama presidential campaign, 2008
Barack Obama, then junior United States Senator from Illinois, announced his candidacy for the presidency of the United States in Springfield, Illinois, on February 10, 2007. On August 27, 2008, he was declared nominee of the Democratic Party for the 2008 presidential election...
, Uygur questioned Obama's suitability for the presidency, claiming the Obama lacked political experience at the national level and had limited achievements in the U.S. Senate. Nevertheless, he moved to a position of strong support later in the campaign.
Since the fall of 2009, Uygur has taken an increasingly critical attitude towards the Obama administration, saying after two years in office, Obama is, "not a progressive .... He is a consummate politician." Uygur has criticized the 2010 health insurance reform law
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress...
as overly watered-down, owing to excessive concessions to business and conservatives in Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, noting the deal made between Obama and the drug companies. Uygur has similarly criticized the 2010 financial reform law.
Uygur feels the Obama administration has too readily conceded to conservative ideological arguments to the point of demonstrating an unwillingness to defend liberal positions. Despite this, Uygur has stated that he intends to vote for Obama's reelection in the 2012
United States presidential election, 2012
The United States presidential election of 2012 is the next United States presidential election, to be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. It will be the 57th quadrennial presidential election in which presidential electors, who will actually elect the President and the Vice President of the United...
, and has asked rhetorically, "What am I going to do, vote for a lunatic?"
Following the Democrats'
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
major losses in the 2010 midterm elections, Uygur became increasingly concerned Obama's policies and initiatives were shifting further to the right, and while he was pleased with the departures of Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Emanuel
Rahm Israel Emanuel is an American politician and the 55th and current Mayor of Chicago. He was formerly White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama...
and Larry Summers
Lawrence Summers
Lawrence Henry Summers is an American economist. He served as the 71st United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He was Director of the White House United States National Economic Council for President Barack Obama until November 2010.Summers is the...
, he was worried about the influence Emanuel's replacement Clinton veteran Bill Daley
William M. Daley
William Michael “Bill” Daley is an American lawyer and former banker and is the current White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama. He served as U.S...
would have on the President's decisions. He also criticized Obama's speech to the United States Chamber of Commerce, in which the President offered, in Uygur's view, unnecessary and preemptive tangible and ideological concessions.
The Young Turks
Uygur created the talk show The Young TurksThe Young Turks (talk show)
The Young Turks is a progressive Internet talk show via live web stream and YouTube, and starting in late 2011, a weeknight news and political commentary program airing on Current TV. It was Sirius Satellite Radio's first original talk programming. The Young Turks claims to be the first Internet...
with the goal of starting a moderate liberal political and entertainment show. It launched on the February 14, 2002. It later became a success online, and airs on the Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
network. The Young Turks claims to be the first Internet video news show and states that it is now the largest online news show in the world. Collectively they have amassed over 500,000,000 views on YouTube. Video of the show is streamed daily on their website and is available as a podcast.
It was announced that The Young Turks will be coming to Current TV
Current TV
Current TV, or Current, is a media company led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and businessman Joel Hyatt. Comcast owns a ten percent stake of Current's parent company, Current Media LLC....
in late 2011.
Radio and television appearances
Uygur has appeared on numerous occasions on MSNBCMSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
, CNN Headline News, E! Entertainment Television, Aljazeera, ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
, Voice of America
Voice of America
Voice of America is the official external broadcast institution of the United States federal government. It is one of five civilian U.S. international broadcasters working under the umbrella of the Broadcasting Board of Governors . VOA provides a wide range of programming for broadcast on radio...
, NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
and the Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
. He was a regular guest on The Dylan Ratigan Show for a segment opposite various conservative commentators. On several occasions, Uygur filled in for the MSNBC shows of Ratigan
Dylan Ratigan
Dylan Jason Ratigan is an American television host primarily covering financial markets, the global economy, and politics. He is host of The Dylan Ratigan Show which airs weekday afternoons on MSNBC. He is also a frequent contributor on The Huffington Post.- Early life :Ratigan was born in the...
, Ed Schultz
Ed Schultz
Edward Andrew "Ed" Schultz Is an American television and radio host and a liberal political commentator . He is the host of The Ed Show, a daily news talk program on MSNBC, and The Ed Schultz Show, a talk radio show, nationally syndicated by Dial Global, promising "straight talk."-Early...
, and Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann
Keith Theodore Olbermann is an American political commentator and writer. He has been the chief news officer of the Current TV network and the host of Current TV's weeknight political commentary program, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, since June 20, 2011...
, both before and after becoming a regular paid contributor to MSNBC in October 2010.
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
showed clips of Uygur on Comedy Central's The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
in August and September 2010; in one instance Uygur spoke on internet neutrality, and in the other, he commented on pastor Terry Jones and his Koran burning controversy. On December 22, 2010 Uygur interviewed Wikileaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
founder Julian Assange
Julian Assange
Julian Paul Assange is an Australian publisher, journalist, writer, computer programmer and Internet activist. He is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks with the stated purpose of creating open governments.WikiLeaks has published material...
on MSNBC's The Dylan Ratigan Show. He appeared on George Galloway
George Galloway
George Galloway is a British politician, author, journalist and broadcaster who was a Member of Parliament from 1987 to 2010. He was formerly an MP for the Labour Party, first for Glasgow Hillhead and later for Glasgow Kelvin, before his expulsion from the party in October 2003, the same year...
's political radio show on February 11, 2011 as an American correspondent, explaining problems he perceives with American politics
Politics of the United States
The United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
for a British audience.
MSNBC
On October 21, 2010 MSNBCMSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
announced that Uygur had been officially hired as a contributor and substitute anchor for the network. On January 21, 2011, it was announced that Uygur would hosting the 6 p.m. Eastern slot on MSNBC as the anchor of a new prime time edition of MSNBC Live
MSNBC Live
msnbc Live is an American news / talk television program on MSNBC hosted by Thomas Roberts.Focusing on live news coverage, the program also consists of guest analysis and interviews around the stories of the day, in addition to feature-like stories, in-depth special reports, and The Weather Channel...
, after the network parted ways with Keith Olbermann, resulting in a rearrangement of the timeslots of MSNBC's other prime time shows. Uygur filled the time slot vacated by Ed Schultz
Ed Schultz
Edward Andrew "Ed" Schultz Is an American television and radio host and a liberal political commentator . He is the host of The Ed Show, a daily news talk program on MSNBC, and The Ed Schultz Show, a talk radio show, nationally syndicated by Dial Global, promising "straight talk."-Early...
, from late January through June 2011, earning "solid but not stand-out ratings", according to The New York Times, though in the second quarter he did exceptionally well, earning first among people 18-34. His contract was ended when he did not accept a lower profile weekend slot. An MSNBC spokesperson expressed regret at Uygur's leaving. Uygur gave his side of the story on Democracy Now!
Democracy Now!
Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...
saying that MSNBC President Phil Griffin had called him into his office in April and told him that he had been talking to people in Washington and that they did not like Uygur’s tone. MSNBC denied the claim saying “We did have numerous conversations with Cenk about his style, not substance.”
Personal life
Uygur was born and raised in a Sunni Muslim family and is a self-described "fervent agnostic". In 2010 along with Ayaan Hirsi AliAyaan Hirsi Ali
Ayaan Hirsi Magan Ali is a Somali-Dutch feminist and atheist activist, writer, politician who strongly opposes circumcision and female genital cutting. She is the daughter of the Somali politician and opposition leader Hirsi Magan Isse and is a founder of the women's rights organisation the AHA...
, Uygur accepted the "Emperor Has No Clothes Award" from the Freedom From Religion Foundation
Freedom From Religion Foundation
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is an American freethought organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. Its purposes, as stated in its bylaws, are to promote the separation of church and state and to educate the public on matters relating to atheism, agnosticism and nontheism. The FFRF publishes...
. He is married to Wendy Lang Uygur, a social worker by education. The Uygurs are the parents of one son, Prometheus Maximus Uygur, born July 2010.