Joris Luyendijk
(Amsterdam, 1971) travelled to Egypt at age 24 to do research among Egyptian contemporaries. That not only earned him a degree in religious anthropology, but also his debut, Een goede man slaat soms zijn vrouw (A Good Man Sometimes Hits his Wife). It was an instant success and Volkskrant and Radio 1 Journaal asked him to become a correspondent in the Arab World. Later he also worked for NRC Handelsblad and NOS. During his stay he wrote Een tipje van de sluier (A Corner of the Veil) and after his return to the Netherlands in 2003 Het zijn net mensen (People Like Us), on his experiences as a correspondent. Meanwhile Luyendijk has shifted his attention elsewhere: Dutch politics and sustainability. His latest book, Je hebt het niet van mij, maar…Een maand aan het Binnenhof (Don’t mention my name, but… A Month in Parliament), caused a great deal of controversy in Dutch journalist circles. Joris Luyendijk took a closer look at the bell-jar world of Dutch politics. With some amazement he describes how close the link between journalists, lobbyists, public relations officials and politicians is. In 2006 and 2007 Luyendijk hosted the tv interview programme Zomergasten (Summer Guests) and in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 Wintergasten (Winter Guests). Since March 2010 he is one of the regular hosts of the late night radio current affairs programme Met het oog op morgen (With a View to Tomorrow).
Past events
Old Ideals
Adriaan Van Dis, Maaza Mengiste and Abeer Soliman wrote books about ideals. About old anti-apartheid activists and about old revolutionaries from Egypt and Ethiopia. Joris Luyendijk talks to them on the loss, rebirth and clash of old and new ideals. In English.
The need for chaos
Writing about a chaotic society from an overly regulated environment. Petina Gappah and Vamba Sherif talk to Joris Luyendijk. ENG
Images of fear
From mushroom cloud to collapsing Twin Towers. With Bas Heijne, Gerrit Jan Wolffensperger, Hassan Daoud and Joris Luyendijk (host). In English.
In search of pure Islam
Joris Luyendijk speaks with journalist Rachida Azough, writer Ian Buruma and the Moroccan/Dutch writer Fouad Laroui on Laroui's book On Islamism. Dutch spoken.
