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United States Dean Obeidallah has transitioned from attorney to an award-winning comedian and journalist, appearing on national television and co-creating significant comedy festivals.
Obeidallah co-starred on Comedy Central's "Axis of Evil" Comedy special and co-created and co-produced Comedy Central.com's critically acclaimed Internet series "The Watch List."
Dean Obeidallah hosts "The Dean Obeidallah Show" on SiriusXM Progress' channel.
Obeidallah is a frequent contributor to CNN and has appeared on programs such as "American Morning," "The Situation Room," and CNN International's "Inside the Middle East."
Obeidallah is a frequent contributor to The Daily Beast and has written articles for the publication.
Obeidallah is a frequent contributor to MSNBC and has appeared on their programs, including "Melissa Harris-Perry," and writes opinion pieces for their website.
He has appeared on PBS' "Newshour with Jim Lehrer."
Obeidallah has appeared on Fox News Radio.
Dean Obeidallah is a writer for The Atlantic.
Dean Obeidallah was born in Lodi, New Jersey, and grew up in Paramus, New Jersey. His distinct background as the son of a Palestinian father and a Sicilian mother has influenced his comedy. He earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from Fordham Law School and practiced law from 1993 to 1998 with Beattie Padovano. His initial foray into comedy occurred at the New Jersey State Bar Association’s stand-up show. Following his legal career, he joined the NBC Page program in 1998, working as a rights and clearance researcher for “Saturday Night Live” while simultaneously developing his stand-up comedy skills in New York City.
Obeidallah’s comedy career gained significant momentum in 2005 when he received the first annual “Bill Hicks Spirit Award” for “thought-provoking comedy.” He co-created and co-produced Comedy Central.com’s “The Watch List,” an internet series featuring Middle Eastern-American comedians, and appeared on Comedy Central’s “Axis of Evil” Comedy special. Alongside Jewish comic Scott Blakeman, he co-created “Stand up for Peace,” a show performed at colleges to promote understanding between Arab and Jewish-Americans. He is also the co-founder and co-executive producer of the annual New York Arab-American Comedy Festival, which launched in 2008 and showcases Arab-American comedians.
In 2013, Obeidallah co-directed and co-produced “The Muslims Are Coming!,” an award-winning documentary exploring freedom of religion in America through a stand-up comedy tour. His work extends to journalism, where he hosts “The Dean Obeidallah Show” on SiriusXM Progress and contributes to CNN, The Daily Beast, and MSNBC. Throughout his career, he has performed stand-up comedy internationally in locations such as Beirut, Haifa, Dubai, Ramallah, Amman, Cairo, Oman, and Sharm El Sheikh.
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