Waleed Aly | |
|---|---|
 Aly in 2010 | |
| Born | (1978-08-15)15 August 1978 (age 46) |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Education | Wesley College |
| Alma mater | University of Melbourne Monash University |
| Occupation(s) | Author, journalist, newspaper columnist, radio and television presenter, lawyer, academic, guitarist, songwriter |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Television | The Project |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Waleed Aly (born 15 August 1978) is an Australian television presenter, journalist, academic, and lawyer.
Aly is a lecturer in politics atMonash University working in their Global Terrorism Research Centre, and a co-host ofNetwork Ten's news and current affairs television programThe Project. He also writes forFairfax Media, co-hostsThe Minefield, anABC RN program about ethical dilemmas of modern life, and islead guitarist in rock band Robot Child.
In 2016, he won theGold Logie Award for Best Personality on Australian Television.
Aly was born on 15 August 1978[1] inMelbourne,Victoria, toEgyptian parents.[2] He is aSunniMuslim.[3]
He attendedWesley College, completing theInternational Baccalaureate in 1996. He then studied at theUniversity of Melbourne, graduating withBachelor of Engineering (Chemical) andBachelor of Laws (with honours) degrees in 2002.[4]
In May 2017 Aly was awarded aPhD, for his thesis on global terrorism titledTowards a structuration theory of global terrorism.[5][6]
After graduating, Aly worked as an associate toFamily Court judge Joseph Kay and, until, 2007 worked as asolicitor in Melbourne for Maddocks Lawyers. In 2006, he was apro bono lawyer with theHuman Rights Law Centre, on secondment from Maddocks.[7]
In 2007 Aly publishedPeople Like Us: How arrogance is dividing Islam and the West.[4]
In 2008, he was selected to participate in theAustralia 2020 Summit,[4] abipartisan convention held inCanberra to "help shape a long-term strategy for the nation's future".[8]
Aly is a staff member of the Global Terrorism Research Centre at Monash University.[9][10] He has said that most of the conflicts in theMiddle East can be traced to the arbitrary way in which its territories were divided-up by Western powers by the ongoing demand for Middle Eastern oil and more recently by factors such as the2003 invasion of Iraq.[3][11] After theBoston Marathon bombing, describingterrorism as a "perpetual irritant", he said it is encouraging that we are finally maturing in the way we handle terrorism.[12]
During his time as head of public affairs for theIslamic Council of Victoria, and a member of its executive committee, Aly was regularly interviewed on current affairs and news programs.[13] His social and political commentary has appeared in newspapers includingThe Guardian,The Australian,The Australian Financial Review,The Sydney Morning Herald andThe Age.[14] In searching for reasons behind thesuicide attacks in central London on 7 July 2005, Aly reminded readers of the Quranic passage,Do not let the injustice of others lead you into injustice.[15][16]
Aly was the host of ABC TV'sBig Ideas program onABC1 andABC News 24.[17] He has been a regular guest co-host onThe Conversation Hour[18] withJon Faine on774 ABC Melbourne andThe Project on Channel 10 and also was a regular panel member and producer onSalam Cafe, a weekly program presented by young members of Melbourne's Muslim community and produced byRMITV[19] first forC31 Melbourne and later forSBS. He has also appeared as a panellist on ABC TV'sQ&A program,[20] and has been an occasional co-host on the ABC'sNews Breakfast.
He was the inaugural host ofRN Drive onABC Radio National (RN) in January 2012. In December 2014, Aly resigned from the ABC[21] in order to become the permanent co-host of Channel Ten'sThe Project, starting on 26 January 2015.[22][23] He returned to ABC RN in April 2015 to co-hostThe Minefield with Scott Stephens, in addition to his role onThe Project for Channel Ten.[24][25][26][27]
In November 2015, Aly criticised the extremist groupIslamic State of Iraq and the Levant in a four-minute monologue titled "What ISIL wants" onThe Project in the wake of theNovember 2015 Paris attacks, labelling them as "bastards" and calling for no one to fear them, because "they are weak". The video, written by Aly and producer Tom Whitty, was posted online and received 13 million views within a day.[28][29]
As of 2023[update], Aly continues to co-hostThe Minefield, along with religion and ethics commentator Scott Stephens and an expert studio guest each week,[30] and continues his role onThe Project.[31] He also writes forThe Sydney Morning Herald.[32]
At the 2005Walkley Awards, Aly was commended in the category of Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique.[33]
In 2015, Aly and producer Tom Whitty were finalists for twoOur Watch Awards (administered by theWalkley Foundation) for exemplary reporting to endviolence against women, for their viral editorial, "Show Me The Money (Domestic Violence Funding)".[34] The pair were also nominated for (and won) aUnited Nations Association of Australia Media Peace Award for Promotion of Climate Change Issues, with their "Renewable Energy Target" monologue.[35] Aly and Whitty finished the year with a Walkley nomination for Excellence in Journalism in the All Media Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique category, for a series of editorials including Show Me The Money, Renewable Energy Target, and Negative Gearing.[36]
In May 2016, Aly won theGold Logie Award for Best Personality on Australian Television, chosen by the public through an online vote.[37]
In May 2016 Aly was Liberty Victoria's winner of theVoltaire Award for free speech. Writing inThe Australian, Paul Monk[38] has said, "In accepting his Voltaire Award, Aly needs to step up and champion freedom of speech in the Muslim world and freedom to criticise Islam itself, including the Prophet – as Voltaire himself did".[39]
In June 2016, the Prime MinisterMalcolm Turnbull hosted the firstIftar dinner, atKirribilli House for Muslim community leaders. Aly and his wife, described as the "power couple", were seated at Table No. 1, next to the Prime Minister.[40]
In August 2016, Aly and producer Tom Whitty were again finalists for two Our Watch Awards for exemplary reporting to end violence against women, for their viral editorial, "Click Something Else".[41] In September, the pair were also again nominated for (and won) a United Nations Association of Australia (UNAA) Media Peace Award for Social Cohesion, with their "Send Forgiveness Viral" monologue.[42] In October, Aly and Whitty received two Walkley nominations for Excellence in Journalism. First in the Television/Audio-Visual News Reporting category, for Milked Dry, their viral editorial on Australia's dairy pricing crisis,[43] and in the Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique category, for a series of editorials: "Click Something Else", "Milked Dry", and "ISIL is Weak".[43]
Aly is thelead guitarist and principalsongwriter for theMelbourne-basedrock band Robot Child.[10][44] The band contributed a track to theJesuit Social Services'Just Music album,[45] performing atthe Famous Spiegeltent for its release.[46] They were also widely praised for their cover ofPink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb" at the 2015Walkley Awards.[47]
Aly is a featured artist on "Surah Maryam" the 2021Paul Kelly's Christmas Train album.[48]
Aly lives inMelbourne and is married to Australianfeminist author and academicSusan Carland, and they have two children. Carland converted toIslam aged 19 and holds a PhD fromMonash University.[49][50][51][52]
The pleasure for Aly is that by combining his role at the ABC – where he co-hostsThe Minefield, [...] – withThe Project...
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