Hasan Minhaj Admitted He Fabricates His Stand-Up Jokes, But Does It Even Matter? (2024)

Stand-up comedy is a strange little thing. There are plenty of people who make up narratives and weave tales in an effort to get humorous points across. However, Hasan Minhaj has recently been called out for making up stories for his stand-up, and people are upset.

But what is it about Minhaj and his particular style that makes it a problem?

Trusted Source of Information

Hasan Minhaj is not your average comedian. In fact, whether he wants to admit it or not, he falls under the Jon Stewart comedy umbrella. This means that because of his time on The Daily Show and Patriot Act, he has become a trusted source of political and social news.

This puts him in a different category from typical stand-ups. The Daily Show was considered a space where many young people got their news, although Stewart himself stated that this might be a mistake. He was always quick to say he was not a news anchor, but that never stopped people from seeing him that way. Minhaj is the same. He spent enough time on that show to earn his satirical chops, earning him his Patriot Act show.

Related: 'The Blind Side' Producers Respond to Michael Oher's Claims of Inaccuracy: The film 'Will Never Be a Lie or Fake

Patriot Act was a far more poignant reminder that there are marginalized groups and that they must be given a voice. He had his own comedic spin, but his tone was far more serious than that of his Daily Show counterparts. It was seen as an important show and, because of this and the tireless work of Minhaj, earned a Peabody Award and Minhaj an Emmy.

This is no small feat and puts him in the category of “trusted source” before people ever begin thinking of him as a straight-up comedian.

What Did He Say?

The main issues coming to light stem from a New Yorker interview published last Friday. In it, Minhaj spoke about his propensity for embellishing stories for comedic effect. The direct quote was:

“Every story in my style is built around a seed of truth. My comedy Arnold Palmer is 70 percent emotional truth—this happened—and then 30 percent hyperbole, exaggeration, fiction.”

That is a lot of words to say that he’s making things up. There are now many different pieces that have come out, which have been shown to be complete fabrications. This means that, unlike other comedians, he did not say, “You know, last night I-” when a story happened years ago. He is making up stories out of whole cloth and selling them as actual, personal hardships.

The most famous story is one that Minhaj has told on a variety of occasions. When he spoke out against the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, he said he was mailed either anthrax or something resembling the substance. He spoke about being upset because it was sent to his home, where he was with his daughter. It was a heart-wrenching story of an Indian Muslim-American having to explain to his young child that they needed to be vigilant and that he needed to protect her because there were people who wanted to hurt them.

The story has now been proven to be patently false. This fact is a sobering wake-up call to those who see a man who has not just fought in the culture war but nearly killed for his role.

Other stories that have been wholly fabricated or embellished include his mosque and community being infiltrated by a white FBI informant and a girl turning him down for prom because of his cultural heritage. These stories have been investigated and found to be less than his “70 percent emotional truth”.

Oppression Porn

With his trusted persona, Minhaj has set himself a precedent. He has also created boundaries for himself, whether he knows it or not. This means that when he tells a poignant story, especially a personal one, people sit up and listen. They want to hear the truth from a person who comes from a marginalized group, especially a person as articulately interesting as Minhaj.

However, since this story broke, many other comedians and journalists have come out to explain the real reason this man cannot say these things. Writer Jay Caspian Kang said this about how Minhaj has altered his stories:

“[They are] another example of how oppression stories—in this case, fabricated oppression porn—get leveraged by upwardly mobile immigrants to mostly advance their careers. [SIC] It’s oppression fantasy and it delegitimizes real stuff via elite capture.”

Many people who have been through traumatic experiences based on their ethnic and cultural backgrounds were excited to have someone to represent their experiences. But Minhaj has essentially done more to delegitimize the true stories these people tell on a daily basis.

Related: Exclusive: Kausar Mohammed On Her Career and Queer Muslim Representation

Minhaj is not just a comedian. He is a representative. This may not have been his choice, but it is very rare for those who feel oppressed to have someone speaking for them. What he has done is a complete smack to the face of those who have trusted him. He may plead comedy, but he needs to sit back and consider the weight that his stature holds. This scandal will not kill his career, and it shouldn’t, but it should lead to some serious self-reflection.