George Ajjan | Official Website

analysis of Syria's media war on AJE's "Listening Post"

2013-05-25T12:02:00.003-04:00

(comments at 2:14, 2:48 & 4:49) "[the cannibalism video] indicates the desperation of some of the obviously more extreme elements...when you watch it, you almost feel as if it's a hunter, a documentary about hunting and a guy who just killed a deer, and he's narrating how he killed it, how he's going to skin it, and how he's going to cook it up for dinner; that's the kind of feeling you get, which is very disturbing...These savage videos, and using them, is a really tough call for journalists, because on the one hand, it's real. On the other hand, it really jades the coverage. The challenge for media is to figure out when to use such graphic footage and when not to. Because we can't measure what real public opinion is, it makes it very hard for even the most objective and conscientious journalist."

Fox News probes role in the Chuck Hagel hearings

2013-02-18T14:00:00.002-05:00

"I think that at the time the comments [reported exclusively on this website] reflected his frustration with the way that American foreign policy was being conducted in the Middle East, and I don't think that they indicate some kind of unsuitability to be Secretary of Defense. I think he would have been wiser to state it as he did on other occasions, saying that he can have good relations with Israel and at the same time good relations with Arab countries but stay true and look out for America's interests first."

Talking African political dynamics at Harvard's Africa Conference

2013-02-17T02:56:00.000-05:00

Featured in the "My African Story" series as part of the Harvard Business School's annual Africa Business Conference, which took place on February 16, 2013. Remarks included a brief survey of the trends present in African political dynamics and how they impact elections on the continent, as well as what young leaders need to do if they wish to succeed in the political domain.

Discussing the implications of Chuck Hagel as Defense Secretary on Sky News

2013-01-08T11:24:00.000-05:00

"I think the criticism of Hagel that he's somehow anti-Israeli is patently ridiculous. What he's clearly said is that this is not a zero-sum game. Having good relations with Israel is not mutually exclusive of having good relations with Arab countries or Muslim countries or trying to ease tensions between the United States and Iran. So I think that's actually something to celebrate in a Defense Secretary nominee: someone who's not going to be trigger-happy in terms of wanting to go to war with Iran."

Quoted in No. 1 ranked London Business School's Alumni News, Winter 2012

2012-11-28T05:05:00.002-05:00

George Ajjan MBA2003, a US-based international political strategist, says the Western companies he observes investing in Africa do feel they are at a disadvantage over this sort of huge project.

"When they do invest, US and European companies follow very much the standards that they do at home,” he says. “This is good in a certain way – they can be strict on how they do business and try to avoid corruption – but this means they cannot play the game where others really understand emerging markets."

Judging the VP debate performances on Sky News

2012-10-11T23:00:00.000-04:00

"The main goal for Paul Ryan was to maintain the bounce that Romney got, and so what we've seen over the past week is that the race has tightened. To some extent, Biden is his own worst enemy, because when he speaks in a serious tone, he's actually very effective. The trouble is that whenever Paul Ryan is talking, he is acting very arrogant and coming across as detached from what are actually some very thoughtful and serious solutions."