Journos trash studio in dispute over Syria

A heated discussion between two Jordanian journalists about the civil war in Syria developed into a brawl as the two demolished the studio in which they were being interviewed, forcing staff to step in and separate the two.

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) provided a video of the incident on Wednesday.

The journalists appeared earlier this week on Jordanian TV’s current events program “The Two Ways,” which airs live, and were taking part in a panel on freedom of the press in Arab states when things took an ugly turn. Shaker al-Jawhari, who supports the Syrian opposition, accused Muhammad al-Jayousi, a Baathist who supports Syrian president Bashar Assad, of being a “deviant.”

“A deviant is someone who supports the slaughtering of people,” Jawhari explained.

The brawling Jordanian commentators (MEMRI screenshot)

“You are the deviant,” Jayousi retorted, but he was cut short by Jawhari, who went on: “A deviant is someone whose views are determined according to benefits…a deviant is someone who jumps from one lap to another, depending on who pays more.”

Jayousi then told Jawhari to “shut up,” at which point the outraged opposition supporter rose up and grabbed the table. Al-Jayousi did the same and the two began shaking the table violently, breaking it in two as the helpless host attempted to placate the squabbling men.

Jawhari stepped forward and kicked at Jayousi, then was pulled back by staffers and the broadcast was cut short.