Radio Atlantic Saudi Arabia Gets the Last Laugh
29 snips
Oct 9, 2025 
Helen Lewis, an Atlantic staff writer who attended the Riyadh Comedy Festival, shares firsthand observations of this cultural event. Vivian Salama, also from the Atlantic, provides insights on Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030, elaborating on the kingdom's efforts to modernize and attract tourism while grappling with its controversial past, including the Khashoggi murder. The discussion dives into comedy's potential to incite social change amidst censorship, the festival's atmosphere, and contrasting reactions from performers on the moral implications of participating.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Comedy As Nation Branding
- The Riyadh Comedy Festival is one part of a larger Vision 2030 push to rebrand Saudi Arabia beyond oil and negative headlines.
- The government seeks cultural events to draw Western attention, investment, and tourism as part of economic diversification.
Vision 2030 Links Culture And Economy
- Vision 2030 frames cultural change as economic strategy, prioritizing entertainment and consumer spending.
- Saudi leaders view diversification away from oil as essential to long-term sustainability.
Khashoggi Highlighted A Diplomatic Double Standard
- The Khashoggi killing exposed a stark contradiction: MBS courting Western engagement while implicated in a brutal extraterritorial murder.
- U.S. politics, including the Trump administration's business-first stance, complicated international reactions to Saudi abuses.