Why Radiohead Frontman Thom Yorke’s Newest Fans Include the Israeli Government and Far-Right Demagogues

‘The famed rock band Radiohead has found a slew of fans on the far right after forcefully coming out in opposition to Palestinian human rights activists. Among the influential English music group’s new admirers are some of the most notorious demagogues in U.S. and Israeli politics, including Glenn Beck, Fox News and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s extreme right-wing administration.
This is an ironic development, given the band’s history of speaking out for liberal causes and its strong opposition to the administration of former U.S. President George W. Bush. Radiohead has been hyperbolically sold as the “Beatles of the 21st century.” But unlike the Beatles’ John Lennon, who was a committed revolutionary socialist and anti-imperialist, Radiohead’s Thom Yorke has allied with the pro-colonial right wing.
The band played in Israel on July 19 to international outrage. The show came after months of campaigning by Palestinian human rights activists, who called on Radiohead to honor the international boycott of Israel on behalf of the Palestinians systematically murdered, colonized and oppressed by the Israeli government.’
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