Capital Talk

Capital Talk is the flagship political talk show broadcast on Geo News. Hosted by Hamid Mir,^[1] Capital Talk looks at the challenges, issues and concerns facing Pakistan on a daily basis. The format includes several guests who participate in a dialogue on a topic related to current affairs.^[2] It is broadcast four days a week (Monday to Thursday) on Geo News.

Capital Talk
Genre	Political talk show
Presented by	Hamid Mir (2002-present)
Country of origin	Pakistan
Original language	Urdu
No. of episodes	3700
Production
Executive producer	Tafseer Hussain
Producer	Jahangir Malik
Production locations	Islamabad, Pakistan
Running time	36 minutes
Original release
Network	Geo News
Release	28 December 2002 (2002-12-28) – present (present)

History

Hamid Mir at the Capital Talk studio

Launched in 2002, it is the oldest current events program in Pakistan.^[3] The first guest at the show was Ameen Faheem with whom the first host Hamid Mir discussed the 2002 Pakistan general election.^[4] Special transmissions are also broadcast focusing on crises zones, more important ones of which took place during Long March of 2009.

In December 2007, the show was banned by Pervez Musharraf due to Mir's constant criticism of the Government. The show returned in January 2008 but was hosted by Muhammad Malik instead of Hamid Mir.^[5] After the General Election of 2008, Mir returned to Capital Talk.

In October 2012, Capital Talk completed its 10 years of running. This was celebrated by Geo News by running a special episode of the program.

Few of the famous political figures which have been interviewed include General Pervez Musharraf, Asif Ali Zardari, Nawaz Sharif, Jemima Khan, Imran Khan, Chaudhry Shujaat, Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice. Aamir Liaquat Hussain, Shehbaz Sharif

Removal and return of Hamid Mir

In May 2021, after journalist Asad Ali Toor was attacked by masked men, Hamid Mir supported him and criticized Pakistan's military establishment of censoring the media and persecuting journalists. On May 30, 2021, Mir was banned from Geo News and it was reported that he would no longer host the Capital Talk show.^[6][7][8] On March 8, 2022, Hamid Mir returned to Capital Talk after the ban was lifted.^[9]

See also

• Geo News
• Urdu News

References

1. Masood, Salman (28 September 2011). "In Pakistani Media, the U.S. Is a Target for Acrimony". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
2. "Capital Talk Analysis". geo.tv/. Archived from the original on 26 January 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
3. "'Ready for consequences!' — Hamid Mir responds after being pulled off air". Daily Pakistan Global. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
4. "Hamid Mir on Twitter: "Makhdoom Amin Fahim was my guest in 1st ever episode of capital talk on Geo TV in 2002 with Zafarullah Jamali we discussed "kon baney ga PM""". Twitter. 21 December 2015. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
5. "RSF: Government lifts cable ban on Geo TV but makes it remove some programmes | Teeth Maestro". 22 April 2016. Archived from the original on 22 April 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
6. Hashim, Asad. "Pakistani journalist 'taken off air' after military outburst". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
7. Dawn.com (1 June 2021). "Geo issues statement after taking Hamid Mir off air". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
8. "Hamid Mir: Groups condemn Pakistan TV host suspension". BBC News. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
9. "Hamid Mir Backs On TV Screens As Ban Lifted". www.thefridaytimes.com. 8 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.

Capital talk with Hamid mir