To Fete Her New Podcast, Rep, Noor Tagouri Hosted an Iftar Dinner

On April 12, Noor Tagouri had a lot to celebrate. The journalist and podcast host had just (on April 4) launched Rep—a podcast produced by her production company, At Your Service, in partnership with iHeartMedia. Plus, it was Ramadan, and for the Libyan American Tagouri, that meant breaking her fast with an iftar dinner. Usually, friends and family come together to have that after-sunset meal, but for this occasion Tagouri widened the guest list, welcoming with open arms all of her Rep supporters and collaborators.

Located at Fandi Mata, a Mediterranean oasis just off of Williamsburg’s McCarren Park, the dinner included the likes of psychotherapist Esther Perel, actor Alysia Reiner, Today show personality Alejandra Ramos, Kimberly Drew, Sophia Li, Ilyasah Shabazz, Seth Godin and more. Guests gathered just before dusk, and when the time approached 7:30 there was a call to prayer.

Beforehand, Tagouri—dressed in a Prada blouse, plaid pants and corset by Renee Hill, and sparkling satin flats from Manolo Blahnik that winked to Rep’s color of blue—took photos and absorbed the moment with those closest to her, including her tuxedo-clad younger brother and her husband (and At Your Service co-founder), Adam Khafif.

Guests, most of whom had already caught Rep’s first episode, came to wish Tagouri congratulations and to chat with her a bit about the series. Described as an investigation and examination of depictions of Muslims in politics, pop culture, and public opinion—and how these perceptions, in turn, influence Muslim people—Rep is a podcast “to challenge the concept of the value of representation,” says Tagouri.

The show premiered on April 4, during Arab American History Month, and new episodes will be released biweekly on Mondays through the fall. Listeners can expect interviews and insights from individuals like political staffer Huma Abedin, speaker and educator Ilyasah Shabazz, U.S. representative Ilhan Omar and her daughter Isra Hirsi, hip-hop artist Brother Ali, and others.

As attendees sat down for a dinner of mezze, fattoush salad, and stewed lamb with apricots (plus tea from the night’s sponsor, Ahmad Tea, and dessert from By the Way bakery), Rachel Aschalew, founder and CEO of the real-estate group Find What’s Rare, came to the stage. “I'm so excited that we get to share this with you tonight, especially here in Fandi Mata, which means ‘to connect,’ by the way. This is my very first Ramadan iftar dinner, and I am so excited,” Aschalew said. “I'm hoping that everybody uses this time to get to know each other and to connect.”

That they did. Guests swapped stories about how they first met or became aware of Tagouri—whether it was through her documentary series on the mistreatment of people with mental disabilities, titled The Trouble They've Seen: The Forest Haven Story, or her podcast about sex trafficking in the U.S., Sold in America: Inside Our Nation's Sex Trade. Everyone in attendance shared a great admiration for the woman of the hour, and broke bread in a setting that fostered meaningful dialogue.

“As I look out and look at all of your faces and the fact that everybody who's here is here, it just reminds me we don't actually need reasons to celebrate. Ramadan is a time of self-reflection and it's also a time of community and feeding one another. It is such an honor that people have traveled from all over to be here tonight,” Tagouri said, addressing the group. “I think I should just tell you guys a little bit about Rep.”

Tagouri went on to explain how she came to produce the series. After finishing Sold in America, she asked herself what other causes were important to her. “‘What is something that I just have to try and crack?’” she recalled wondering. There were many, of course, but media representation—and her experience with it—was an important one. “It’s something that I'm incredibly familiar with, and a lot of people who are in this room are incredibly familiar with,” she said. “And that's the reason that you're here—it’s because you remind me of Rep.”