He’s back from the brink with a new book.
Let’s put it this way: fringe-dweller John Safran isn’t afraid of boundary pushing. The self-dubbed “Jew detective” is so familiar with the unfamiliar, he’s earned himself almost as many adversaries as devotees in his 20-year-long career.
From his early days streaking through Jerusalem wearing nothing but a football scarf on the ABC’s Race Around the World, to his priest-provoking discussions on the long-running and beloved Triple J radio program Sunday Night Safran with Catholic co-host Father Bob Maguire, as well as his real-life crucifixion in Kapitangan just outside of Manila, this documentary maker and author is no stranger to spending time on the social periphery. In his new book, Depends on What You Mean by Extremist, he chose the local far-right movement, including groups like Reclaim Australia, as his latest subject of examination. The book brims with his personal experiences attending rallies with very vocal members, as well as spending time in their homes, and, as always, he managed to the find the humour in the heretical.
Here’s what the stuntman had to say on his personal relationship with curiosity, why he’s always searching for the confluence of conflict, and how journos get serious FOMO.
Read the full article by Bridget de Maine at The Collective Hub.