Dear Charlie,
Your interview with Tariq Ramadan yesterday was very disappointing.
There is an important literature that describes the darker sides of Ramadan's public life. In particular, a recent book by Paul Berman, "The Flight of the Intellectuals," has detailed Ramadan's record of anti-Semitism and his support of terror attacks against Israel. When Ramadan mentioned "Palestine" in your interview with him, in a context in which it was probable that in fact he meant Israel, this should have alerted you to the problem even if you were unaware of what Berman and so many others have written.
You did not probe at all. You gave him a pass on all that is disreputable in his positions. The least that I can say is that you did not promote public understanding of this very problematic public figure.
Werner Cohn
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