The editors of Clareification, the student humor magazine at Cambridge University’s Clare College (UK), struck a nerve recently with an issue devoted to religious satire. Indeed, the title they chose for their spoof, “Crucification,” has proved to be a sadly apt description of their own fate.
The magazine included a feature juxtaposing one of the notorious Mohammed cartoons from Denmark and a photo of the president of the Union of Clare Students. The editors appended two captions—“violent paedophile” and “prophet of God, great leader, and an example to us all”—without making clear which one referred to which image. Condemnation and open threats from outraged students and faculty rained down on the magazine’s staff, and one of the editors has gone into hiding for fear of reprisals.
