Why A German Comedian Is Under Fire For Mocking Turkey’s President

By Worldview
Jan Boehmermann, center, holds an award for the category best comedy during the 2009 German Television award ceremony in Cologne.
Jan Boehmermann, center, holds an award for the category best comedy during the 2009 German Television award ceremony in Cologne. Roberto Pfeil / AP Photo
Jan Boehmermann, center, holds an award for the category best comedy during the 2009 German Television award ceremony in Cologne.
Jan Boehmermann, center, holds an award for the category best comedy during the 2009 German Television award ceremony in Cologne. Roberto Pfeil / AP Photo

Why A German Comedian Is Under Fire For Mocking Turkey’s President

By Worldview
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The German comedian Jan Boehmermann is under investigation for mocking Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. 

In March, the satirist recited a poem on television suggesting that Erdogan engaged in bestiality. Prosecutors are acting on a law, rarely used, that makes it a criminal act to insult foreign leaders. 

Boehmermann has been popular among young Germans and his style of comedy harkens back to a tradition that was popular in Germany before WWII. 

Thomas Rogers, a freelance journalist based in Berlin, joins us to talk about Boehmermann, the international incident and the German comedy scene. His most recent piece, “How Many Angela Merkels Does It Take to Screw German Comedy?” appeared in Foreign Policy.