Relevant: According to my sources (Wikipedia) the magazine has been tried for hate speech. It was acquitted, however.
of course it was. please check out their ancestor,
hara-kiri. totally relevant to the discussion, here is hara-kiri's last headline regarding charles de gaulles death (you know, a french hero, so big no-no attacking him too soon)
In November 1970, following the death of Charles de Gaulle at his home in Colombey-les-Deux-Églises, the weekly Hara-Kiri Hebdo bore the headline « Bal tragique à Colombey : 1 mort » (En: "Tragic ball in Colombey: 1 death").
The choice of the title refers to a tragedy of the same month: a fire at a discothèque where 146 people were killed. As a result, the magazine was immediately and permanently banned from sale to minors and publicity by the minister of the interior Raymond Marcellin.
these guys pushed the limits of politically correct. why? because someone had to. they weren't racist, they were misanthropists. to boot, they never attacked islam (they don't give a damn about that religion, or any other for that matter). charb (main editor and one of the victims) went on record to say that they attacked bigots, the terrorists, the fundies, the idiots who game the system, etc. when called racist and hearing that they'd never attack a bishop for example, he showed journalists a pile of journals where the cover were the pedophile scandals.
if you think about saying that i'm biased (and i'll give you that i may be a bit biased, seeing as how it hits at home), i've never truly enjoyed this journal. hell, i much prefer the
canard enchaîné who targets more the political class. if there's one thing about charlie hebdo i don't like is that by smacking everyone it dilutes the punch and the effect. whereas in the canard calling the french president a lazy fatass once per issue hits harder, kind of like conservation of damage.
flamewar aside, even if these guys were morally dubious, there still remains the fact that a terrorist attack killed journalists, policemen, and that no later than this morning, the death toll continued to climb to include a third police officer during the manhunt. the french muslim community is floored, and the imams of france have called the terrorists demons.
i totally agree with letipex, although i'd say that i found charlie interesting because it was so offensive for the sake of joking about inappropriate things.
edit to add: i hate being right: the anti-muslim vandalism has started.
http://www.lefigaro.fr/actualite-france/2015/01/08/01016-20150108ARTFIG00116-serie-d-actes-anti-musulmans-au-lendemain-de-l-attentat-contre-charlie-hebdo.phpsorry about the french article.