NEW YORK (CNNMoney) <\/p>\n
He said the magazine's newest cover image, published in the wake of the January 7 terrorist attack at its Paris office, \"is not just a little figure, a little Mohammed drawn by Luz. It's a symbol.\" <\/p>\n
\"It's the symbol of freedom of speech, of freedom of religion, of democracy, and secularism,\" Biard said. <\/p>\n
Biard spoke on NBC's \"Meet the Press\" in an interview that was taped on Saturday and televised on Sunday. He spoke in French through a translator. <\/p>\n
\"Meet the Press\" moderator Chuck Todd asked Biard about the decision by many news outlets, including NBC and CNN, not to republish the cover image. CNN has cited safety concerns and the fact that some Muslims are highly offended by depictions of the prophet. <\/p>\n
Biard said he sympathized with newspapers \"in totalitarian regimes\" that choose not to show the cartoon, but \"on the other hand, I am quite critical of newspapers which are published in democratic countries.\" <\/p>\n
When those news outlets \"refuse to publish this cartoon, when they blur it out, when they decline to publish it, they blur out democracy, secularism, freedom of religion, and they insult the citizenship,\" Biard said. <\/p>\n
Furthermore, Biard said \"we must stop declaring that those who write and draw are 'provocateurs,' and are throwing gas on the fire. We must not place thinkers and artists in the same category as murderers.\" <\/p>\n
A co-founder of the magazine, Henri Roussel, recently said that he thought the magazine went too far by publishing Mohammed cartoons even after the Paris office was firebombed in 2011. Biard did not respond directly, but indicated that he disagreed. <\/p>\n
Biard did not say anything about plans for future issues of the magazine. Editors and distributors of other French publication have promised to support the once-obscure satirical magazine for months and years to come, if needed. <\/p>\n
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Charlie Hebdo editor says Mohammed cartoons 'defend the freedom of religion'<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" NEW YORK (CNNMoney) He said the magazine's newest cover image, published in the wake of the January 7 terrorist attack at its Paris office, \"is not just a little figure, a little Mohammed drawn by Luz. It's a symbol.\" \"It's the symbol of freedom of speech, of freedom of religion, of democracy, and secularism,\" Biard said. Biard spoke on NBC's \"Meet the Press\" in an interview that was taped on Saturday and televised on Sunday. Continue reading