Education
New York University.
( One of the most controversial books to come out of the ...)
One of the most controversial books to come out of the academy in the last fifteen years is Martin Bernal's Black Athena. It has been a true cause celebre. Afrocentrists have both praised the book and claimed that Bernal stole from the work of black scholars to create his study of the Afroasiastic roots of classical civilization. Classicists feel passionately about what they perceive as an attack from an outsider on the origins not only of ancient Greece but of their own discipline. It seems that everyone has something to say about the book; the question is how many really understand it. In Heresy in the University, Jacques Berlinerblau provides an exegesis of the contents of Black Athena, making it accessible to a wider audience. As he clarifies and restates Bernal's opus, Berlinerblau identifies Bernal's flaws in reasoning and gaps in evidence. He cuts to the heart of Bernal's prose, singling out the key points of Bernal's argument, explaining and arranging them in a cogent manner. Berlinerblau addresses the critics' really important objections, including his own, and links each of them to the appropriate substantive argument in Black Athena. He goes beyond simple summary and exposition to present the underlying --stated and unstated--agendas of Bernal and his critics. Ultimately, he exposes both sides and asks what the flawed reasoning from all concerned reveals about the stakes in this key academic dispute and what that, in turn, says about the modern academy. Jacques Berlinerblau is an assistant professor and director of Judaic studies at Hofstra University.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0813525888/?tag=2022091-20
New York University.
From 2007-2009 he wrote the blog The God Vote, an exploration of the role of faith in the 2008 United States. presidential race, for Newsweek "s On Faith website. Berlinerblau hosts and produces the show Faith Complex which is described as "a dialogue about the intersection of religion, politics and art" In 2010 he launched a second show with The Washington Post"s Sally Quinn entitled "The God Vote" which focuses on news cycle issues involving faith and politics. In addition to this work in visual media, Berlinerblau blogged for The Chronicle of Higher Education"s "Brainstorm" page between 2010-2012.
He wrote about secularism, literature, and various subjects in higher education.
His guests in the arts have included:
Georgetown Professor Michael Eric Dyson discussing hip-hop theology
Director of the Washington Ballet Septime Webre on homophobia and ballet
Novelist Cynthia Ozick
Novelist Gary Shteyngart
Novelist David Bezmozgis
Novelist Lara Vapnyar
Literary critics Adam Kirsch and Liel Leibovitz discussing Philip Roth’s career;
Some of his interview subjects in the political sphere have included:
The former President of Poland, Aleksander Kwaśniewski
The former Prime Minister of Spain, José Maria Aznar
Congressman Jim Moran
The Special Envoy to Combat and Monitor Anti-Semitism, Hannah Rosenthal.
( One of the most controversial books to come out of the ...)
His work on religion and politics and the 2012 election also appeared in the HuffingtonPost. Outside of his usual publications in scholarly areas of interest, Berlinerblau has in recent years turned his attention to the interview format.