Robert R. Reilly

Last updated
Robert R. Reilly
Secretary Pompeo Participates in a Conversation With VOA Director Reilly (50828044477) (cropped).jpg
Born (1946-10-31) October 31, 1946 (age 78)
United States
LanguageEnglish
Education Georgetown University (1968), National Chengchi University (1973), Claremont Graduate School (1978)
Period1983–present
Subject US foreign policy; Islamic extremism and Jihadism

Robert R. Reilly (born October 31, 1946) is a writer, think tank executive and former diplomat. He has published on topics of US foreign policy and the "war of ideas." [1] Reilly is also known as a classical music critic who has written for periodicals including High Fidelity, Musical America, Schwann/Opus, and American Record Guide.[ citation needed ] In December 2020 Reilly was named director of the Voice of America [2] [3] and he was removed from that post in January 2021 shortly after President Biden's inauguration. [4]

Contents

Career

From 1968 to 1970, Reilly served as a tank platoon leader (1st Lieutenant) in the 1/18th Armored Cavalry at Fort Lewis, Washington. [5] He worked in the private sector from 1977 to 1981, and for The Heritage Foundation (1981, 1989) the U.S. Information Agency (1981–1983) and as Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan during the latter's first term (1983–1985). He was Senior Advisor for Public Diplomacy at the US Embassy in Bern, Switzerland (1985–1988). He produced and hosted a weekly talk-show on foreign policy, On the Line, for Voice of America & Worldnet TV (1990–2001), and was director of Voice of America (2001–2002; 2020–2021).

He acted as Senior Advisor for Information Strategy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense during 2002 to 2006 and as Senior Advisor to the Iraqi Information Ministry during the Iraq War in 2003. [6] In 2007 he was Assistant Professor of Strategic Communications, School for National Security Executive Education, National Defense University.

Reilly in 2010 published The Closing of the Muslim Mind, [7] published by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. In the book, he draws a connection between the decline of the "rational" theological school of Mu'tazila in favor of the rise of Ash'arism, which would become the mainstream Sunni theology, in the 10th century. The author argues that the widespread acceptance of the Ash'ari school in the Islamic world resulted in "intellectual suicide" that was primary reason for the end of the Islamic Golden Age and the decline of Islamic civilization, transforming Islamic society into a "dysfunctional culture based on a deformed theology" locked in determinism, occasionalism and ultimately fatalism. In his review of the book, Frank Griffel describes it as "war literature", and "a Catholic refutation of Ash'arite Muslim theology", lamenting that Reilly constructs an undue equation between Ash'arism and contemporary Jihadism, while most Jihadists in fact follow Salafism and its more restrictive "traditionalist" school of theology which is hostile towards Ash'arism. [8]

He has repeatedly condemned homosexuality and same-sex marriage, and wrote a book in 2014, Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything. [3]

He is director of the Westminster Institute, a conservative research organization set up in Virginia in 2009. [9] [3] [1] He is a former senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council. [10]

On December 9, 2020, USAGM Director Michael Pack appointed Reilly as the Director of VOA. [2] [9] [3] Reilly was removed as the VOA Director on January 21, 2021, shortly after President Joe Biden's inauguration. [4] [11]

Publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Voice of America</span> International US-owned broadcaster

Voice of America is an international broadcasting state media network funded by the federal government of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest of the U.S. international broadcasters. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content in 48 languages, which it distributes to affiliate stations around the world. Its targeted and primary audience is non-American outside of the US borders. As of November 2022, its reporting reached 326 million adults per week across all platforms. It is financed by the U.S. Agency for Global Media after approval by Congress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ash'arism</span> Sunni school of Islamic theology

Ash'arism is a school of theology in Sunni Islam named after Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari, a Shāfiʿī jurist, reformer (mujaddid), and scholastic theologian, in the 9th–10th century. It established an orthodox guideline, based on scriptural authority, rationality, and theological rationalism. It is one of the three main schools alongside Maturidism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">U.S. Agency for Global Media</span> Agency of the United States government

The United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM), known until 2018 as the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), is an independent agency of the United States government that broadcasts news and information. It is considered an arm of U.S. diplomacy.

The Muslim American Society (MAS) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1993 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. MAS describes itself as a grassroots Islamic movement. It has more than 50 chapters across the United States.

Radio Free Asia (RFA) is a news service that broadcasts radio programs and publishes online news, information, and commentary for its audiences in Asia. The service, which provides editorially independent reporting, has the stated mission of providing accurate and uncensored reporting to countries in Asia that have poor media environments and limited protections for speech and press freedom. RFA is American government-funded, operates as a non-profit corporation, headquartered in Washington, D.C, with news bureaus and journalists in Asia, Europe, and Australia.

Abu Hasan al-Ash'ari was a Sunni Muslim scholar, jurist of the Shafi'i school, exegete, reformer, and scholastic theologian known for being the eponymous founder of the Ash'ari school of Islamic theology.

The International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) is the technical support outlet within the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which is a U.S. independent agency. The IBB supports the day-to-day operations of Voice of America (VOA) and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. It also provides transmission and technical support for all of the independent non-military broadcasting services funded by the USAGM. The IBB is located in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antony Blinken</span> American lawyer and diplomat (born 1962)

Antony John Blinken is an American lawyer and diplomat currently serving as the 71st United States secretary of state. He previously served as deputy national security advisor from 2013 to 2015 and deputy secretary of state from 2015 to 2017 under President Barack Obama. Blinken was previously national security advisor to then–Vice President Joe Biden from 2009 to 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atharism</span> School of theology in Sunni Islam

Atharism is a school of theology in Sunni Islam which developed from circles of the Ahl al-Hadith, a group that rejected rationalistic theology in favor of strict textualism in interpretation the Quran and the hadith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amanda Bennett</span> American journalist (born 1952)

Amanda Bennett is an American journalist and author, who is the current CEO of U.S. Agency for Global Media. She was the director of Voice of America from 2016 to 2020. She formerly edited The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Lexington Herald-Leader. Bennett is also the author of six nonfiction books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schools of Islamic theology</span> Set of theological beliefs in the Islamic faith

Schools of Islamic theology are various Islamic schools and branches in different schools of thought regarding creed. The main schools of Islamic theology include the extant Mu'tazili, Ash'ari, Maturidi, and Athari schools; the extinct ones include the Qadari, Jahmi, Murji', and Batini schools.

The Open Technology Fund (OTF) is an American nonprofit corporation that aims to support global Internet freedom technologies. Its mission is to "support open technologies and communities that increase free expression, circumvent censorship, and obstruct repressive surveillance as a way to promote human rights and open societies." As of November 2019, the Open Technology Fund became an independent nonprofit corporation and a grantee of the U.S. Agency for Global Media. Until its formation as an independent entity, it had operated as a program of Radio Free Asia.

Victoria Curtin Gardner Coates is an American art historian, blogger and political consultant. She served as Senior Advisor to Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette in 2020 and later was appointed to run the Middle East Broadcasting Networks. She served on the United States National Security Council, originally as the Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Strategic Assessments before getting promoted to Deputy National Security Advisor upon the nomination of Robert C. O'Brien.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Omar Suleiman (imam)</span> American Islamic scholar and author (born 1986)

Omar Suleiman is an American Islamic scholar and civil rights activist. He is the founding president of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research and an adjunct professor of Islamic studies and member of the Ethics Center Advisory Board at Southern Methodist University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Pack</span> American filmmaker and former U.S. official (born 1954)

Michael L. Pack is an American documentary filmmaker who was CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) from June 2020 to January 2021. Pack was nominated by President Donald Trump and took office at USAGM in June 2020 after Senate confirmation. He resigned on January 20, 2021 at the request of President Joe Biden, effective at 2:00 p.m., two hours after Biden took office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julie Chávez Rodriguez</span> American activist (born 1978)

Julie Chávez Rodriguez is an American political rights activist and was the campaign manager for Vice President Kamala Harris's 2024 presidential campaign, transitioning to that role from President Joe Biden's 2024 re-election campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carolyn Presutti</span>

Carolyn Presutti is a Voice of America (VOA) senior television correspondent based in Washington, DC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelu Chao</span> Taiwanese American journalist

Kelu Chao is a Taiwanese American journalist and the deputy CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM). Prior, she was the USAGM acting interim CEO, from January 20, 2021, to December 29, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patsy Widakuswara</span> Radio and broadcast journalist

Patsy Widakuswara is an Indonesian–American radio and broadcast journalist in the United States who covers the White House and U.S. politics. She is the White House Bureau Chief of Voice of America. An incident following VOA news director Robert R. Reilly's interview of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo resulted in her removal from the White House beat and subsequent reinstatement 11 days later.

Frank Griffel is a German scholar of Islamic studies. He is the Professor in the Study of Abrahamic Religions at the Faculty of Theology and Religion at Oxford University and Fellow at Lady Margaret Hall. Until 2024 he was the Louis M. Rabinowitz Professor of Religious Studies at Yale University, where he is still an emeritus professor.

References

  1. 1 2 "About – Westminster Institute" . Retrieved 2020-12-13.
  2. 1 2 Lee, Matthew (December 9, 2020). "Appointment of new VOA chief raises fears for US broadcaster". Associated Press . Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Folkenflik, David (December 11, 2020). "New VOA Director Arrives With Baggage: Anti-Islamic and Homophobic Writings". NPR . Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  4. 1 2 "Biden Administration requests USAGM CEO Pack's resignation". U.S. Agency for Global Media . January 21, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  5. ↑ ROBERT R. REILLY (policyexperts.org)
  6. ↑ Robert Reilly, member of the Committee for U.S. International Broadcasting (CUSIB – cusib.org) Advisory Board
  7. ↑ "The Closing of the Muslim Mind". ISI Books. Archived from the original on 26 February 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
  8. ↑ Frank Griffel, Review of Reilly's Closing of the Muslim Mind in American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 28:4 (2011), Association of Muslim Social Scientists of North America and International Institute of Islamic Thought.
  9. 1 2 Jerreat, Jessica (December 9, 2020). "USAGM Says Robert Reilly to Return as VOA Director". Voice of America . Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  10. ↑ "AFPC Experts Listing". Archived from the original on 26 February 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
  11. ↑ Lee, Matthew (January 21, 2021). "Biden cleans house at VOA after revolt over Trump changes". Associated Press . Retrieved January 23, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.