Editing Gore Vidal (section)

===Scientology===
In 1997, Vidal was one of thirty-four public intellectuals and celebrities who joined a publicity campaign waged by [[Church of Scientology|Scientologists]] against the German government, signing an open letter addressed to German Chancellor [[Helmut Kohl]], published in the ''International Herald Tribune'', alleging that [[Scientology in Germany|Scientologists in Germany]] were treated "in the same way that the Nazi regime persecuted the Jews".<ref>Drozdiak, William (January 14, 1997). [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/10844567.html?dids=10844567:10844567&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan+14%2C+1997&author=William+Drozdiak&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=U.S.+Celebrities+Defend+Scientology+in+Germany&pqatl=google U.S. Celebrities Defend Scientology in Germany] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724145939/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/10844567.html?dids=10844567:10844567&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jan+14%2C+1997&author=William+Drozdiak&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=U.S.+Celebrities+Defend+Scientology+in+Germany&pqatl=google |date=July 24, 2013 }}, ''The Washington Post'', p. A-11.</ref> Scientologists are free to operate in Germany; the Church of Scientology, however, is not recognized as a religious body but as a business with political goals and thus monitored by the German [[Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution|domestic intelligence service]].<ref>{{citation|ref=Barber|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/germany-is-harassing-scientologists-says-us-1285857.html|title=Germany is harassing Scientologists, says US|last=Barber|first=Tony|date=January 30, 1997|work=[[The Independent]]|access-date=September 11, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{citation | last = Kent | first = Stephen A. | author-link = Stephen A. Kent |date=January 2001 | title = The French and German versus American Debate over 'New Religions', Scientology, and Human Rights | journal = [[Marburg Journal of Religion]] | volume = 6 | issue = 1 | url = http://www.uni-marburg.de/fb03/ivk/mjr/pdfs/2001/articles/kent2001.pdf | access-date = June 17, 2009 }}</ref> Despite signing the letter, Vidal was critical of [[Scientology]] as a religion.<ref>Baker, Russ. April 1997. [https://web.archive.org/web/20120207143937/http://factnet.org/node/1370/#gorevidal "Clash of the Titans: Scientology vs. Germany"], ''[[George (magazine)|George]]'' magazine.</ref>