(JTA) — The Anti –Defamation League called on the editors of a media service to apologize for using Shylock as a clue in a crossword puzzle for the answer “Jew.”

The crossword puzzle from the syndicated Tribune Media Services appeared on Friday in newspapers around the country.

Shylock refers to the Jewish moneylender in the play “The Merchant of Venice” by William Shakespeare.

“Perhaps the puzzle authors were unaware of the use of Shakespeare’s Shylock character throughout the years as a vehicle for anti-Semitism.  Selecting Shylock to elicit the answer ‘Jew’ demonstrates cultural ignorance and an extreme lack of sensitivity.  Even if done inadvertently, such a linkage perpetuates classic anti-Semitic stereotypes of Jews as evil and money-hungry,” ADL National Director Abraham Foxman said in a letter to Tribune Media Services.

Foxman called on the editors to apologize and to refrain from using such clues in the future.