Get Religion is a national and global journalism site focusing on how the mainstream press covers religion news in politics, entertainment, business and sports.
So, this post represents the 7,000th GetReligion offering that is still stashed on our server. That’s a landmark, of some sort or another, especially since this comes so soon after our 8th birthday party the other day.
An iron constitution, a phlegmatic personality and a clean conscience means that it is rather hard to wind me up over a news story. When I start on my morning newspapers my strength is as the strength of ten, because my heart is pure.
I was in New York City last weekend when the infamous and seemingly racist headline ran about the Knicks point guard Jeremy Lin. The phrase that was used — a chink in the armor — is not racist on its own. If you’re unfamiliar with the idiom, you can read about it here. But one of the words in the idiom can be a racist slur. I was talking about it with friends and no one could believe that the headline was posted. We freaked out, actually. But one friend wondered if there was any way that the editor was younger and didn’t know about the racist connotation. It certainly worked under the non-racist definition — the article was discussing Lin’s turnovers as his Achilles’ heel, a fatal flaw in his performance.
Jeremy Lin’s winning streak may have ended Friday, but he picked right back up today with 28 points and 14 assists during the Knicks’ win against the Mavericks.
Yesterday, the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee had a hearing on threats to religious liberty. The Republicans on that committee were trying to make President Obama look bad, because of his recent edict requiring religious groups to provide insurance policies that violate their doctrines. The Democrats on the Committee staged a walkout because some of the panelists who were brought on to discuss questions of religious liberty had male parts.
The political battle over same-sex marriage continues in my home state of Maryland and the New York Times recently published an appropriately blunt story looking at the biggest hurdle faced by gay-rights activists — the opposition of African-American churchgoers.
For the second time in as many weeks, I want to highlight a discussion on media criticism that was led by CNN Reliable Sources host Howard Kurtz. I wish I could embed the video here but you’ll have to click this link to watch it. It is about 10 minutes long but it’s a fascinating discussion. I’m not saying I agree with everything in the discussion — I don’t — but it’s the type of conversation that will interest readers of GetReligion and give us some things to think on.
From Christianity Today to The Tennessean, Seattle megachurch pastor Mark Driscoll has been making a ton of headlines lately. Most, but not all, concern a new book by Driscoll and his wife, Grace, titled “Real Marriage: The Truth About Sex, Friendship, & Life Together.” (Just to be clear for those not paying real close attention, Driscoll is not the sex-on-the-roof pastor, although both were mentioned in the same ABC News report on Valentine’s Day.)
On one level, the ongoing New York Times coverage of the church-state showdown over rental policies in city public schools has shown an admirable interest in the plight of specific churches that are struggling to find new homes.
