Get Religion is a national and global journalism site focusing on how the mainstream press covers religion news in politics, entertainment, business and sports.
On this week’s Crossroads podcast, we talk about Newsweek‘s “What the Bible really says about sex” and some of the journalistic weaknesses it contained. We also discuss the shallowness of celebrity coverage when it comes to talking religion.
First things first. Let me confess two things before I dive into this Los Angeles Times story about an extremely predictable controversy at Westmont College about homosexuality.
Of all the areas where media coverage of religion seems weak, celebrity news has to be up there. For a recent example, you can read this Associated Press account of Billy Ray Cyrus lamenting the effect of his daughter’s fame on his family. He apparently says, in a recent interview with GQ, that the Disney TV show “Hannah Montana” destroyed his family, caused his divorce and is sending daughter Miley Cyrus spinning out of control. At the end of this brief story, we learn:
One of the most common complaints heard by newspaper publishers and editors (other than the claim that their news teams often mangle religion news) is that they do not offer their readers enough news that is inspiring, uplifting and touching. In other words, where is the “good” news that is supposed to balance all of that “bad” news that you make us read day after day, year after year?
For a religion reporter editor of a major magazine, Lisa Miller of Newsweek can be woefully undereducated about some religion basics. Such as the Old and New Testaments.
The New York Times ran a story this month that I had been planning to blog about. The title was “A Jewish Group Makes Waves, Locally and Abroad,” and it was about Jewish Voice for Peace, a pretty well-known liberal Jewish advocacy group (whose PR rep is coincidentally named Bacon). But then I saw this news brief from JTA explaining that the NYT had to apologize for the way that story was reported. And that warranted a different kind of blog post.
Massive layoffs at mainline denominational headquarters. The local Episcopal diocese just sold off several lovely sanctuaries.
Every now and then, GetReligion runs a post that allows readers to comment about their personal beliefs while also addressing core journalism issues. That doesn’t happen very often, but sometimes you can do both.
Have you seen those “I’m a Mormon” ads that are, well, everywhere I seem to go on the internet? They’re always the “recommended” YouTube video that pops up when I sign on to show my children pictures of cats or whatever.
