Get Religion is a national and global journalism site focusing on how the mainstream press covers religion news in politics, entertainment, business and sports.
Terry highlighted one of the more glaring holes in some of the stories covering the public health insurance debate. There have been some other problems with the media’s look at the abortion debate.
A few weeks ago, a U.S. citizen and his brother-in-law were brutally murdered at their homes in Mexico in what looked like an organized-crime hit. Benjamin LeBaron had been vocally protesting the violence associated with Mexican drug gangs. His teenage brother had been kidnapped and a $1-million ransom had been demanded.
What would you ask President Obama if you got an interview with him this week? ABC News’ Terry Moran sat down with the President yesterday to discuss his health care reform effort. It’s not the longest interview, but most of the questions deal with the political debate surrounding health care. Then, at the end, it shifts to Afghanistan for a couple of questions. Finally, we get this:
Occasionally (well, more than occasionally) we find, or are sent, stories that fall into what I call our “say what?” category. Sometimes these articles contain grossly incorrect or poorly used words or terms. More often, the writer seems to be assuming that his or her readers understand the assumptions behind the story without having to spell them out. And sometimes, I’ve come to believe, regional assumptions also plays a role.
When it comes to same-sex couples living together, with (or without) sex, New England has a reputation for being just a little bit more innovative than the rest of the country. Not for nothing was such an arrangement in the 19th century termed a “Boston marriage.”
When covering foreign affairs (or even religion news), journalists often end up needing to mention the names of documents, institutions or groups — in the original language. Readers get used to seeing this.
My hometown alt-weekly — Denver’s Westword — had a lengthy and religion-infused profile of a local family that recently lost their beloved patriarch. Inventor Timber Dick died in a car crash a few weeks ago, leaving behind his wife Annette Tillemann-Dick and eleven children. The story emphasizes the quirkiness of the family — the kids have great names such as Charity Sunshine, Liberty Belle and Kimber Rainbow and all have their own area of accomplishment.
The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday that Pakistan had admitted to India that the terrorists who laid siege to Mumbai last November, killing 166, had been members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a radical Muslim groups formed two decades ago to fight Indian rule in the Kashmir region.
