Get Religion is a national and global journalism site focusing on how the mainstream press covers religion news in politics, entertainment, business and sports.
Every now and then, a story that I have followed for years and filed over in category A gets connected in some completely logical way with another important story that I have filed in category B and, suddenly, I am shocked to discover something new — a major story in category C.
So far, nothing I have seen coming out of Haiti has changed my mind about how journalists should approach the basic “theodicy” story.
Year after year, America’s cultural conservatives say the same thing after the March for Life in Washington, D.C.
Trust me, I am aware that the Eastern Orthodox Churches have some rites that are unique and, to the eyes of outsiders, may seem a bit on the wild side.
As anyone knows who has read GetReligion for more than a day or two, the purpose of this weblog is — through positive and negative criticism — to lobby for improved coverage of religion news in the mainstream press. We like to argue that many major stories are haunted by “religion ghosts” that professionals need to learn to recognize and to include in stories throughout the newspaper, not just on the religion beat or on the religion page.
When journalists who care about religion news make a case for improved coverage on this beat, we usually talk about the ways in which religious faith — in almost all cultures — helps shape the pivotal events in the lives of the overwhelming majority of people in this world. A wise, highly secular editor once told me that he recognized that, for most readers, it’s hard to talk about Life’s defining moments (births, baptisms, marriages, tragedies, illnesses, deaths, funerals) without talking about religion.
I am always amazed by the amount of information that we receive day after day, week after week, from faithful, and even faithless, GetReligion readers. We would be dead in the water if not for the many interesting URLs that people send us for “haunted” stories in their local media.
Journalists in the mainstream press often talk about covering both sides of a story fairly and accurately. I can say “Amen” to that, even while acknowledging that it is rare to cover a major story that only has two sides. Nevertheless, the key is for journalists to keep seeking multiple points of view, especially when covering a subject as complicated as religion.
Haiti is a very complex, but intense, culture when it comes to religion. Thus, the more time that passes after this killer earthquake, the more journalists will be surrounded by stories linked to the faith of the locals and the faith of those who pour into the country to offer help.
