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Generic Armenians fleeing Syria for no particular reason

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For news consumers who are closely following events on the ground in Syria, especially those of us who are worried about the protection of religious minorities there, it will come as little surprise to learn that ethnic Armenians are fleeing the dangerous cities and towns of Syria.


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Islamist crimes against humanity in Mali

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The Washington Post has a tough, but very important, read on the deteriorating situation in Mali. The first point to make is to thank the paper for devoting the resources necessary to bring to light this story about terrorism against vulnerable people. It can’t be easy and it’s deeply appreciated.


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Celibacy and the clergy abuse scandal

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Last Friday the Deutsche Bischofskonferenz, the German Episcopal Conference of the Roman Catholic Church, released the results of a study on the psychological make-up of clergy who had sexually abused children. I was surprised by the weak coverage of this story, especially in light of the 2010 German media frenzy when the clergy abuse scandal broke.


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Savita's tragic death and media ethics

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The tragic death of Savita Halappananvar continues to produce headlines, particularly in Europe and India. We looked at some of the initial coverage three weeks ago, where I noted that the US media had adopted the pro-choice movement’s certainty about the circumstances surrounding Savita Halappanavar’s death.


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A young, dying heart and the prayers of JPII

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News reports that involve claims of the miraculous can get a bit messy (as we saw the other day in a story about India), since reporters often hesitate to quote the views of believers without a touch of snark. At the same time, it’s possible to veer the other direction and fail to report the practical, physical details that can be verified about what did or what didn’t happen in any particular case.


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Yahoo! asks Robert Griffin III a rather obvious question

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The big news here in Washington, D.C., (other than the mysteries of the U.S. Supreme Court) is that (a) the knee of quarterback Robert Griffin III is strained, not broken, and (b) that The Washington Post team survived another weekend covering a superstar who keeps talking about the fact that he apparently believes in a God who hears prayers and plays some meaningful role in the lives of real people.


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Should Fox News be telling you to lie and steal?

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I realize I’m the fuddy duddy around here who is always telling kids to get off my lawn, but there have to be other people who were saddened by this FoxNews.com story headlined “Hotel confidential: Secrets to scoring hotel freebies.”


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