We’ve certainly seen some abysmally bad religion news coverage ever since Pope Benedict XVI announced he was stepping down. But we’ve also seen some absolutely fantastic coverage. (Before we continue, please note the wording on this image — “Specializes in pastoral work, an important skill as Pope.” Funny, no?) I sit in awe — every day — at the wonderful work done by John Allen, Jr. If you are likewise impressed with this man, you may want to read this... Read more
Europe’s tabloid press has added its bit to the wall-to-wall press coverage of Pope Francis. Crowding out the semi-nude girls, horse racing results, horoscopes and celebrity tattle the details of the election of Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires to the chair of St. Peter have received page 1 treatment across the continent. Two newspapers have been especially clever. The Mirror in London and Germany’s Bild used the same photo of Francis on the balcony at St. Peter’s and the same... Read more
Friends, I took a nasty fall a couple of days ago and have seriously injured my ankle. It’s not broken, but the ligament is barely hanging on to the ankle. Or so the doc says. Anyway, I’m hopped up on Percocet and it’s surprisingly difficult to get work done between the pain and the painkillers. You’ll be hearing from me in small doses for a few days. I was able to follow the coverage of the new pope — on... Read more
It’s another great day to be a newspaper junkie who enjoys checking out front pages across the nation after major breaking news. When tmatt saw the number of local reaction stories I planned to mention, he made me promise to keep this post under 5,000 words. I told him I’d hit the high points (and the low ones, of course). Without further ado, I want to present a few nominees for limited-edition GetReligion awards for coverage of Pope Francis’ selection.... Read more
As always, the gospel according to The New York Times — in an early version of its instant Pope Francis analysis — was spot on, with this headline: “Argentine Pope Will Make History, but Backs Vatican Line.” And the lede? More of the same: Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 76, to be called Francis, will break ground as a Jesuit and Latin American. But his views on gay marriage, abortion and other issues make him a conventional choice to lead the church.... Read more
All together now: Raise your hands if you wanted to throw something at the television screen the 666th time, or thereabouts, that CNN put up that graphic announcing that the newly named Pope Francis — formerly Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina — was the “first non-European pope.” For the moment, let’s set aside St. Peter himself. Last time I checked, Africa is not part of Europe and, in the first millennium, there were popes from northern Africa. So what... Read more
The religion news world remains on pope watch, awaiting the selection of Benedict XVI’s successor. Or, as a Twitter post by Religion News Service put it Tuesday afternoon: First day of voting for new #pope ends without a winner ow.ly/iPwA1 — ReligionNewsService (@ReligionNewsNow) March 12, 2013 Winner winner chicken dinner? Even though I am no expert on the Roman Catholic Church or the papal selection process, the use of the term “winner” made me chuckle. It’s as if the cardinals... Read more
Does anyone remember why the powerful Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger selected the name Benedict XVI when he was elected pope? I may be wrong on this, but here is what I remember. Yes, his choice was a salute to an earlier pope, who helped steer the church through the crisis of World War I. And, yes, the famous St. Benedict is considered the key figure in the history of Western monasticism and, with his vision of strong communities of faith, played... Read more
The downfall of Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Britain’s senior Roman Catholic cleric, has not shown the press at its best. While the Observer, the Guardian newspaper’ Sunday edition, deserves high praise for breaking the story of the cardinal’s misconduct, a number of stories have adopted a gleeful and sanctimonious tone. Sex and religion sells newspapers – – but coupled with sloppy language and malicious hyperbole good reporting can be squeezed out of a story. On 3 March 2013 Cardinal O’Brien admitted... Read more
Right now, editors in major newsrooms are doing everything they can to cover the papal horse race over at the Vatican. It’s crunch time. Thus, journalists are asking questions such as these: How will the cardinals vote? What are they doing to campaign and win votes? What are the political issues that are being debated? What are the names of the factions? Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, based on their stances on the political... Read more
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