As a reporter, I\u2019m always amazed by how much I learn when I actually pick up the phone and talk to somebody.<\/p>\n
As opposed to, say, relying on my vast personal knowledge (and Googling<\/a> ability) and preparing a news report without ever making contact with a real, live human.<\/p>\n Speaking of which \u2026<\/p>\n The New York Times<\/em> had a story this week<\/a>\u00a0(at least I\u2019m 95 percent sure it\u2019s not<\/em>\u00a0supposed to be a column or news analysis) on a creationist organization targeting atheists with a billboard in Times Square.\u00a0The peculiar thing is that the story quoted absolutely no one \u2014 except, strangely enough, for Pope Francis, who as far as I know has nothing to do with the billboard campaign.<\/p>\n It was difficult to tell if the Times<\/em> wrote the story on deadline and didn\u2019t have time to quote any humans or if the newspaper simply didn\u2019t see a need to expand beyond the reporter\u2019s own wisdom.<\/p>\n Alas, conjecture words such as \u201cif,\u201d \u201cperhaps\u201d and \u201cseems\u201d dominated the source-free story, starting at the top:<\/p>\n If the evangelical organization Answers in Genesis was looking to take\u00a0its message to a secular audience, it would be hard to do better than\u00a0the heart of Times Square at noon on Monday.<\/p>\n Wedged amid an advertisement urging revelers to take a trip to\u00a0Atlantic City, promotions for the new CBS drama \u201cHostages\u201d and a\u00a0promotion from Google was a 15-second video directed at New York\u00a0City\u2019s atheists.<\/p>\n \u201cTo all of our atheist friends: Thank God you\u2019re wrong,\u201d the digital\u00a0billboard blared on the corner of 42nd Street and Eighth Avenue.<\/p>\n As the lunchtime crowd passed by on the streets below, few gave it\u00a0more than a passing glance, perhaps distracted by the frightening,\u00a0blood-soaked photograph promoting the horror movie \u201cCarrie\u201d above the\u00a0theater next door.<\/p>\n Or, perhaps, religious billboard battles between believers and\u00a0nonbelievers just do not have the punch they once did.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n My basic reaction to the story: Ho-hum, with a heavy dose of \u201cSo what?\u201d<\/p>\n The only reason I even bring up the Times<\/em> story is because CNN\u2019s Belief Blog<\/em>\u00a0co-editor Eric Marrapodi<\/a>\u00a0took the same scenario and produced a meaty religion story<\/a> \u2014 in large part because he actually quoted key figures such as the head of the Young Earth creationism group behind the billboard:<\/p>\n Ken Ham, president of Answers in Genesis, said the idea for the\u00a0advertisements came from an atheist billboard in Times Square at\u00a0Christmas.<\/p>\n During the holidays, the American Atheists put up a billboard with\u00a0images of Santa Claus and Jesus that read: \u201cKeep the Merry, dump the\u00a0myth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe Bible says to contend for the faith,\u201d Ham said. \u201cWe thought we\u00a0should come up with something that would make a statement in the\u00a0culture, a bold statement, and direct them to our website.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not against them personally. We\u2019re not trying to attack them\u00a0personally, but we do believe they\u2019re wrong,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom an atheist\u2019s perspective, they believe when they die, they cease\u00a0to exist. And we say \u2018no, you\u2019re not going to cease to exist; you\u2019re\u00a0going to spend eternity with God or without God. And if you\u2019re an\u00a0atheist, you\u2019re going to be spending it without God.\u2019 \u201c<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And yes, Marrapodi quoted the other side, too:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Dave Silverman, president of the American Atheists, said he felt sad\u00a0for creationists when he saw the billboards.<\/p>\n \u201cThey refuse to look at the real world. They refuse to look at the\u00a0evidence we have, and they offer none,\u201d Silverman said. \u201cThey might as\u00a0well be saying, \u2018Thank Zeus you\u2019re wrong\u2019 or \u2018Thank Thor you\u2019re\u00a0wrong.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n Silverman said he welcomed another competitor to marketplace, noting\u00a0that after atheists bought a billboard two years ago in Times Square\u00a0that read \u201cYou KNOW it\u2019s a myth,\u201d the Catholic League purchased\u00a0competing space at the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel for a sign that\u00a0read \u201cYou KNOW it\u2019s true.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI would suggest, if they\u2019re actually trying to attract atheists, they\u00a0should talk about proof and reason to believe in their god, not just\u00a0some pithy play on words,\u201d Silverman said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n While the Times<\/em>\u00a0awkwardly inserted the pope into its account, CNN provided relevant context, checking IRS filings for information on Answers in Genesis\u2019 finances and including solid data on where Americans stand on creationism vs. atheistic evolution (yes, there\u2019s a middle ground,<\/a> too):<\/p>\n For the past 30 years, Gallup Inc. has been tracking American opinions\u00a0about creationism.<\/p>\n In June 2012, Gallup\u2019s latest findings showed that 46% of Americans\u00a0believed in creationism, 32% believed in evolution guided by God, and\u00a015% believed in atheistic evolution.<\/p>\n For as long as Gallup has conducted the survey, creationism has\u00a0remained far and away the most popular answer, with 40% to 47% of\u00a0Americans surveyed saying they believed that God created humans in\u00a0their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Go ahead, read both stories (Times<\/em> here<\/a> and CNN here<\/a>) and tell me if one doesn\u2019t stand in stark contrast to the other.<\/p>\n