Religion as a subject is mostly stereotyped, or disregarded by the major media. There are a number of reasons for this, including deliberate ignorance, bigotry and a fear many correspondents have that a serious treatment of the subject brings nothing to their careers.
Though most Americans are "religious" and a majority attend church or synagogue, numerous surveys have shown most media people do not have a vibrant faith and attend religious services no more than once or twice a year (excluding marriages and funerals).
To his everlasting credit, the late ABC anchor, Peter Jennings, ordered the hiring of a religion correspondent and even after she left the network, Jennings continued to report on religion on "World News Tonight" and on specials he hosted.
He didn't always get it right, but he once told me he thought religion a fascinating subject and one in which the public is interested. He was right.
When religion is covered by the major media, it usually is related to violence, hypocrisy (as in TV evangelists who are adulterers, or stealing from their supporters), or theological excess (as in apocalyptic predictions about the end of the world).
Changed lives that credit faith in God and selfless service in God's name hardly ever make the news. That is too bad because most of the public understands such things, even while much of the media does not.
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