(ANALYSIS) In the late 1970s, researchers began asking why journalists often struggle when covering religion stories or avoid religious news altogether. I wrote my 1982 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduate project on this topic, and some of that work was published by Quill, the magazine of the Society of Professional Journalists. This week marks the start of my 36th year writing this “On Religion” column.
Read MoreThis week’s Weekend Plug-in highlights Adelle M. Banks’ selection as the Religion News Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Plus, as always, catch up on all the best reads and top headlines in the world of faith.
Read More(REVIEW) Tell-all books have become a staple of our political conversation. They give readers a chance to see what took place in private during some of history’s most trying times. That’s the case of former Vice President Mike Pence’s new memoir about his life and time in the White House with former President Donald Trump.
Read More(OPINION) For journalists who braved the chaos, the Jan. 6 riot on Capitol Hill offered a buffet of the bizarre — a throng of Proud Boys, QAnon prophets, former U.S. military personnel and radicalized Donald Trump supporters that crashed through security lines and, thus, into history.
Read More(OPINION) Was Mother Teresa the head of a cult? It depends on who you ask, but the truth is she dedicated her life to helping the “poorest of the poor” and that should be celebrated.
Read More(OPINION) Ongoing fights about the First Amendment and religious liberty are likely to prove the most newsworthy, but two other themes deserve attention as well.
Read More(OPINION) The white-majority mainstream media often ignore the news of Black religion. Reporters should pay more attention to how African-American newspapers are treating the coronavirus crisis, with its disproportionate impact on communities of color, alongside the nationwide reckoning on police conduct, structural racism and protests.
Read More(OPINION) There is a new terror threat that faces our nation. The rise of domestic terrorists with easy access to guns have made even a routine weekend trip to the mall something to fear. Those memories of covering vigils and funerals — many involving children and teens shot and killed in senseless gang violence — came flooding back to my mind this past weekend.
Read More(COMMENTARY) Mark your calendars for these religion events from the Vatican and United Methodist Church.
Read MorePolice are also investigating two more Americans who may have helped John Allen Chau illegally visit the remote Sentinelese tribe.
Read MoreThe often toxic mix of religious identity mixed with politics – either real or imagined – accounts for so much of what we think of as religion news. This story ties together some of those powerful symbols.
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