In June, ABC News said it would be dropping its religion correspondent, Peggy Wehmeyer. Wehmeyer was the first, and only, full-time religion correspondent in network television; she will be let go in October due to budget cuts. As a substitute, ABC said it would establish a new partnership with Beliefnet, an Internet site that focuses on religion. We... [Read more...]
ALE OR ART?
In a June 22 article on the Catholic League, Washington Times reporter Jennifer Harper asked William Donohue who were the most difficult people he has had to deal with during his eight years on the job. “The worst, the most clearly arrogant of the bunch are the artists and academics,” Donohue said. Both segments of the population, he offered, “use... [Read more...]
ATTACK ON “ABSTINENCE-ONLY” SEX ED IS FLAWED
On June 12, those opposed to congressional reauthorization of federal funding for abstinence-only sex education held a press conference in Washington, D.C. The coalition of 35 national organizations released a statement decrying abstinence-only programs. Two major arguments were made: funding of such programs amounts to censorship and is an affront... [Read more...]
BBC BASHES CATHOLICS IN “A LOVE DIVIDED”
“A Love Divided” is another BBC-produced movie that we didn’t appreciate. It is based on an allegedly true story about a Protestant woman, married to a Catholic, who brings her children up Protestant in Ireland in the 1950s after pledging to bring them up Catholic. As the story goes, when a local priest objects, the woman flees to Northern... [Read more...]
BERRY REPLIES
In the May Catalyst, we ran a short piece citing William Donohue’s criticism of author Jason Berry. The article, “Put Up or Shut Up,” took Berry to task for saying, “Theologians who question ancient church teachings on sexuality are routinely forced into silence.” Donohue then publicly challenged Berry to identify who these... [Read more...]
THE BATTLE OVER THE CRUSADES
By Robert P. Lockwood Mention the Crusades and the assumption is of a ruthless Church driving Europe into a barbaric war of aggression and plunder against a peaceful Islamic population in the Holy Land. As the common portrait paints it, led by mad preachers and manipulating power-hungry popes, the Crusades were a Church-sponsored invasion and slaughter... [Read more...]
IS BUSH CATHOLIC?
In 1998, African American author Toni Morrison stunned a lot of people when she declared that Bill Clinton was “our first black president.” What she meant was that many African Americans saw in President Clinton characteristics that were generally associated with being black. Though it is too early to say, there is enough reason already... [Read more...]
LIPTON AD WITHDRAWN AFTER PROTEST
On June 15, the Catholic League protested an ad placed by Lipton, demanding that it be withdrawn. Just a few hours later, it was. Patrick Scully, the league’s director of communications, explained the league’s position to Steven Milton, the public relations director of Unilever; Unilever is the parent company of Lipton. The ad, which was published... [Read more...]
MEDIA BIAS AT CNN AND SALON.COM
Media bias is an issue we track closely. Overall, the Catholic League sees much about media coverage of the Catholic Church that is admirable. But it is also true that bias against the Church is more pronounced in the media than just about any other prejudice. Some clear examples of the problem recently caused us to issue a press release. We noticed... [Read more...]
MESSAGE RECEIVED
We were beginning to wonder whether the Star-Telegram was ever going to get the message. But, happily, they have. We finally have good reason to believe that the Fort Worth, Texas, newspaper will not be insulting Catholics any time too soon. Here’s what happened. Like a lot of newspapers, the Star-Telegram likes to run snappy little quotes on... [Read more...]