Journalism and Religion

Religion is often a controversial subject for journalists, arguably with good reason: it can cloud the way in which a journalist portrays the truth.  There is the natural tendency to see reality through the lens of one’s religion and even to use writing as an opportunity to share information about the religion.  As a result, other journalists have feared this possibility and have striven to completely avoid religion in their pieces.  This dichotomy is exemplified in contrasting Pluto’s perspective with that of Kolob.  Kolob championed a theocracy as the ideal society with a journalistic duty to disseminate truth and life.  Such a society would emphasize taking an eternal perspective on life and would maintain that self-worth comes from obedience and selflessness.  Forgiveness and repentance are made possible through Jesus Christ. By contrast, Pluto advocates a democracy in which time is of the essence, wealth and power determine self-worth, and forgiveness and repentance are not possible.  Although these two scholars lived hundreds of years before our time, their ideas act as a microcosm for the same conflict in journalism.

However, there is a way in which journalism and religion can intersect.  Even though they are in different realms, both seek to provide truth.  In fact, values journalists report on derive from religion.  Moreover, many people about whom journalists write are inspired by faith, and these stories often show how people use faith to deal with challenges and tragedy.  Indeed, organized religion has become a powerful institution in America felt by industries, farms, schools, medical research, and government.  As a result, religious news is increasing in popularity in the United States, especially in the South.

It is fascinating to observe the number and variety of daily news in various outlets discussing religion.  Eric Marrapodi from CNN broaches the issue of religion in education and sports in his article in which he describes the quandary LDS football players face at the predominately Catholic university Notre Dame: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/27/mormon-linebacker-helps-lead-catholic-notre-dame-to-national-championship-game/.  New York Times’s Nurit Novis Deutsch takes a more personal approach and describes intimate conversations with her children about religion: http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/25/an-agnostic-talks-to-her-children-about-god/?ref=religionandbelief

As a member of the LDS faith, Bruce L. Christensen’s counsel offers me and current journalists a way to reconcile and enhance one’s written work within our Church’s standards.  It is important for us to not only understand how the media functions, but also to commit to communicate messages of the Gospel through media.  Whenever we are in doubt, we can always prayerfully follow the counsel of the brethren about how to use the media.

Trapped by the Mormons

Ironically, during the time in which Trapped by the Mormons was produced, apparently the Salt Lake Theater thrived and Utahns thoroughly enjoyed the theater.  Various LDS church leaders have expressed the sentiment that the goal of motion pictures together with all other media is to further values and civilization. Trapped by the Mormons has absolutely nothing to do with these statements, and its criticism of Mormons is so far-fetched that it is quite comical even to LDS audiences.  The premise of this British film is to put forth the notion that Mormons supposedly lured young women to Utah to become wives.  In this film, Isoldi Keene puts the innocent Nora Prescott under a trance, and the iris of the camera zooms in on Isoldi’s eyes to create the image of his eyes pulsating.  The blatant melodramatic captions in the silent film focusing on Isoldi’s overpowering “manhood” combined with farcically unbelievable elements, such as Nora’s father overcoming his paralysis when standing up to the “bad Mormons,” makes the film incredibly amusing.  However, when James V. D’Arc discussed the film with the audience before and after showing it to us, the film is painted in a different light.  While it is still certainly amusing, it is important to note that when it was first shown, the LDS Church found it offensive and far from amusing.  In fact, the Church’s reaction to Trapped by the Mormons is, fascinatingly enough, extremely similar to its reaction to the recent Broadway musical The Book of Mormon, which also pokes fun at the LDS faith: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/sep/06/entertainment/la-et-cm-mormon-church-lds-ads-book-of-mormon-playbill-20120906.  D’Arc invites us to view Trapped by the Mormons as a barometer of cultural perceptions at a time in which imagery and motion were used to convey meaning.  This discussion enhanced my experience watching this film, as I not only found it hilarious, but I also took away the more sobering message that there are current productions trivializing the LDS faith.  While the next generation may laugh at The Book of Mormon, our generation, just as the original viewers of Trapped by the Mormons, largely find it offensive and harmful to the world’s perception of the LDS faith.

Lane Williams's "Exploratory Meeting: Is it Time to Create a Mormon Media Studies Association?"

Offering insight into a controversial but relevant topic, Lane Williams initiated a stimulating conversation about whether or not it is time to formally organize a Mormon Media Studies Associate to examine the Mormon media.  Making his lecture the form of a dialogue seems to echo the open-ended and still undecided answer to that question.  Some thoughts from the audience included that organizations and events happen organically, and it seems that a Mormon Media Studies Association is something that is naturally evolving through popular demand.  For example, the Mormon History Association started small but got bigger over time.  There has been a rising interest shown in online forums such as the Google Groups Mormon Media Studies.  Because of this increasing pertinence and demand, the BYU Communications Department co-sponsored the first Mormon Media Studies Symposium in 2010 with BYU TV.  This symposium included numerous lecturers in different disciplines, which thus combines academics who are studying the subject from different vantage points and practitioners who are actually participating in the Mormon media.

However, the future of such symposiums is unclear.  It is important to note that this symposium is aptly titled “Mormon Moment(s) and the Media,” and while it focuses upon Mormon moments both historically and currently, the LDS faith has especially been in the limelight in large part due to having a Mormon being a presidential nominee in the 2012 election.  As the media scrutiny about Mormonism fades somewhat from the intense coverage this year, will the demand to have Mormon Media Symposiums lessen?  Some, such as Dan Merica in his CNN article entitled “Romney’s Loss Closes Out ‘Mormon Moment,’” argue that it is the end of media interest in Mormons: http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/08/romneys-loss-closes-out-mormon-moment/. 

Mr. Williams and other members of the panel propose having a journal devoted to the subject as a possible solution to maintain discussion and study of how media relates to Mormonism.  He notes that a crucial caveat of such a journal would be for it to acquire enough prestige to give incentives for professors to submit articles. With a variety of different types of media outlets discussing Mormonism, there is a desire with LDS communities across the world to come together, understand, interpret, and help change the way in which the LDS faith is portrayed.  Moreover, given how the media has become a central part of people’s lives, the current generation is the first to not see themselves as separate from the media. 

Although Mr. Williams did not propose concrete solutions because this issue is still debated and discussed, he raised a number of important questions about the definition of and how to keep Mormon media studies alive.  Because Mormon media studies is a subgroup of both Mormon studies and media studies, it is difficult to make decisions about what sort of direction the subject can and will follow.  However, the most central and inspiring point of Mr. Williams’s lecture is that mass media is the greatest communication we have.  Technology is shifting so rapidly that if we cannot grab onto it and analyze what is happening, we are doing a disservice to young people.  My generation needs a group to be able to clarify where Mormonism and the media is going.  This lecture has galvanized me to include studying and participating in Mormon media studies as a part of my future.

Ethical Journalism

Although ethics and journalism have been discussed before in conjunction with other principles, this week’s lesson helped paint a clearer picture of how ethics plays a central role in journalism.  It is a powerful but true statement to state that journalism is an act of character.  People depend upon news presented as a way of obtaining information and forming their own opinions about issues, events, and people in the world.  As a result, journalists have an obligation to exercise their conscience, and a heavy burden rests upon their personal ethics and judgment.  Many journalists succeed in this endeavor, but those fail to be ethical in their reporting undermine this vulnerability and trust for those reading or listening.  For example, one major problem in journalism occurs when journalists fabricate the news.  Journalists may present the truth creatively and even borrow from the novelist in the writing format, but they must always remember to never make anything up.  Stephen Glass, a reporter for the New Republic, fabricated at least 27 of the 42 articles he wrote for the magazine, and this mistake was so notorious that the storyline of the film Shattered Glass was based upon this journalist.

However, despite the journalistic world certainly being far from perfect, numerous institutions and sources are readily available to prepare them for approaching difficult situations in an ethical manner.  Most news outlets strive to achieve an open newsroom that allows people to challenge one another’s assumptions, perceptions, and prejudices.  In this sort of environment, journalists have the responsibility to exercise their personal conscience and are able to challenge news editors and established authorities if required.  Diversity in the newsroom is important to achieve this goal because the newsroom in that case is more representative of the community, so the views are more accurate and representative, which can help create this honest, open atmosphere.  Further, other institutions dedicated to journalistic values, such as the Poynter Institute, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the American Society of Newspaper Editors.  The Society of Professional Journalists highlights four essential attributes of an aspiring journalist: seeking the truth and reporting it; minimizing harm, namely showing compassion and treating sources as humans; acting independently from any interest other than the public’s right to know certain information; and being accountable for one’s actions.

Given these ethical values, it is easy to see how a journalist has to maintain a precarious balance between presenting the truth in an engaging manner without letting one’s personal interests infiltrate the story.  I admire how Jason Barron’s and J. David Goodman’s New York Times article entitled “Northeast Suffers Huge Damage in Storm’s Path; Millions Without Power” manages to convey the suffering, death, and destruction caused by Hurricane Sandy in New York City without becoming inappropriately emotional: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/31/us/hurricane-sandy-barrels-region-leaving-battered-path.html?ref=global-home .  However, a more sobering example I found illustrates how a reporter did not construct his story ethically.  Although it is certainly important to check facts before writing a story, Washington Post reporter Daniel de Vise showed entire drafts of his article to his sources.  While reporters are can verify with sources if they believe there has been factual inaccuracy, they are not supposed to show sources entire drafts to them “to avoid undue influence”: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/post/post-reporter-criticized-for----checking-his-facts/2012/07/25/gJQA9Yot8W_blog.html.  The Poynter Institute even mentioned this incident on its website, stating that after this debacle, reporters are required to have their editor’s approval before sending drafts to sources: http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/182714/brauchli-says-washington-post-reporters-will-need-editors-approval-to-share-drafts-with-sources/.  Despite some corruption that will always inevitably be present in any profession, reporters now have numerous sources that espouse ethical values and will be caught more easily if they fail to adopt these morals in their reporting.

His Girl Friday Hits on Journalism

Sensational and memorable, His Girl Friday just based upon its effect on audiences throughout the ages could be equated with the intended impact of yellow journalism.  However, other traces of the era of Pulitzer and Hearst are abundant in the film.  The journalists working for The Morning Post seem to more about capturing the latest scandal rather than news of more substance.  For instance, when the murderer Earl Williams is in the newsroom, Walter Burns orders publishers to have the story of this convicted murderer captured by the newspaper to dominate the front page, and he even says “Never mind the European war or the Chinese earthquake – I don’t care if there’s a million dead!”.  Although the movie makes the aura in the newsroom fast-paced and even glamorous, it exaggerates this sentiment of solely pursuing dramatic and fleeting events designed to provoke or entertain.  Even more farcical is how the film’s characters brazenly violate journalistic ethics in the name of capturing these flashy stories.  When Hildy goes to the prison to Earl Williams, she bribes the warden, Cooley, to even speak with Earl.  Moreover, when she speaks with Earl, she does not reveal that she is a reporter, which is questionable ethically.  Perhaps the most comically corrupt act in the film is when Hildy and Walter Burns hide Earl in the newsroom, thus kidnapping him for the sake of a good story.  Similarly, although they are not journalists, the mayor and sheriff also behave unethically when they bribe the messenger of the governor’s reprieve of Earl Williams to go away so that this information does not become public.  In this respect, they are putting their reelection interests above telling the truth. 

This lack of moral fiber ties into how these characters did not “minimize harm.”  According to the Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics, minimizing harm entails treating “sources, subjects and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect.”  Perhaps the starkest example of how these journalists did quite the opposite of these ethical guidelines is when Hildy and Walter hide Earl Williams in a desk so that The Morning Post can claim credit for capturing this escaped criminal.  In fact, when Earl tries to crawl out of the desk at one point, Walter disdainfully orders “Get back in there, you mock turtle!” The characters thus did not remain independent and neutral.  Hildy and Walter put their own interests of fame and prestige above the law, which would require them to turn Earl in to the police.  Clearly, the sheriff and mayor were far from independent and neutral as they, too, tampered with the law to an even greater extent by bribing someone to keep information private so a man could be executed but their record could be untarnished.  They could consequently also be accused of indirectly facilitating unnecessary and unmandated murder.  As a result, it is certainly understandable why high brow newspapers took offense to the first incarnation of His Girl Friday, which was then titled The Front Page.  These newspapers are accurate in their statements that reporters were made to look more like gangsters than moderately well-off businessman.  Ruthless and parasitic, the reporters depicted in the film are willing to lie, cheat, and break laws for a profitable story.  Even in their personal lives this sentiment carries over, as shown when Walter gives Bruce counterfeit money so Bruce will go to jail temporarily and he can have more time to win back Hildy’s heart. 

An interesting twist was having the two protagonists, Walter and Hildy, be of the opposite sex, which was not true of The Front Page.  Not only did it infuse a romantic tension between the two characters, but it also highlighted an issue that was then, and oftentimes now, a controversial topic: the domain of a woman.  At first, Hildy expresses the desire to put her journalistic ambitions behind her and focus on being a more traditional homemaker and mother.  However, as she struggles with her innate talent and passion for writing, it becomes clear that the film is making a statement that women can venture out of the domestic sphere.  A large part of why Hildy and Walter are attracted to each other and shown as compatible is their shared love for journalism.  They are intellectual equals and their verbal sparring stands in stark contrast to her rather dull conversations with Bruce.

Despite the sordid nature of these characters’ behavior, His Girl Friday still manages to be “an old-fashioned valentine to journalism and American life.”  While the characters upon deeper contemplation could actually be seen as criminals lacking values, the film is a good-natured tribute to the then-pertinent issue of the dying art of yellow journalism.  These crimes are not only exaggerated and humorous, but often, in one interpretation, justify the means.  By temporarily hiding Earl Williams, for instance, Hildy and Walter were able to prevent a murder and the town being led by corrupt mayors and sheriffs.  As a result, the film depicts a potentially embarrassing and shameful period of journalism in a fond, light-hearted manner.