Media Spreading 'Gospel of Godlessness,' says Watchdog
A media watchdog says that from broadcast to print, the news media seems to be spreading a "gospel of godlessness" to the American public through its imbalanced coverage of atheism.
Only eight percent of Americans are atheist, according The National Cultural Values Survey conducted for the Culture and Media Institute in December 2006.
But after noticing the ascendancy of atheism in stories on religion, Media Research Center's Culture and Media Institute sought to answer whether the news media gave atheism the same degree of scrutiny as Christianity and other faiths.
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After reviewing stories in 2007 that featured atheism or presented atheist viewpoints, the group found that the media not only gave atheism a more prominent voice in its coverage but also a favorable and even positive report.
"Whether deliberately or not, the news media did not subject atheism or atheists to the same skepticism to which they subject Christians and Christianity," concluded CMI, according to a recent report compiled for Christian Broadcasting Network.
"By airing unchallenged interviews and predominantly reporting positive-toned features, the news media effectively promoted atheism."
From the 105 atheist-themed stories that CMI reviewed, eighty percent had a positive tone while 20 percent were neutral. Surprisingly, no feature stories were negative.
The report also showed that only 54 percent of atheist-themed stories included a religious counterpoint compared to the 71 percent of the Christian-themed stories that included atheist counterpoints.
Of the three leading news magazines – Newsweek, Time, and U.S. News and World Report - reviewed for the report, Newsweek gave the most coverage on atheists, with a little over half of its issues featuring atheism stories or commentaries by atheists.
The most striking example of Newsweek's imbalanced coverage, according to the report, was a story it ran in its May 14 issue, detailing Christopher Hitchens' critique on a book about Mother Teresa's spiritual struggles, entitled "Come By My Light." Hitchens is the author of "God is Not Great."
For television networks, CMI examined ABC, CBS and NBC. The group found that ABC gave the most enthusiastic coverage on atheism stories, leading other networks by covering the topic 25 times last year, compared to 16 for CBS and 11 for NBC.
One notable segment that ran on ABC's "Nightline" featured an atheist group that set up a Web site called "Blasphemy Challenge," in which they dare people to commit what the Bible terms the "unforgivable sin" of blaspheming the Holy Spirit. The segment, which aired May 9, led to a full program featuring a debate about the existence of God. In another segment, the network also covered an atheist convention in Baltimore, Md.
While CMI acknowledged in the report that the media is not obligated to give equal treatment to all religions, it said the failure to subject atheist to the same scrutiny as Christianity suggests a "deplorable double standard."
The report implored reporters and journalists who cover atheism to present the topic fairly and accurately.
"If reporters use prominent atheists to offer opposing views on religion themed stories, they should – in equal measure – invite leading believers to provide perspective on stories about atheism," the report advised.
"Journalists who look at America's majority religion through a skeptical prism should equally apply their critical faculties to atheism."
