Through a Screen Darkly
bonus commentary:
Does the
Mainstream Media have a Bias Against Christianity?
Yes, I do grow weary of the relentless portrayals of Christians as
brainless idiots on the big screen. And those who are eager to dismiss
Christianity will happily embrace these portrayals as some kind of
verification that our faith is empty.
When I encounter people who point to Christian foolishness as evidence
that faith is misguided, I’ve reminded them that many of their favorite
movies show the redemptive influence of faith on broken people. While
Hollywood's satires and
send-ups sometimes speak the painful truth, there have been quite a
few movies that offer dignified portrayals of Christians.
Here are a few titles that show faith in a truthful
and positive light: Dead Man Walking, Ordet, Chariots of Fire,
The Apostle, Magnolia, A Walk to Remember, The Year of Living
Dangerously, Vanya on 42nd Street, Diary of a Country Priest,
Shadowlands, Ben-Hur, A Man for All Seasons, A River Runs Through It, The
Hiding Place, The Sound of Music, The Elephant Man, The Robe, Brother Sun
Sister Moon, Molokai, Places in the Heart, Sergeant York, A Cry in the
Dark, Tender Mercies, Le Chambon, Italian for Beginners, You Can Count on
Me, The Mission, Les Miserables, Chelsea Walls, X2: X-Men United, and
Signs.
Still, it’s unlikely that a society intent upon laughing at others, rather
than themselves, is going to go out of its way to
apprehend the integrity of Christian faith. Most skeptics prefer
conspiracy theories and blended heresies like The Da Vinci Code to
reinforce their prejudice.
But prejudice is not the primary reason we continually see Christians made
into a laughing stock.
The mainstream media is made up of businesses. Most
businesspeople aim to make money. The media makes money by pursuing high
ratings. And here are some surefire ways to earn ratings:
- Expose a hypocrite. Crowds love to see a proud man
fall.
- Show something controversial. Crowds love a
scandal.
- Broadcast an extremist behaving outrageously.
Crowds love people who embarrass themselves.
- Turn two extremists against each other — crowds
love a fight.
Thus, when the mainstream media looks for a
representative of Christians, or any particular community, they often go
looking for someone whose views are extreme enough to qualify as great,
profitable entertainment.
* * *
Recently, I was working at my desk at
Seattle Pacific University when I received a phone call from a woman who
works for one of the three major news networks. She informed me that she
had heard I was a Christian movie reviewer with a sizable readership. They
wanted to pick me up, drive me downtown, and put me on camera for a
special report on a TV news program.
This was the question of the day:
Is the media anti-religious?
My first thought was, of course,
“Give me an hour. I need to change into some nicer clothes.” But then I
started preparing my notes and pondering what I would say.
Here was the basic idea of my planned
reply:
When I say
“the media,” I am aware that I’m using a gross generalization, like
“Hollywood” or “Democrats” or “Republicans.” Thus, there will be
exceptions to my answer.
Having said
that, it is my opinion that the mainstream media tends to go with whatever
will be the most arresting story. Thus, they often go for extreme voices
instead of something closer to the truth. We end up watching a lot of
interviews and reports in which religious people say and do extreme and
terrible things, because that’s interesting. That’s unexpected.
That’s exciting.
But you get
the same thing in the religious press ... religious voices speaking in
extreme, attention-grabbing, self-righteous terms about the non-religious.
We set up straw men, and we knock them down. It’s dramatic and engaging,
but it’s not terribly challenging.
It would be
a healthy change for everyone if audiences were exposed to those
intelligent, moderate, insightful people who are widely respected by the
Christian community. There are many who could contribute to an engaging
and balanced dialogue without resorting to inflammatory language or
stone-throwing.
But
intelligence does not earn big ratings. Sensational spectacles are what
win viewers, and thus we’re not likely to see businesses flocking to
portray Christians — or any particular interest group for that matter —
fairly.
Satisfied with my rough-draft answer
to the question, I waited for the phone to ring with the details for my
transportation.
And the phone did ring. But before I
could offer my answer to the woman, she said to me, with profuse
apologies, that the network had decided my opinions were not “extreme
enough.”
They had looked at my Web site and
realized I wasn't going to offer an impassioned, defensive, outraged,
anti-media response. They were looking for a Christian who would.
She added, "Off the record, I just
want to say that this pretty much guarantees our program will have nothing
of value to say on the matter."
I can't think of a punchline good
enough to end this story.
