The very passion that religious beliefs excite may be why media coverage of religion is sometimes viewed with distrust and even anger, according to a panel discussion of news and religion.
The key to covering religion is to be accurate and knowledgeable — and to remember that religion in Utah embraces more than The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, panelists agreed.
News coverage of religion was the topic of a "credibility roundtable" Thursday, sponsored by the Associated Press Managing Editors and the Salt Lake Tribune, with some funding by the Ford Foundation. The newspaper brought together 33 panelists from religious and civic groups, as well as area media, to look at expectations and challenges when religion is part of a story.
Reporting religious topics can be "rewarding" for both the media and the story subjects "at times," noted James E. Shelledy, editor of the Salt Lake Tribune.
There was some disagreement among panelists, particularly on how to define terms like "fair" and "objective," but it was an amiable discussion. Kat Snow, KUER news director, said that reporters who cover religion "with broad strokes and quick summaries do disservice."
The Deseret News was a phantom presence. Though the newspaper was not invited to participate, much of the discussion centered around how the two daily Salt Lake newspapers cover religion. Asked by moderator Shelley Thomas, spokeswoman for the Huntsman Cancer Institute, why Utah's second-largest daily was left out, Shelledy said that "not everyone was invited" because the group was "big" and "adequately diverse." He later told the Associated Press that "they are a direct rival paper and traditionally you don't invite direct rivals."
Deseret News Editor and Chief Operating Officer John Hughes was surprised not to be included. "It would have been logical to invite the Deseret News to the Tribune seminar. We were surprised not to be. Had we been running the seminar, we would have invited the Tribune."
Much of the discussion centered around American attitudes toward religion and how the media deals with it. A Freedom Forum survey said 90 percent of Americans believe in a higher power, 80 percent pray, 70 percent identify with a religious group and 40 percent attend religious services regularly. But about a third of the panelists said they think people who work for news organizations are less religious than the general population.
Locally, the desire for news about religion and spirituality "of any faith" is the strongest Adam Bradshaw, KTVX news director, has seen anywhere, he said.
J.D. Williams, political science professor at the University of Utah, urged reporters to apply "newsworthiness" and the "public interest" tests to stories about religion.
Panelists representing religions lamented that churches often don't become stories unless there's controversy. The Rev. France Davis, Calvary Baptist Church, added that "many small religious groups, organizations and individuals do not get (coverage) at all. No one listens to their point of view."
The fact that Salt Lake City is the headquarters of The LDS Church and that so many of the state's residents are members came up several times, as did church ownership of media. Brink Chipman, news director for KSL Ch. 5, which, like the Deseret News, is owned by the LDS Church, said the television station has to deal with perception issues every day. "We have to work harder," he said. "The majority of our stories are not LDS stories."
Speakers basically agreed that coverage of religion in the state is strong and is much more inclusive now than it used to be.
E-MAIL: lois@desnews.com