The Religion Beat

After taking this class and specially reading the religion section, I have no doubts religion and ethnicity permeate most of the topics media and journalism cover.They are almost everywhere all the time because they are key aspects of people's identities and personalities.

However, media and news organization continue neglecting this fields. As we read on Religion in or Out of the News, AP, which is a huge news organization, had only one journalist capable to accurately handle the religion news. This makes no sense.

Media seem to pay more attention to beats most journalists and editors are more familiar with like sports, business or even crime. But when it comes to religion, media choose shortcuts. Help Wanted on the Religion Beat compares the differences between the staffing of regular beats and religion beats. In some news organizations, there is not even a religion department or reporter.

The religion beat is usually covered by reporters who are not acquainted with the subjects. An example of this was mention in Help the Religion Beat.... Diane Connolly was named religion beat editor for The Dallas Morning News without having any expertise. In the readings, they mention poor coverage is due to the fact that news gatekeepers don't give religion sufficient importance.

I think this happens because journalists don't receive enough training on the subject while in school. Why? Probably because religion is a rough area to walk through. Religion - and ethnicity - involve conviction, morality, and faith. All of them guide individuals' lives and permeate every aspect of life, like I said in the introduction. So everybody is somehow biased, including journalists and journalism professors.

It is probably harder to be objective and act independently when interacting with different, or even same, convictions, moralities and faiths. It also requires a sincere and open understanding of the "others", which is still society's pending class.