Study Says TV Disses Religion; Bricker Says Huh?

Great Debates
1

From here.

OK. I read a lede paragraph like that, and I nod. I believe it, because I think there is a general negativity towards religion in the media and it makes sense to me.

And they seem to have a valid method:

But as I continue through the article, I find that they offer the following examples of negativity:

I assume that if they are offering examples, they would offer the worst ones, not the tamest ones. And, frankly, none of those examples seem particularly negative to me.

All three of the shows mentioned are comedies. Comedy is often found in the unexpected juxtaposition of ideas or events. I didn’t see “That 70’s Show,” but I cannot imagine the characters were having sex near a manger in order to desecrate the Nativity scene; I’m confident they they, horny teenagers that they are, were simply trying to have sex SOMEWHERE, and the comedy turns on the proximity to a manger.

I didn’t see “Last Comic Standing,” either, but - while it’s a flip and irreverent way of phrasing it - Christianity DOES offer a “Get-out-of-Hell-Free” card. That’s kind of the point of divine forgiveness, after all. And while it may not be theologically defensible, I can see someone suggesting that pedophile priests ought not to qualify. Again, though, this is a comedy - a wry commentary on a situation, not a theological instruction.

Finally, Will and Grace. I have seen this show, although not this episode. Karen’s character does not seem to to be the sort of person one looks to for guidance or inspiration. She’s constantly portrayed as boozing and pill-popping, a loveable reprobate. If Karen proposes a course of action in the show’s context, I can’t believe we’re to take it seriously. Indeed, one could argue that Karen’s advice should be observed by following its opposite. And, again, comedy exists by juxtaposing opposites: it IS funny to consider gay bar being located in a building that was once a historic church. She’s not talking about STEALING the church, but legally buying it. Presumably, the congregation that owns the property will receive fair market value, and be in a position to buy a NEW church. What’s the harm?

Now, I agree that none of the incidents aboce constitute a ringing endorsement of religion. But if that’s the worse they can point to, then I’d say there’s no problem here at all.

  • Rick
2

I mostly agree with you here, Bricker. IN general, the folks that compile these lists seem to have their sensitivity meters turned all the way up, and anyone that doesn’t take their religion as humorlessly as themselves is attacking them. There’s a Catholic Defense League (I think that’s what it’s called) that’s especially bad in this respect.

Of course, there is some stuff that’s actually anti-religious on TV that bothers me. I get pretty tired of the jokes that equate all Catholic priests with pedophiles: while I understand that humor is a way to deal with a horrible situation, I know that were I a Catholic priest, that would really cut me deeply. I’m surprised that they didn’t use an example of this (the get-out-of-hell-free joke doesn’t seem to be the same thing), I would’ve been with them.

In general, it seems to me that TV isn’t so much hostile to religion as it is frightened of it. Just like you rarely know the political leanings of TV characters, you rarely know their religious inclinations. TV execs don’t want to step on anyone’s toes, so they just leave these things out of their characters’ lives.

South Park, of course, attacks everything, and religion is no exception. That aside, I really can’t think of that many direct religious references on shows.

Daniel

3

Yeah, and all those broadcasts of religious shows on Sunday and on some channels 24/7, do they count for ANYTHING as far as the Parents Television Council? Apparently not. If you are going to say that television has an overall bias against religion, then I think you have to demonstrate that there’s enough negative bias toward religion to overcome the overwhelmingly positive bias that’s evident on Sundays and on the several religious cable channels.

In order for THAT to be the case, there would have to be a steady stream of anti-religious propaganda/invective coming from SOMEWHERE, and of course … there’s not.

So for any truly objective observer, television’s bias toward religion is overwhelmingly positive.

4

I don’t see it. Show me the show that is actively hostile to religion. Seriously. On the opposite side of the fence, we have shows like Touched by an Angel or Joan of Arcadia that are actively, and blatantly, pro-religion. Specifically, pro-Christian.

The fact that the article says that most of the derogatory comments were directed at Catholicism leads me to believe that it was directly related to the pedophilia scandal. And you know what, that’s not a shot at religion because they’re anti-religious, it’s humor relating to a national scandal. Tough beans for Catholicism. If they didn’t want to get mocked, they should have taken care of business before it got out of control.

5

In fairness, the “study” only covered the free-TV networks during prime time (and Pax, which is half free and half cable, sort of). So it didn’t cover the Sunday morning religious shows; neither did it cover MTV or South Park.

The whole thing is here for anyone who cares. I think the sentiment expressed by the OP and echoed by others is accurate – it didn’t take much to qualify as a “negative” reference to religion. The other thing that stood out is that there’s apparently not much serious treatement about matters of faith (or non-faith) at all. I guess one shouldn’t be surprised by that – it’s prime time TV, the vast wasteland.

Oh, and the news story left out the funniest part of the bit from Last Comic Standing. "You know how you spot Catholics? Go to Star Wars movies. Every time they say 'May the force be with you,’ they stand up and say, ‘And also with you.’”

6

I remember Brent Bozell regularly complaining about “The Simpsons,” which always struck me as ludicrous. It’s the one show that consistently portrays traditional conservative Christianity in a positive light. The Simpsons regularly attend church and any straying from the path of morality is quickly punished. Plus, they have a fundamentalist neighbor who while shown as being kind of goofy is also shown as being the most moral, helpful, and kind person in the town.

7

And what about that show that depicts normal teen/young adult life on the WB, that 7th Heaven?

The show so unrealistic that I have to watch it just to laugh at how outrageously goody-goody it is?

8

“We must respect the other fellow’s religion, but only in the sense that we respect his theory that his wife is beautiful and his children smart.”

HL Mencken

9

I pretty much agree with Rick’s OP – screenwriters tend to be a fairly freethinking lot, and to find humor in shocking cultural institutions – and it’s Christianity as a cultural institution, not as a personal faith or piety, that they tend to mock. Presumably, that helps people get past the cultural mindset to make their own decisions about belief – which in my mind is a good thing.

There was for a while, at least in my limited viewing experience, a tendency not to find anything good in religious belief – which I considered an extreme that wasn’t healthy. That’s been countered by shows like Touched by an Angel (not that Della Reese’s belief system is precisely historic Christianity) and Joan of Arcadia (which takes a fantastically good approach to the idea of God actively at work in the world, through people who try to do His will). Altogether, the complaints Rick discusses strike me as people for whom any questioning is ipso facto belittlement, and I personally would encourage them to “scratch their mad spot,” because nobody else will.

It’s interesting, though not unexpected from the partisan Washington Times, that the persons interviewed and quoted are only those with irons in the fire as regards painting network TV as anti-religious. I wonder what a more balanced view would suggest.

10

What is that word for studies that define their scope and methodology in such a way as to readily arrive at a predetermined outcome? In all fairness, I think that word is “biased” although “bogus” is also acceptable.

11

Are there even any openly atheist characters on TV series? Admittedly, I don’t watch much TV anymore (I’m not being a cultural snob, I just don’t have the time!), but the only one I can remember is Maddie Hayes from Moonlighting, and that was nearly 20 years ago.

12

::Shrug:: Prime time is when people watch TV. It’s also when the networks choose the programming, as opposed to Sunday mornings when the local affiliates choose it. If anything, I’d say leaving out the big cable networks during prime time, which people actually watch and which are collectively taking share from the broadcast nets, was more of a bias than leaving off Sunday morning programming, which has tiny (which is to say, imperceptible in many cases) ratings.

13

You know why there’s negativity towards religion, don’t you? Just ask Bill Donahue, President, Catholic League. As he said on MSNBC’s Scarborough Country during a discussion of Mel Gibson’s snuff film:

14

Really? Pro-Christian? When has Jesus ever been mentioned on “Joan of Arcadia” or “Tocuhed by an Angel”? Does Joan go to church on Sundays? Does God ever tell her to follow traditional Christian rules of morality?

Nope.

Shows like that are what PASS for religion on television. But the message that TV’s “religious” shows emphasize is a feel-good message, a message of “do as you please” and “feel good about yourself.” The shows you mention don’t have a Christian message, just a generic Warm, Fuzzy message.

15

Well, the headline on the article says “TV is overwhelmingly negative” not “Prime Time TV” or Some Prime Time TV" but TV overall. This could be shoddy reporting on the part of the publication, but given the dribs and drabs in the artifcle about the study, I’m not at all convinced of its fairness.

Also, ratings have nothing to do with how negatively or positively TV portrays religion. Frex, if all TV channels broadcast nothing but happy-news religious programming 24/7 but no one watched, it would still be overwhelmingly positive. So the notion that Sunday morniing TV shows and religious channels don’t count because they’re not watched much has nothing to do with the fact that they contribute greatly to the positive image of religion presented by the media.

16

Oh, give me a freaking break. That’s clearly supposed to be the Christian God there.

:rolleyes:

17

Well, obviously, they don’t like anal sex all that much, or they wouldn’t get to have all those abortions they enjoy.

18

You don’t deserve a break-= you’re just plain wrong.

Jesus is NEVER mentioned in “Joan of Arcadia.” Joan’s family never attends a church. The one Catholic clergyman who occasionally shows up on the program is a clueless dork.

The only clergyman portrayed in a positive light is a rabbi.

Does this make “Joan” an evil show? No- I’ve seen it a few times, and it’s harmless entertainment for the most part. But “Christian”? Not hardly.

19

I dunno whether he’s a atheist, but the character of Jack McCoy, the current Executive ADA on Law and Order has a demonstrated hostility to organized religion. I bet he alone put NBC in the lead. As it happens, Sgt. Greevey from the first season was a very religious person and held socially conservative views on lots of stuff.

20

South Park is the only show I can think of that openly, joyfully, mocks religion.

And I’ve gotta agree with Astorian about the “Christian” content of these religious shows. It seems obvious to me that a show that never mentions Christ (even allegorically) cannot be Christian. And although I’m not a Christian or monotheist or any kind of theist, I would argue that these shows about angels completely miss the point. I suppose it all goes back to how the Christian church absorbed and incorporated polytheistic pagan Europe. People are still worshipping gods and goddesses and nature spirits and calling it monotheism. Weird. This current angel worship fad turns my stomach.