Study Says TV Disses Religion; Bricker Says Huh?

[Jonathan_Chance]

@JRDelirious

OK, this is true, but it’s reasonably based upon a reality: if you are going to portray a religious or spiritual event within a society (USA) that is at least nominally 80%+ “Christian” in some way, shape or form, you’re gonna portray some brand of Christianity. Even if rendered unrecognizably Generic-American-Protestant-Processed-Church-Product.

In the cases of Touched by an Angel and Joan of Arcadia the writers dance around theological specifics in order to maximize the potential viewers who may identify the god-character in the show as possibly being based on “theirs”. But their vision of what God and Angels do ends up owing more to the New Age than to traditional Christian or Judaic mysticism.

This is the first thing that struck me from this. It doesn’t pay to be too specific in a society where there are approximately 20 BILLION differing sects in the marketplace.

Although I will say that the casual ‘religion’ = ‘christianity’ sort of pisses me off. I currently am (literally) the only Jew in a town of roughly 12000. There are 32 churchs listed in the phone book and under ‘synagogue’ there’s some woman’s name in the next state.

Yet I just had a member of the local Chamber of Commerce tell me that this is a great place to live because there’s so much diversity.

Diversity…sure. If you’re white and christian we’re diverse as hell. We got white christians with blond hair! We got white christians with black hair! Woot!

And is it just me or is the PTC running one hell of a good PR campaign this last few weeks?

[amarinth]

@Bricker

On the show, Grace’s father is a rabbi, and portrayed postively.

Name a Christian figure (priest, minister, whatever) that has been referenced on the show as often as Grace’s father.

She’s a newer character, but ex-Sister Lily has gotten more air time and more mention (this year. I didn’t watch more than occasionally last year) than Grace’s dad.

[Apos]

@manhattan

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.

He’s a believer that has serious, serious father issues, and plays it out that way. Several of their “religious” episodes have dealt with this, and in almost all of them, Jack comes on too strong and then wins by moderating his tone, attacking not religion but the particular villian’s abuse of religion.

Whatisname, the last detective before they hired the guy from Rent was a devout Catholic if I remember correctly.

If anything, prime time Tv seems to have a very humane and realistic sampling of religious characters. If what you look for are people looking out of the fourth wall and preaching Jesus to you, you aren’t going to get that except on PAX. But there are plenty of characters in the dramas and even the comedies for whom religion is clearly portrayed as an important part of their lives, and we even occasionaly get a major religious struggle of faith here and there, as on West Wing. You get Christmas episodes every now and then that get all warm and fuzzy about babes in mangers. But yeah, no hardcore Christian theology.

[Barbarian]

@manhattan

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.

You kidding? McCoy is Irish Catholic, and he very firmly believes in the separation of church and state, and the rule of law.

[Shalmanese]

If anyone had bothered reading the actual study,

@Religious Study

· There were 2,344 treatments of religion - from a brief prayer to the actual presence of God in a scene - an average of one an hour.

· Of these treatments, 22.1 percent were positive, 24.4 percent negative.

So apparently “overwhelming” means 2 whole freaking percentage points.

I think their logic goes that since 90% of people are christian, 90% of christian portrayals should be positive.

[sugaree]

@Barbarian

You kidding? McCoy is Irish Catholic, and he very firmly believes in the separation of church and state, and the rule of law.

McCoy’s character is culturally Irish Catholic, not practicing. He has great anger towards Catholicism and struggles to remain objective when dealing with clergy- or church-related crimes, but I don’t know if he’s said he was atheist or agnostic.

Lisa Simpson was an atheist for a very brief time. Going way back, Mike Stivic was an atheist, and I think Maude may have been one also.

Ruth Ann from Northern Exposure was a positive portrayal of atheism.

[Bryan_Ekers]

As long as we’re talking Law & Order, there was a cute Logan speech way back, when he and his partner (Paul Sorvino, I think) were discussing a case with religious overtones:

“My mother used to hold a bible in her right hand while beating the crap out of with her left. The next time I go to church, six of my buddies will be carrying me.”

[doreen]

[QUOTE=sugaree]
McCoy’s character is culturally Irish Catholic, not practicing. He has great anger towards Catholicism and struggles to remain objective when dealing with clergy- or church-related crimes, but I don’t know if he’s said he was atheist or agnostic.

[QUOTE]
I’m pretty sure he’s never said he’s agnostic or atheist. In fact, my impression is that he’s a believer, although one who has a great deal of anger toward the institutional Catholic church, not toward the religion itself.

[treis]

@Left Hand of Dorkness

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.

Heh, you must have missed the episode that was almost soley devoted to making fun of Mormonism. Not to mention every third word out of Cartman’s mouth invovles making fun of jews.

[rjung]

@Shalmanese

So apparently “overwhelming” means 2 whole freaking percentage points.

It’s like that “2% mandate” the “moral values” candidate got.

@Jonathan Chance

Although I will say that the casual ‘religion’ = ‘christianity’ sort of pisses me off. I currently am (literally) the only Jew in a town of roughly 12000. There are 32 churchs listed in the phone book and under ‘synagogue’ there’s some woman’s name in the next state.

Yet I just had a member of the local Chamber of Commerce tell me that this is a great place to live because there’s so much diversity.

But you’re supposed to feel for the po’ persecuted Christians! They’re the ones who founded this country all by their lonesomes, and all they’ve got to show for it is a few hours of teevee programming on Sunday morning! Where’s the love?

[Homebrew]

John 15:
[sup]18[/sup]If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

[sup]19[/sup]If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

[sup]20[/sup]Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.

[sup]21[/sup]But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me.

See, Jesus said they’d be persecuted. And dammit they’re going to be persecuted. If they can’t find any real persecution, then by God they’ll find it on TV.

[Left_Hand_of_Dorkness]

@treis

Heh, you must have missed the episode that was almost soley devoted to making fun of Mormonism. Not to mention every third word out of Cartman’s mouth invovles making fun of jews.

Granted, I did miss the Mormon-makin-fun-of episode; i don’t get Comedy Central any more, so I’ve not seen a new episode in about two years. However, I was saying that aside from South Park I couldn’t think of lots of direct religious references.

Daniel