Babble babble, rant and rattle

Online Journalism 1

2006-08-08T15:45:00.000+10:00

Hello! And so a new phase begins!

Final NACAF thoughts

2006-02-01T00:34:00.000+11:00

SUMMARY OF CLASS PRESENTATION:

1. Under-representation of religion
As outlined in my presentation, the issue of the absence of religious representation in the mainstream media of the U.S. and Australia was one which I thought was significant. This issue is one which is rather ironic and there is a huge implication for public awareness especially when a lot of our contemporary political discourses, debates or accusations (perhaps War even) are dominated by religious claims and religious sensibilities as we have been seeing quite often with the Culture War on Terror.

This was a huge contradiction between the American culture and its religious reportage as the article by Professor Stewart M. Hoover and Douglas K. Wagner, of the University of Colorado outlined in their article “Policy in American Broadcast Treatment of Religion”.

Similarly, Australian mainstream media lacks in this same area in comparison to the U.K’s The Guardian which included a specific religious reportage section on their online site. Our own ABC was probably the only one of the few media outlets which included a special area for religious reports but commercial television is where the majority of audiences group so it is a shame that while most major newspapers have at least one full-time religion writer, their output rarely makes it onto the front sections of their papers on a daily basis.

2. Christianity, the Media & Politics
However, one interesting issue lead to another chain of thought. With religion reportage, I found that it was primarily framed around the timing for eg. of a holiday, politics and what I would call modern mythological figures or if it involved conflict or scandals. It seemed that without the timing of a special event or holiday, the sex-abuse in the Roman Catholic Church or the consecration of a gay bishop or the banning of a controversial advertisement or an offensive work of art, religion barely made it on the news.

So what I mean by this can be highlighted by Christmas which coincided with our blogging phase. It seemed that around early December, you start seeing stories rolling in involving Christianity or the Church as many of the articles I found centred around. Throughout my blogging period as I noticed the prevalence of much reportage dedicated to issues relating to Christianity, scandals within the Catholic Church and more specifically, the Megachurch phenonmena in America which is an area I will look more into through my essay.

But perhaps what I find more interesting is that Christianity really only received coverage if there was political involvement or scandals.

3. Myths
Myths can be seen in our media with the many singsong images represented such as: "success in life is best measured by one's possessions" or "power or that happiness lies primarily in acquiring goods and services."

As I already outlined, the Megachurch is a religious concept which has received much coverage in the media today. Check out the website:

Megachurch Here

Megachurches have grasped onto the power of images, with massive spending in the millions on technology and television programs to promote their message. I think the website pretty much sums up the image which they are portraying so what you might see as modern-day super heroes with the economic power as represented in the technology they can afford which then become regurgitated in the mainstream media. If not, then there's the private television programs which promote their messages.

4. And last but not least...

Last but not least, the minority religions. It seems the only kind of stories which involve a religion other than mainstream Christianity is the pot-luck one-off novelty event. Stories such as monks given a special corner in shopping centres as the Sydney Morning Herald featured in its “unusual but true” section. Or more recently, the media coverage both Australia and the UK ran on National Voodoo Day held in Benin. Again, only marked by a special event.

However, it seems the media gets rustic in their skills with topics that don’t feature so often as seen by the accuracy errors in reporting the statistics of the population. The BBC reported 60% of the Benin population following Voodooism and then overnight this is bumped up to 65%.

And then also the topic of using public opinion with their calling from readers to enter a forum on what they thought about Voodooism. And of course, most were anti-Voodoo. How do these tools propagate ideological beliefs?

I guess to sum it up, Marcus made a great observation during the presentation which was something along the lines of: "You can knock most minorities; the gays and the lesbians [...] but if you knock the Jews, you've got the media at your back."

ESSAY PROPOSAL:

Question
"Discuss how representations of Christianity have transcended through the media and assess the influences circulating the flow of media in this religious area politically, economically and culturally.

In the essay, assess the power of ideology and whether it can be framed by the existence of myths through the use of images and symbols within these representations. What are the implications which journalists may face under the ethical codes of practice?"

As word limits are a constraint on the breadth of analysis we can make, dimensions must be specific. I understand that religion is a huge topic within itself. Therefore, I would like to restrict my essay to time, place and focus.

I will only be observing the media content between the years of 2000-2006 and only in Australian and American mainstream media (and perhaps other sources if appropriate). As for focus, my religious orientation will point towards the media's representations of Christianity which is a huge conglomerate however more specifically, the Megachurch phenonmenon is an area which will be used as a case study.

I found that to answer the areas relating to myths and the power of images, Bird and Dardenne's 'Myth, Chronicle and Story: Exploring the Narrative Qualities of News' will provide me with a starting point in breaking down the way news is driven by a narrative mould and how these qualities help to orchestrate the telling of the story. Of course, in order to analyse the Megachurch, it must be properly understood so therefore Thurman's 'Exploring the Megachurch Phenomena: their characteristics and cultural context', would be a great starting point in my research of the area and the theoretical explanations which previous academics have discovered or thought about.

Another article worth mentioning is probably Street's 'Celebrity Politicians: Popular Culture and political representations', which provides a thought provoking take on the mannerisms of how politics and the media intertwine. What's more interesting is Street's proposal of a popular culture which guides politicians as celebrities into what we view in the media today which I thought would be very relevant in my research on how politics is usually the force which comes along with the Christian reports I came across during my blogging.

BIBLIOGRAPHY IN PROGRESS:

Waldman, S. (2005), 'Seven Myths about Faith & Politics', Beliefnet.com, viewed on 27th January, 2005 HERE.

Waldman breaks down seven common myths which are often associated with evangelicals, Catholics and seculars. The article claims how many people, especially secular liberals, misunderstand the nature of religion in politics which he claims to be ever shifting. Using statistical information, academic opinions and analytical relationship building, it breaks down the common misconceptions which are often associated in American religious groups and politics such as how in 2000, at least 10 million white "evangelical Christians" voted for Gore. As the essay will be touching on both these essential areas, it is a good source of stimulation to avoid misconceptions which I might associate with the politics of the U.s.

Bird, S.E and Dardenne, R.W. 'Myth, Chronicle and Story: Exploring the Narrative Qualities of News' in Berkowitz, D. (ed) 1997: Social Meanings of News, Sage.

Dardenne and Bird argue how one of the biggest components of any myth, the hero and villain is also prevalent in the news stories of our media, ie. in every news piece there must be a hero and a villain. With religion in the media this article explores the popular culture of this realm, with a special emphasis on audience response and the role of the media in everyday culture. The theory of the villain and hero can be traced to the religious reports where mainstream Christian groups is seen as the Good and minority religions are depicted as the Other, and in some cases; the villains. This is interesting in our supposed secular society. Bird and Dardenne's article will provide a great theoretical insight into analysing the media's representation on various Christian groups and their relationship with our society's cultures.

Curran, James, 2002, Media and Power, London: Routledge.

Media and Power addresses the three key questions about the relationship between media and society which is highly relevant as religion is an important aspect of any culture. These are important questions which need to be answered such as: How much power do the media have? Who really controls the media? What is the relationship between media and power in society? Curran's book promises to review the different answers which have been given, before advancing original interpretations in a series of essays. I will be focusing more on the first part of the book which include the first three chapters: 1. Rival Narratives of Media History. 2. New Media and Power. 3. Capitalism and Control of the Press which I find to be a valuable source for information on the various historical accounts of the media and its power in a capitalistic society in order to gain insight into its influence in developing our society.

Hoover, M., S., 1998, 'Religion, Media, and The Cultural Center of Gravity' viewed on 25th January, 2005 HERE

Hoover's article presents a theory, that the whole cultural centre of gravity has now shifted. He argues thatwWhat was once easily understood as a line between private and public has been or is being erased as a result of forces at work in contemporary religion and contemporary media and as a result of this, what has emerged in place of the original dualism between the private and the public, between the religious and the secular, and between the sacred and the profane, is a less definite space where those distinctions exist in state liquidity. The article I thought presented an interesting theory which really does alleviate my frustration in trying to determine what really is the relationship going on between religion and the media - which was so difficult to figure out. I guess by describing it as being similar to water helped.

Street, John, 2004, 'Celebrity Politicians: Popular Culture and political representations', British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Vol 6, Number 4, 2004.

Celebrity politicians emerging in the news has become somewhat normal. Street's article talks about the mingling of politicians who gain "celebrity status" through appearances in our media and posits that perhaps political ventures into the world of popular culture is a part of the complex manner in which political representation functions in our modern world. Street provides a comprehensive slice of the various key features of what a celebrity politician entails.

Thurman, S, 1993 'Exploring the Megachurch Phenomena: their characteristics and cultural context', Hartford Institute for Religious Research, viewed on 27th January, 2005 HERE

Thurman's a PhD at the Hartford Insitute of Religious Research and the article basically broke down the characteristics of what constituted a megachurch and also drew on various examples, including Willow Creek, one of the megachurches in America. It looks at the megachurch as a new phenonmenon and tracks down the history of how it spawned but more importantly, Thurman relates the megachurch to American culture and society - where does it fit in? This is a good source of information to better my understanding of the megachurch which is essential for background research before I can piece it into the puzzle.

Public Conference: 'Myths of the Modern Mega-Church' held by The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Viewed on 23rd January, 2005 at the online transcript.

The final source on the list is a public conference which was held by The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life in Florida. The guests included Rick Warren, Senior Pastor and Founder of Saddleback Church in Orange County. The forum allowed the voices from the megachurch leaders' opinions and views and of course, their retaliation of media stereotyping of what their organisations were about.

How Un-Christian! Pt. 2

2006-01-13T21:15:00.000+11:00

A follow-up from my previous post on Pat Robertson's statements in regards to the stroke of Israel's prime minister, Ariel Sharon. In an article by The Guardian, Robertson has said he is sorry:

Mr Robertson said his remarks derived from his "concern for the future safety of your nation". But he admitted they were insensitive "in light of a national grief experienced because of your father's illness".

CNN, USATODAY and BBC also ran the story well with greater detail including not only comments from Israel's defiant stance but extensive insights into the prospective future of Mr Robertson with the proposed Christian Heritage Centre (which the BBC interestingly labelled a "theme park", expected to bring in tourists) on the land of the Sea of Galilee, where according to the Bible, Jesus taught and lived.

And it is an amusing incident because perhaps the irony behind this exclusion is that Robertson was the preacher who helped define television ministries. Surprise, surprise, the planned complex is to include studios and satellite links for live broadcasts from the Holy Land.

The only question I'm wondering now is - will Mr Robertson bring his apology to his next confession with God? He seemed quite confident when sourcing God and the Bible when making the comments. As BBC calls it, "slurs" which CNN sums up in its first paragraph: "Pat Robertson's mouth has cost him his piece of the Holy Land." Definitely. I wonder if he was drunk, similarly to the political slur scandal of Bob Carr's wife being labelled a mail-order-bride?

It seems politics seems to be the stronger force in comparison. Religious groups tend to aim for the separation from the State, however, when involving oneself with the Media, politics comes into play and as Mr Robertson has probably learnt, the forces blowing for political etiquette are still very powerful and a skill he has yet to master.

Voodoo magic in the Media

2006-01-12T21:32:00.000+11:00

Dancing on a beach in Ouidah, Benin.

Here's a breath of something different. Voodoo, a religion rarely heard of or reported in our media.

On the eve of annual voodoo festival in Benin, the BBC provides a reader forum exploring whether voodoo is good or evil, giving a brief indication of what the religion entails, statistic-wise ie. 60% of the Benin population (seven million people) practicing the religion. Unsurprisingly, the responses are derived from mostly those who don't believe in voodoo.

And then comes National Voodoo Day with the BBC again covering the event. However, what's interesting is that the statistics have increased by 5% overnight. Now 5% on the seven million is quite a significant increase. Apart from that little discrepancy, the story seems to come off as open minded, attempting to break away misconceptions of the religion:

"There is little resembling the popular Western imagination on show - no dolls with pins stuck in them and certainly no zombie-like creatures lumbering around," described the BBC's James Copnall, who is at the festival.

"Instead there were speeches praising the religion, emphasising the positive impact it has on people's lives."

Locally, our Sydney Morning Herald has embraced this new gust of wind also.

Thousands in Ouidah, Benin.

So eagerly have they embraced that there were two almost identical stories covered both on the 11th and 12th of January about the event. Strange indeed.

Two media outlets from opposite ends of the globe, one topic and already two strange occurrences. One with a statistical increase, another publishing the exact same story twice over two days, only with different images and headlines. Did anyone say voodoo magic?

Evolution Week

2006-01-11T23:42:00.000+11:00

Once again the issue of "literal Bible interpretation" is touched upon and this time it is during the Charles Darwin Evolution Week which brought much coverage on the BBC with a range of articles covering the anniversary of Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection. Why would this touch upon the area of religion? Well, as the Sydney Morning Herald puts it:

IT IS an anniversary that will not be celebrated by those who believe in a literal interpretation of the Bible. [...] 23 years after arriving on the Beagle he published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, which contradicted the Bible's account that God created the Earth and all its plants and animals in six days.

Creating much controversy amongst Bible-huggers, Darwin continues to create headlines today.

Jamieson Valley

The SMH dealt with this story cautiously, treading lightly with sensitivity to its possible Christian audience. It seems to be pro-Darwin in its tone, however, careful not to upset Christians with too much promotion as seen through the choice of using Professor Nicholas, a University of Sydney professor of animal genetics as a current voice.

"Darwin never set out to wreak havoc with Christian beliefs," he said. "His intention when he started on the voyage was to become a minister of religion. The great irony is that one of the major occupations of men of the cloth in the 19th century was going out and making natural history collections. They were showing the power of the creator in all these numbers of species.

"The only difference [with Darwin] was that he asked questions. The more he looked the more he realised God's creations didn't fit into neat little boxes. He realised the Bible wasn't a textbook for biology.

"Those people wishing to have a literal interpretation of the Bible, they are always going to have trouble [with Darwin's theories]. What scientists have to do is try to reach as much common ground with other views as they can."

The BBC continued various stories related to Darwin, such as his former home being labelled a World Heritage site and Education sections dedicated to the man and his theories. I found the Darwin debate rather interesting also.

These articles all imply one thing - we cannot take everything for face value, whether it is in the Media, or from religious powerhouses such as the Bible. The message is for all to question things around us and it seems the tonal slant is pro-non-literal interpretation of the Holy Book.

Terrorism and Islam

2006-01-10T23:39:00.000+11:00

A piece of news we don't hear so often, one which I rarely see in the Australian mainstream media especially not with a full story dedication was picked up from the Sydney Morning Herald. This is one piece of opinion which should be balanced more within our Australian mainstream media; perhaps more so in those papers such as The Daily Telegraph if we wish to have a local comparison.

A top Saudi cleric has told Muslim pilgrims marking the climax of hajj that the west was using the global phenomenon of terrorism to scare people away from Islam and discredit legitimate Muslim causes.

Sheikh Abdulrahman al-Sudeis, the state-appointed preacher at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, also called on Tuesday for stability in Iraq and said Islam was innocent of the charge of terrorism.

He then reflected the mirror back on the West. However, I don't know how well that strategy usually works out.

He accused western countries of hypocrisy in promoting freedom and democracy, citing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

"When the oppressor Zionist enemy uses its war of smart bombs and tanks against our brothers in Palestine, violating our holy sites, that's not terrorism to their mind - but defending land, religion and honour is," Sudeis said.

Wars based on concepts never go well. Bush needs a new marketing team.

The Church buries all

2006-01-10T01:10:00.000+11:00

The Washington Post published this story and boy was it scary. It entailed the gathering of Republicans and leaders of the religious right at a black church in support of the Supreme Court nominee (By George Bush), Samuel A. Alito Jr. "in an effort to block gay marriage, end abortion and restore religious expression in the public square." Notice how the article inserts the adjective black in front of church to create interest. It is a scary example of religion mixing well into the political and legal frameworks of America.

Bush shakes with his Supreme Court nominee, Judge S. Alito

And the article is right in labelling the speech aka sermon of Greater Baptist's pastor, the Rev. Herbert H. Lusk II "rousing". Definitely so.

"I've been called a sellout. I've been called an Uncle Tom, and the New York Times called me a maverick in the black church." Lusk said he welcomed being called a maverick if it means supporting "the original intent of God Almighty" in opposition to abortion and the "redefinition of marriage. . . . Brothers and sisters, we will not go down without a fight."

But this is where it became unbearingly uncomfortable for me, thinking that people like Lusk here still existed, and one who's rhetoric is so polished and powerful:

"My friends, don't fool with the church because the church has buried a million critics. And those the church has not buried, the church has made funeral arrangement for."

These speeches were televised into several Christian networks. And according to these conservatives, Christianity is what binds the country together:

Don Feder of Jews Against Anti-Christian Defamation said, "If Christianity fails in America, if the left has its way, America as we know it will cease to exist."

Now I don't know about other people. But to purposely instil a religious/conservative slant to the Supreme Court is rather disturbing. However, any panel should be balanced so perhaps it isn't such a bad idea. But to be told that my funeral arrangement is waiting if I dare criticise the Church is a thought that just won't lie down.

But with Bush in power, it's no surprise there are so many supporters prancing around. Why not, when men like Lusk receive more than $1 million in federal grants for his organisation under the adminstration's Faith Based Initiative. That is one fruitful bush-of-an-ass.

A Baptist-Jewish love story

2006-01-09T18:30:00.000+11:00

There seems to be a formula to any genre of literature. Crime fiction has its bad-ass cops, film noir cinematic style and femme fatales. There is always an element of the beautiful 4-letter L word ie. LOVE that spurs any attention span. The Media does not shy from a bit of LOVE formulae.

We've heard the term anti-Semitism quite frequently. But I was drawn to a feature done by The Washington Post which revolved around a our protagonist, a Reverend of a Southern Baptist church in Southern Virginia with 2,500 members or so. Meet Rev. Lamarr Mooneyham.

The feature quickly creates a persona of Mooneyham as a conservative, Bible-abiding, Harley-driving minister, (who also came from a broken-family). It's one of the journalistic tactics of indirectly creating more dimension out of a character stereotype, this one being a conservative minister; to lure in readers, and indeed it works in this case.

And so the point of the feature is to shed light into a new form of Jewish centralisation known as "philo-Semitism", a proliferating phenomenon budding in evangelical Christian groups where the Jewish people are idolised, loved and nurtured.

As any love story goes, there has to be that poisonous jealousy. This issue does touch upon my questioning of why God only eyed the Jewish people from my Bible studies during scripture as a child. Mooneyham describes his love for the Jews quite explicitly:

"I feel jealous sometimes. This term that keeps coming up in the Old Book -- the Chosen, the Chosen," says the minister, who has made three trips to Israel and named his sons Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. "I'm a pardoned gentile, but I'm not one of the Chosen People. They're the apple of his eye."

I don't know why, but that quote brought a chill through my spine.

I am now curious, as it is only natural to hear how the Jewish felt about all this love and devotion dedicated to them. However, like any soppy romance, there's always distrust and tension despite all the flowers, chocolates and endless love notes.

Yet many Jews are nervous about evangelicals' intentions [...] "Make no mistake: We are facing an emerging Christian right leadership that intends to 'Christianize' all aspects of American life, from the halls of government to the libraries, to the movies, to recording studios, to the playing fields and locker rooms . . . from the military to SpongeBob SquarePants," the ADL's national director, Abraham H. Foxman, said in a Nov. 3 speech.

As I read on and on, I can't help but pick up the themes of romance and love, escalating to obsession revolved around the Jewish people. Here's a good point:

"Both are Semitisms: That is, both install the Jews at the center of history. One regards this centrality positively, the other regards it negatively. But both are forms of obsession about the Jews," said Leon Wieseltier, a Jewish scholar and literary editor of the New Republic.

Interestingly enough, in this Mooneyham love story for the Jewish community, his history was definitely not one to be proud of. The Southern Baptist Convention, to which the Tabernacle belongs had passed a resolution back in 1867 calling on its members to convert Jews and renewed the call pretty recently in 1996:

Its former president, Bailey Smith, declared in 1980 that "God Almighty does not hear the prayer of a Jew," and it currently supports about 15 congregations of messianic Jews, who are popularly associated with the organization Jews for Jesus.

But of course, in any love story, the revelvation of a negative piece of history always creates doubt. However, it should not be heavily relied on when making judgment. Mooneyham is an understanding lover, and he does not blame the Jews for being suspicious. But Mooneyham is of course strongly affiliated to his Chosen People, and what better way to illustrate than through a pivotal moment which was where it all began. After being dumped by his parents with his three sisters in a parking lot of a church as they struggled with divorce and never finding home again, Mooneyham experienced what you may call an epiphany:

Nearly 45 years later, the pastor was watching television before a Sunday morning church service when he came upon an infomercial by Rabbi Yechiel Z. Eckstein, founder of a group called the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. Eckstein was standing in Israel with an elderly woman from Russia who said she was finally home.

"She started crying, he started crying, and I started crying," Mooneyham said. "Then I said, 'Lord, help me, because I'm really going to throw my congregation a curveball today. We're going to help Jews -- we're not going to witness to them, we're just going to help them. Because I know what home means.' "

And ever since that moment, the love story of Mooneyham and the Jewish community has only grown. *Wipes tear* I wonder what the Washington Post has installed for us avid readers of this beautiful tale?

How Un-Christian!

2006-01-06T18:22:00.000+11:00

Our Media has the trend of hailing acts "Un-Australian" this and that, shifting national morals and values under the covet of the Australian way of things. And then, there comes this article from the Sydney Morning Herald exploring the factions of Christianity, with one side calling the other "Un-christian". This incident was also widely broadcasted in various other media such as CNN, USATODAY, The Guardian and the BBC.

Now, the SMH article frolicks through the various thoughts of Conservative Christian broadcaster, Pat Robertson suggesting that the unfortunate stroke experienced recently by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who ordered Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza strip last year, was divine punishment for "dividing God's land."

Mr Robertson was quoted as saying:

"God considers this land to be his," Robertson said Thursday on his TV program "The 700 Club." "You read the Bible and he says 'This is my land,' and for any prime minister of Israel who decides he is going to carve it up and give it away, God says, 'No, this is mine."'

Mr Pat Robertson, 2004

This is where I'm iffy about hawking literal interpretations of the Bible as played out by those such as Mr Robertson. I found the article rather comical in its representation of this devout Christian on display.

As we can understand, the Gaza strip division has been one of heightened controversy where beyond the strip, we have two differing accounts of what happened. We have two stories and two which have brought much unrest and lesser peace than anyone can hope and wish for. The SMH has also given a contextual explanation to Sharon's past decision leading up to Robertson's comment:

Last year, Sharon, a longtime hawk and supporter of Jewish settlements in occupied Palestinian territories, changed tack and withdrew from the Gaza Strip and some settlements in the West Bank - as the best hope for achieving a peace deal with the Palestinians.

The unilateral Israeli pullout was supported by the European Union, the United Nations, and the United States. But it was strongly opposed by many members of Sharon's right-wing Likud party, prompting the Israeli leader to quit and form a new centrist party.

Literal interpretation of the Holy Book has always been a topic of debate amongst Christians themselves and of course "outsiders". It seems the portrayal of Mr Roberston by the SMH is one of amusing wit as they cleverly lace in his linkage with the 1995 assassination of Prime Minister, Yitzhak Rabin, who had planned to achieve peace by giving land to the Palestinians. I could almost envision an almost possessed Mr Robertson, with serious thought given to his fair example, followed promptly by the last 5 words:

"It was a terrible thing that happened, but nevertheless he was dead," he said.

Slightly sadistic, I must add.

However, the article flows on with comments made from the other faction of Christians, what I may call, Progressive Christians. Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League which fights anti-Semitism issued a statement saying:

"His remarks are un-Christian and a perversion of religion. Unlike Robertson, we don't see God as cruel and vengeful."

Lovely podium this SMH article has set up here, I think. It seems there is a nice selection of various factions of the Christianity branch, having a go at one another, trying to figure out what exactly is the persona of the Almighty God.

Is he the vindinctive, unforgiving figure who punishes those who don't listen, haven't read or more sadly, those who unluckily have not been blessed with a vivid and photographic memory of the thousands of words scribed in the Bible? A God who randomly or perhaps conveniently, hands out strokes or deviously plans an assassination to those who behave similarly?

Or perhaps we are reading in on the Bible too much, as other Christian leaders have proclaimed. Because really God is meant to be forgiving and not so cruel and hence the Bible is more like a guide and not a capsule of Law, to be carried out word for word, even if the World has changed considerably since it was written.

All in all, I rather like this little bit of information supplied midway through the article:

The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said a religious leader "should not be making callous political points while a man is struggling for his life."

"Pat Robertson has a political agenda for the entire world, and he seems to think God is ready to take out any world leader who stands in the way of that agenda," Lynn said in a statement.

Now, what's more interesting about this heated incident was the angle taken by the BBC in their reporting of Mr Robertson's comments. They've looked at it from the response of the White House which refuted Mr Robertson's words as "wholly inappropriate and offensive" and the article saw this as "unusual". It's no surprise that the Democrats and the Jewish groups rejected the statements however when the White House butted in, the BBC had this to say:

Evangelical Christians are an important part of the president's core support and generally the White House avoids attacking them, even when Mr Bush does not agree with what they say.

But Mr Robertson is too big a figure in American politics to be ignored.

Religion and Politics, oh, what a slightly tangy, sometimes explosive and bittersweet stew indeed.

More's Udopia

2006-01-03T22:45:00.000+11:00

With the opening of two plays in London about the theologian, Thomas More, there's a slightly different note being struck.

He has a new title with The Guardian dubbing More the saint of "liars, bullies and pompous pricks."

Quite a read, dialogue style, More or Less. And the meta-message of the article shines through:

More: Shakespeare puts those words into the mouth of More, trying to stop a riot. Shakespeare doesn't always agree with his characters. How could he? He was writing dialogue.
Less: Plato wrote dialogues, and so did Thomas More, but you're never in any doubt whose side the author's on.

Dialogue definitely does not excuse one-way opinions.

The issue of Jews in England

2006-01-03T17:31:00.000+11:00

Stemming from my post regarding Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, slamming the Holocaust as being merely a myth comes The Guardian's article regarding Britain's chief rabbi, Sir Jonathan Sacks proposal that a "tsunami of anti-semitism" was spreading around the globe.

Asked what he thought of the recent comments by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, who claimed the Holocaust was a myth, he said: "Sadly I wasn't surprised because Holocaust denial and other forms of anti-semitism ... have been circulating in best-selling books and prime-time television in parts of the world now for several years and this is all a kind of tsunami of anti-semitism which is taking place a long way from this country, but to which Europe seems unaware."

I guess this is one issue which I don't feel is as prominent here in Sydney as it seems to be over in the UK. 2006 marks the 350th year of Jews resettlement after being expelled from England by royal decree in 1290.

Catholics don't like Condoms

2005-12-24T10:20:00.000+11:00

It seems the Catholic Church has once again been offended. They're a difficult crowd to please, this one.

Back in February this year, The Guardian reported on the poster by French fashion house Marithé and François Gribaud depicting their version of Leonardo da Vinci's famous Last Supper painting. It's an all-female affair which is enough to anger the Church. But to include symbols of submissive male specimens yielding to these sexy fashion felines - such a sin! So much of a sin that the poster was banned in Milan, Italy.

It's quite obvious which side the article was rallying for. But I wonder what they're more disturbed by? The one and only man baring his torso or the female Christ?

Come December and it's condoms and Virgin Mary that aren't doing it for the Catholic Church in Italy. Artist Steve Rosenthal offered readers of The Jesuit Weekly, America the chance to buy:

"a stunning 22cm statue of the Virgin Mary standing atop a serpent, wearing a delicate veil of latex".

It was originally an advertisement for the statue, designed to coincide with World AIDS Day on December 1st and the magazine has since called the publication of the ad a terrible mistake, and has apologised, with a few amusing excuses. The Herald Sun had these great quotes.

"When our ad person saw it in black and white, she didn't see anything," Martin said in a telephone interview.

"When I got the magazine in colour, I noticed the ad, I thought it was a little odd, but we regularly get ads for all sorts of strange religious art."

Another issue may be Catholic priests' unfamiliarity with what condoms look like.

"We're Jesuits," Martin said. "I don't think you could have found anyone in the editors' room who has seen a condom." The mention of a "veil of latex" failed to register, he said.

Enough said. I don't want to imagine how shocked the readers of America must have been, having an unrecognisable object such as a condom which I'm sure 99% of Catholics have (or should I say should) never have come across in their entire lives alongside their Virgin Mary. But here's the irony:

The Catholic Church opposes all forms of contraception, which means it does not approve condoms even if used to help prevent the spread of AIDS. At the same time, the Church runs many hospitals and clinics to help AIDS victims.

Holocaust - a Myth?

2005-12-16T22:38:00.000+11:00

Well, this is one piece of opinion I have to admit I have never come across before from a world leader, except perhaps, Mr Adolf Hitler himself. Iran president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was reported to have labelled the Holocaust as nothing more than a myth.

As The Sydney Morning Herald reported, Mr Ahmadinejad said:

"They have created a myth in the name of the Holocaust and consider it above God, religion and the prophets,"

Yahoo! News included a more interesting quote to extend on:

"If somebody in their country questions God, nobody says anything, but if somebody denies the myth of the massacre of Jews, the Zionist loudspeakers and the governments in the pay of Zionism will start to scream," he said.

CNN included a similar quote, specifically targeting The West:

"The West has given more significance to the myth of the genocide of the Jews, even more significant than God, religion, and the prophets," he said. "(It) deals very severely with those who deny this myth but does not do anything to those who deny God, religion, and the prophet."

CNN went as thorough enough to include a separate story at the end with opinions from, interestingly enough, the German government and its condemnation of the Iran leader's statements.

I wasn't there listening to the original speech myself but reading those words did give me a chill. Maybe Mr Ahmadinejad was trying to defend his religious principles through an analogy and somehow the word 'myth' slipped in. Maybe it was a language technical fault and he misused the word 'myth'? Maybe he never studied History. But, who's History are we studying?

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Whatever it is, the political, cultural or historical divide between Israel and Palestine has obviously raised questions on objectivity once again. One side would always see theirs as good and the other as bad. How do we alleviate this?

But to compare the denial of the Holocaust to one's allegiance to religious orders is beyond my comprehension.

The life of Brian

2005-12-13T21:39:00.000+11:00

I've stumbled upon the ABC's Australian Story episode on Brian Houston, the "brains" behind Hillsong. He came up in the previous post. I'll post the link up here.

It's quite long so I'll have to get back to it later.

McMega-Churches: Eat-in or Take-away?

2005-12-12T23:49:00.000+11:00

The Hillsong Convention Centre

Stemming from my previous post, the whole concept of the megachurch comes into mind. I was reminded of this great article on Reportage awhile back on the Hillsong Phenonmenon that has struck Sydney. ABC Radio National also explored the issue earlier this year in their segment of Encounter.

Whilst I was researching, I came across this article by Scott Thumma, a PhD at the Hartford Institute of Religious Research. It basically broke down the characteristics of what constituted a megachurch and also drew on various examples, including Willow Creek, one of the megachurches not holding the Sunday Christmas service as mentioned in the previous entry.

So then, what constitutes a megachurch? In simplistic terms, size is the most prominent factor, "with 2,000 or more worshippers for a typical weekly service." (Wikipedia.org) But as Scott Thumma explains in his paper, size is not the only factor, nor is the huge attendance:

It is a congregation with a distinctive pattern of organization, programmatic ministries, and membership relations. The rapid proliferation of this form of congregational life has taken place within the last several decades. It is a particular and distinctive response to this cultural milieu. These definitive traits are uniquely modern, fashioned in reaction to and patterned after modern society.

However, as we have all been taught, with great size, comes greater administrative power. It is interesting to note that many pastors become more like governors or mayors as the church becomes more like a town.

Change and keeping up with the pace of social, cultural and political movements are what keeps these megachurches afloat. Reflecting back on the chilling documentary, The Corporation, I realised the reality of how powerful capitalism has really grown:

150 years ago, the business corporation was a relatively insignificant institution. Today, it is all-pervasive. Like the Church, the Monarchy and the Communist Party in other times and places, the corporation is today's dominant institution.

How then, can we define the megachurch? Is it still The Church of yesterday? Or has it broken out of its confinement and merged with the characteristics of the Corporation? Does it have political powers?

Forbes examined this controversial nature of the megachurch a couple of years ago. Their article paralleled the megachurch with a megabusiness. Directly labelling the pastors as "chief executives" who "use business tactics to grown their congregations," Forbes tracked down the interestingly "rich" culture of the megachurch:

Maybe churches aren't so different from corporations. World Changers Ministries, for instance, operates a music studio, publishing house, computer graphic design suite and owns its own record label. The Potter's House also has a record label as well as a daily talk show, a prison satellite network that broadcasts in 260 prisons and a twice-a-week Webcast. New Birth Missionary Baptist Church has a chief operating officer and a special effects 3-D Web site that offers videos-on-demand. It publishes a magazine and holds Cashflow 101 Game Nights. And Lakewood Church, which recently leased the Compaq Center, former home of the NBA's Houston Rockets, has a four-record deal and spends $12 million annually on television airtime.

I have this to say about what that paragraph just outlined:

Yummy! Quick-fix Mass

The Media in terms of television and billboards has also been a propelling strategy to spread the word of the Lord, says Forbes:

Media has helped spread the message, particularly for Lakewood Church, the largest megachurch in the U.S. In 1981, Joel Osteen, son of then-pastor Joe Osteen, quit college to set up his father's television ministry. The services eventually aired in 140 countries. He also advertised Lakewood on local television and on billboards throughout Houston where the church is located.

The tone of the article ends on a slightly cynical slant with a quote from John Vaughn, founder of Church Growth Today, a centre which tracks and researches megachurches:

No doubt, churches have learned some valuable lessons from corporations. Now maybe they can teach businesses a thing or two. Companies would certainly appreciate having the armies of nonpaid, loyal volunteers. "The business world would love to have that kind of fellowship," says Vaughn.

In retaliation, I looked up what megachurch's stance on this accusation of their relationship with business. In "Myths of the Modern Mega-church", a conference held in Florida by the PEW Forum, Rick Warren, Senior Pastor and Founder of Saddleback Church in Orange County, California had this to say with regards to megachurches and marketing:

Now that is just such a superficial, unrealistic view of what actually goes on. The implication is that if a church is this big, it must be because of marketing. No, it's because of changed lives. When peoples' lives are changed you'd have to lock the doors to keep them out, because they want to go where their lives are changed. We put people in a tent for three years where we would freeze in the winter and it would rain on us all spring and we'd burn up in the summer and the howling winds could come through – and people would walk about a mile through the mud to get to this tent. I mean, everything was inconvenient. And why did they come, why did they show up? Because their lives were getting changed; that is what was happening. So they put up with inconvenience.

Okay, so that was one chunky retaliation as I didn't want to disrupt the flow of it. But from what I can gather, Rick Warren's basically painting a nice analogy of how it's not marketing that draws people to megachurches, it's their changed lives that makes them crawl across muddy terrains and live in tents for three years before coming together in a huge million-dollar complex to celebrate their love for God. Hmm interesting. I didn't know there were that many dedicated Christians around, who are willing to endure so much hardship, especially when he himself said that:

Saddleback is unique in that 78 percent of the members of our church had no religious background prior to joining the church. It is a church of conversion growth. We've baptized about 14,000 adults in the last eight years. So that means this is not a church that grew at the expense of other churches.

So all these people who've been rolling in mud and camping in tents were actually not Christians to begin with. That is one hell of a powerful converting tactic. I reckon businesses should really look into some techniques from these guys.

And then Rick Warren goes on to say this about a New York Times reporter who did an article on Saddleback a while back. And he liked what that reporter had to say:

"Marketing creates a message in order to sell a product. But Warren's doing the exact opposite – he's creating products in order to push a message." Well, it's true. I plead guilty to that. But that's not marketing, that's taking the message and trying to get it out as many ways as possible instead of creating a message to sell your product.

I don't get it. Isn't it all the same? It's like the chicken and egg brain teaser. Did the product come before the message? If megachurches are the product, and then using the tools of marketing to get their message across - it's still riding on the wave of marketing, right? And even if megachurches aren't marketers, they're still engaging in what corporations do best, that is, to sell a product.

Now, moving away from the intersection of The Corporation and The Church. Let's move back to Hillsong, which obviously fits in with the concept of being a megachurch. Rick Warren, in the PEW conference, rejects the myth that megachurches have political influences:

So when you talk about taking government money – we don't want government money. I don't want government money because I don't want them intruding in what we're doing.

Contrast that with The Age's story about the Australian Liberal Government's very generous "grants" to Hillsong since 1999. $800,000 in fact.

When money becomes involved, things get dirty. In the Parliament of NSW, this was raised with regards to Hillsong's misconduct:

The Hon. IAN WEST [10.11 p.m.]: I raise some disturbing matters concerning Hillsong, the business unit of Hillsong Emerge, and the Federal Government. The first matter concerns the Chief Executive Officer of Hillsong Emerge, Mr Leigh Coleman, who recently attempted to pay off the Riverstone Aboriginal Community Association in return for its silence on Hillsong Emerge's rip-off of taxpayer funding of just under $415,000 from the National Community Crime Prevention Program, administered by the Federal Attorney-General's Department, for use in Blacktown and Riverstone. It appears that Mr Coleman is not only acting in a decidedly un-Christian manner but perpetuating the destructive approach of Europeans since 1788 when Aborigines were moved out of their land and had their day-to-day lives controlled by a mission manager appointed by the Government of the time.

So what then, is a megachurch? I'm quite confused by now. Especially after reading from an interview where the ABC Lateline reporter, Tony Jones raised an interesting question to our treasurer, Peter Costello.

TONY JONES: Well, fair enough. But Brian Houston - he's the brains behind Hillsong - he actually wrote a book titled You Need More Money: Discovering God's Amazing Financial Plan For Your Life. I mean, do you find that comforting or do you find it a bit disturbing?

PETER COSTELLO: Well, I think he said himself that it was a provocative title, and it sure is. It's sure captured people's imagination. Personally, I haven't read the book so I'm not qualified to talk about it, but I've got to say to you, I've never heard any insistence on personal enrichment or wealth out of these meetings. In fact, the guy that was talking tonight was talking about just the opposite. He was talking about leaders being servants, which to me is pretty orthodox Christian faith.

So it seems the media's approach towards megachurches have been quite harsh. There's a common picture being painted of McMega-churches. The original concept of mass is becoming well tailored for the modern Christian - you can have it both ways, eat-in or take-away as seen by the introduction of the televised shows and Christmas DVDs to replace mass.

Personally, I think this is where I'm torn. To me, whatever it is megachurches are trying to preach, and with their cancellation of church services on Christmas Day because of it falling on a Sunday - at least they aren't burning witches on the stake.

Christmas Sunday mass cancelled

2005-12-12T15:35:00.000+11:00

When Christmas Day falls on a Sunday this year, in a controversial move, at least eight major megachurches have cancelled their Sunday services.

The New York Times, has the more comprehensive report outlining why the "family friendly" decision by the megachurches is compensating and innovative. And innovative it is indeed, especially with the substitutes which are being offered to church commuters:

Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Ill., always a pacesetter among megachurches, is handing out a DVD it produced for the occasion that features a heartwarming contemporary Christmas tale.

The PR explains why DVD mass therapy is better than attending the normal mass service:

"What we're encouraging people to do is take that DVD and in the comfort of their living room, with friends and family, pop it into the player and hopefully hear a different and more personal and maybe more intimate Christmas message, that God is with us wherever we are," said Cally Parkinson, communications director at Willow Creek, which draws 20,000 people on a typical Sunday.

The NYT article goes on to outline the various conflicts which megachurches face as they strive to be user-friendly and family-friendly, offering what critics claim to be "theology lite" as they juggle convenience and religious obligations.

I checked out the megachurch website out of curiosity. Spiffy site indeed - there's bright purples and yellows, funky music, flash animation and something about "Raising up leaders". Wow, if that's not marketing, I don't know what is.

The Washington Times report on the same issue is definitely a bit more accomodating with a big emphasis on quotes from the megachurch pastors explaining their decision to remove the Sunday Christmas service, one which The New York Times stressed was what Christians considered "The Lord's Day" or Sabbath, and thus a religious obligation to hold communal service:

"After much discussion ... we felt that it was a way just to encourage folks who are celebrating with their families not to feel torn between [Christmas Day activities] and coming on Sunday," said Joshua Harris, head pastor of the Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg.

However, the Washington Times, objectively speaking, and similarly to The New York Times, attempts to balance things out. There is always plenty of room for pissed off Catholics and critics, a journalist's dream landing:

Leaders at Foundry United Methodist Church in Northwest take pride in always having their doors open, said head pastor Dean Snyder. "We have services every Sunday come hell or high water," he said. "I couldn't imagine people closing down on Sunday morning because it's Christmas. We will extend an invitation to anyone who wants to worship Christmas morning and their church is closed. They can come here."

The securalisation of religion is an ironic concept. However, in this individualistic day and age where it's all about Me, Me, Me, perhaps to keep the name of Jesus alive, Megachurches feel the need to combine the two huge forces of our modern society - The Corporation and The Church in order to stay afloat. More on this later.

Santa needs a Summer wardrobe and wetsuit

2005-12-11T03:42:00.000+11:00

I was on my way to Manly beach the other day, and as I was looking outside the car window at a red light intersection, my heart couldn't help but melt for the Santa Claus, standing along the side of the Cumberland Highway.

It was midday, the sun was blazing down 30+ degrees celsius UV ray goodness (so I thought because of my beaching plans). The poor Santa was still stuck in his red and white thick-suit, wooly red cap, black boots, unshaven white beard and holding a huge sign saying "Flower sale now on! Turn left for Nursery". At first, I thought he was a statue but realised he was real after eyeing his demeanour closely.

But then today, I heard that Santa was no longer working for the nursery down the road from my house, he was actually spotted by The New York Times in a completely different environment - The Newport Aquarium. At least he's in a cooler place now, I thought. Gee, the NYT sure does know where all the quirky, strange happenings are!

Hi kids! Don't worry, I'm not drowning!

However, this time Santa had sharks to watch out for.

As any well-informed 4-year-old knows, Santa has no business swimming in an aquarium across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, especially just a few weeks before Christmas. So each Scuba Santa presentation begins with a 30-second cartoon that shows Santa's reindeer escaping. With help from his magical seahorse friends, Santa finds them at the bottom of the sea.

Suddenly, the movie screen rises, and there is Scuba Santa, hovering 10 feet underwater behind a wall of acrylic six inches thick. The children in the audience gasp, as do many of their parents.

For some reason, I don't feel my heart melting so much for Nursery Santa anymore.

When I was a kid, Santa popping up in my local shopping centre taking photos with other kids on his lap was enough excitement for me. I found it fascinating. Nowadays, the fine line between the two versions - the religious-nativity narrative or the reindeer-Santa-on -the-roof narrative of Christmas; originally a Christian holiday, has become one big fat blur.

The cultural paradigm sees our society marvelling at things that shock and excite. And so Journalism is seen as a genre within this respect. We've always been a culture that relies on the art of story-telling to transfer myths and legends. Santa Claus, aka Father Christmas has been a well-known children's tale embedded in our popular culture. He does not seem to be offensive to the Christians who celebrate Christmas as Jesus' birthday.

Myths have been theorised as a theme which the Media tends to frame stories accordingly. Fun stories of the Santa Claus myths being played out in an aquarium can be whimsical and fantastical for little children to take home to their pillows, but journalists should be reminded of the way their power to propogate myths can sometimes affect reality in a sour way:

Mostly poor, overwhelmingly African American, flood victims in the two shelters had been, in the most egregious cases, portrayed as beasts, raping and killing one another and even shooting at rescue workers trying to save them.

As journalists, reporting myths and later correcting them offers vital lessons on ramping up skepticism in initial reporting from chaotic environments – even if the sources are authoritative ones. We have three basic tools to use here, one during the reporting, the other during publishing, the third during any needed correction of initial reports.

Hence, when it comes dowm to the cusp of things, it is up to the journalist or the editor to control the amount of myth which is channelled into the mainstream media - especially around areas such as Religion. Popular culture is powerful, and ethical judgments should also be trained to properly ascertain the power of the Media.

The Ring - no, not the movie!

2005-12-09T23:06:00.000+11:00

You heard us: NOT YET!

Have you heard the word? According to an interesting feature in the The New York Times, chastity rings, described as "still not mainstream enough to be considered cool," are a growing symbolic fashion statement for teenagers who vow to remain chaste until marriage.

The New York Times feature includes a photograph of a beaming group of cheery teenagers showing off their purity rings, you know, the ones that say, "no, not yet!" Although they were originally only sold in Christian gift shops, they have, apparently, become so well-known that they can even be purchased online on Amazon.com or other stores such as AppleFieldDirect.

However, believe it or not, they do have their critics:

The growing visibility of purity rings comes amid a long-running controversy over the promotion of abstinence in sex-education programs for teenagers. Critics charge that promoting abstinence as a singular virtue means denying to teenagers the sex education they need.

But how can abstinence, possibly cause anyone problems? Who needs sex education when you're not even practising it? Interestingly, the ring leaders are teaching their followers that not only is sex before marriage a big no-no whilst you are wearing your purity ring, (although the message does become blurry once you slap on the marriage ring because sex/love is something "worth waiting for") they are also being taught that, hey, boys and girls, condoms don't actually work, despite what your sex-ed teacher says:

Michael McGee, the vice president for education at Planned Parenthood, said that abstinence-only groups are putting "a generation of kids at risk" by teaching them that condoms do not work. If teenagers who are taught only abstinence break a chastity vow, which many do, Mr. McGee said, they are less likely to protect themselves from sexually transmitted infections. He said teenagers have come into Planned Parenthood offices in Texas seeking pregnancy tests - yet when offered free condoms they have refused, saying they were taught condoms do not work.

Scary, huh? This gives me flashbacks of Ned Flanders' poor kids in a good ol' episode of the four-fingered yellow skinned family.

Although the article offers both sides of the argument for the sake of "objectivity", it seems to be more of a promotion for this new "fashion" with a moral veil. Simon Cottle had a point when he talked about the media as being a field for imposing cultural rituals. Despite the non-mainstream culture of chastity rings, they too, have a voice and therefore symbolic power despite not being part of pop culture.

Chastity rings might have their genuine followers who are truly committed to the works of The Silver Ring Thing founder, Denny Pattyn who aims to convert 20 per cent of the world's youth culture to abstain from sex until marriage, from the look of things - it just looks like another fashion victim's playground toy:

Most feature Christian imagery like the face of Jesus Christ, a cross or a crown of thorns. But more secular designs are becoming available. One is molded into the shape of a rosebud. Some sparkle with diamonds and gems. Others carry the message "True Love Waits." Chunky boys' rings adorned with crosses or barbed wire are becoming more popular.

As the variety of rings has increased, so has the expense. Some are still under $20, but many now sell for more than $300.

Capitalism has finally caught up with these Christian shops selling the rings. If the demand has increased for the rings, wouldn't supply ordinarily follow suit? Which in turn means a reduction in price? Oh wait, I wouldn't know. These rings obviously require extra design expenses. Of course. *Slaps knee*

These rings are obviously promoting Christian values. Why then, the need to conform to aesthetic demands by offering "secular" designs? What next? Counter-chastity-toerings to tell the world that you are engaging in sex before walking down the aisle?

Department Store Monks

2005-12-09T02:29:00.000+11:00

Religion comes in all shapes and forms these days. If you're ever in Thailand and feel the need for a dosage of temple-loving-monk-hugging enlightenment but have unfortunately booked your schedule out with shopping for that Buddha head for your living room, have no fear, mall monks are here!

"People nowadays have no time to go to temples, only shopping malls," the Culture Minister, Uraiwan Thienthong, was quoted as saying by local media. "They can get closer to religion if we provide the opportunity."

Who says shopping and worship can't be done simultaneously? They seem to complement quite well. Although I wonder if that "quiet corner" is well-lit, otherwise the monks might be mistaken for shopping centre props.

I think even the mainstream media sometimes likes to go on a "creative" spin from the ordinary popular Christian/Islam/Jewish themes to church out "different" and "interesting" religions such as this example.

Do your car a favour: move next to a church

2005-12-07T22:13:00.000+11:00

Amusing story found on USAToday.com. It talks about a report done by Quality Planning Corp.

Living by a church does wonders for a person's driving record, but motorists who reside near a restaurant might want to say an extra prayer before hitting the road, according to the findings of an insurance industry study.

So if I buy a house next to a church, I'm safe. But if I live near a restaurant, I'll probably be more likely to ram my car into ongoing traffic as I back out of my driveway. Interesting. But as the article continues, here comes the funnier slip-ups of the report:

motorists living near elementary schools are in more accidents than those living near a liquor store — 26% more likely vs. 18%.

Statistics should not always be trusted. Nor should reports such as these be given coverage at all when the article contradicts itself within a few paragraphs logic-wise. But thankfully, it did include a quote that pretty much summed up the pointlessness of the report. I agree with this guy:

"What's next? A study showing people on low-carb diets cause less accidents than pasta eaters?" asked Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights.

Even the Media celebrates Christmas

2005-12-05T15:09:00.000+11:00

I was down in Leura a couple of months ago for my much needed pre-uni-major-assessment Spring break and discovered the all-year-round Christmas shop they had there. Cute, I thought as I posed with the patchwork stocking. I thought the shop was a gem of a find.

It seems Christmas becomes a charged topic of discussion around December of every year - it's a time when media outlets churn out their Christmas special editions. It is probably true, even the newsrooms celebrate Christmas.

The Sydney Morning Herald, under their "unusual tales" sub-plot found the perfect customer for my Leura Christmas shop.

Andy Park, a 45-year-old self-employed electrician from Melksham, 160 kilometres west of London, has spent £250,000 ($425,000) celebrating Christmas daily for the past 12 years. His single, Christmas Every Day, was released on Tuesday.

Christmas is definitely a time of sharing in this man's heart, I thought. Until I saw this:

He has given 21,900 presents, mainly to himself.

However you describe Andy, I don't think the shops would deny that Andy Park, is a generous fellow.

Although despite spending most of his life, glorifying his love for Christmas, it's unfortunate that he had to wait until this time of the year to be "discovered" when the media does its Christmas rounds. All those other 300 and something days in the year must have been a lonely, unnoticed affair.

I should probably send him an email - he would probably be thrilled to work at the Leura all-year-round Christmas shop, costumes and all.