Post by Teddy Bear on Jun 10, 2014 20:02:14 GMT
Let's bear in mind that Ed Stourton has worked as a presenter for the BBC for over 20 years, with such programmes like Today, BBC1 One O'Clock News, Panorama, and more recently Sunday, Radio 4's religious and ethical current affairs programme.
He claims to be a Roman Catholic that has suddenly come to the realisation that 'British media has an allergy to religion'.
Where does he think he's been working for the last 35 years, when he started work in 1979 for ITN? But reading his comments you wouldn't think that he is in any way responsible. Instead he claims 'it is rather that we come from a culture that regards religion as an eccentricity.'
If we consider what effect the media has on our culture, then it's fair to say that for the most part, people follow what they are conditioned to do so.I always find it disingenuous when the media claim they are merely providing what people want when in fact people accept whatever is thrown at them.
I can understand why Stourton might not want to throw blame specifically at his boss, the BBC, but we have shown all too often it is not 'an allergy' to denigrate religion, but part of their agenda to replace the tenets of the bible with their own.
He claims to be a Roman Catholic that has suddenly come to the realisation that 'British media has an allergy to religion'.
Where does he think he's been working for the last 35 years, when he started work in 1979 for ITN? But reading his comments you wouldn't think that he is in any way responsible. Instead he claims 'it is rather that we come from a culture that regards religion as an eccentricity.'
If we consider what effect the media has on our culture, then it's fair to say that for the most part, people follow what they are conditioned to do so.I always find it disingenuous when the media claim they are merely providing what people want when in fact people accept whatever is thrown at them.
I can understand why Stourton might not want to throw blame specifically at his boss, the BBC, but we have shown all too often it is not 'an allergy' to denigrate religion, but part of their agenda to replace the tenets of the bible with their own.
British media has 'allergy to religion', says BBC's Ed Stourton
BBC presenter Ed Stourton said the British media has a "blind spot" when it comes to religion, leading it to make "catastrophic misreadings" of events in countries with strong faith
By Anita Singh
The BBC and other broadcasters have an “allergy” to religion and regard it as an eccentricity that is best ignored, according to Ed Stourton.
The presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Sunday programme said the British media’s “blind spot” had led to a “catastrophic misreading of events” in the Middle East and other regions where religion plays a crucial role in political life.
“In the aftermath of the revolution in Egypt, for example, we listened to the secular liberals in Cairo, and were completely caught by surprise by the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood.
“No honest journalist can look at what is happening in the Middle East – in Syria and Iraq, for example – without conceding that we have repeatedly underestimated the importance of religion in the region,” he told Radio Times.
Stourton, a Roman Catholic, also pointed to the “astonishing religious revival” in Russia, a country he has visited many times.
“But you aren’t likely to find any of this in the British media,” he said.
“Russia’s religious revival joins my lengthening list of stories that have been missed because of the British blind spot about religion.
“We do not deliberately ignore things – it is rather that we come from a culture that regards religion as an eccentricity. The consequence can be a catastrophic misreading of events.”
Stourton said the “British allergy to religion goes well beyond the newsroom, and has certainly infected broadcasting culture more generally”.
In the recent Sandford St Martin Television Awards, for which he was a judge, nine of the 10 shortlisted programmes were broadcast by the BBC.
Rather than seeing that as a cause for celebration, Stourton argued that it showed programme-makers “see religious broadcasting as a duty, not an opportunity”.
Stourton urged broadcasters to “let religious programmes out of the ghetto” and recognise that they can make compelling and popular television.
BBC presenter Ed Stourton said the British media has a "blind spot" when it comes to religion, leading it to make "catastrophic misreadings" of events in countries with strong faith
By Anita Singh
The BBC and other broadcasters have an “allergy” to religion and regard it as an eccentricity that is best ignored, according to Ed Stourton.
The presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Sunday programme said the British media’s “blind spot” had led to a “catastrophic misreading of events” in the Middle East and other regions where religion plays a crucial role in political life.
“In the aftermath of the revolution in Egypt, for example, we listened to the secular liberals in Cairo, and were completely caught by surprise by the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood.
“No honest journalist can look at what is happening in the Middle East – in Syria and Iraq, for example – without conceding that we have repeatedly underestimated the importance of religion in the region,” he told Radio Times.
Stourton, a Roman Catholic, also pointed to the “astonishing religious revival” in Russia, a country he has visited many times.
“But you aren’t likely to find any of this in the British media,” he said.
“Russia’s religious revival joins my lengthening list of stories that have been missed because of the British blind spot about religion.
“We do not deliberately ignore things – it is rather that we come from a culture that regards religion as an eccentricity. The consequence can be a catastrophic misreading of events.”
Stourton said the “British allergy to religion goes well beyond the newsroom, and has certainly infected broadcasting culture more generally”.
In the recent Sandford St Martin Television Awards, for which he was a judge, nine of the 10 shortlisted programmes were broadcast by the BBC.
Rather than seeing that as a cause for celebration, Stourton argued that it showed programme-makers “see religious broadcasting as a duty, not an opportunity”.
Stourton urged broadcasters to “let religious programmes out of the ghetto” and recognise that they can make compelling and popular television.
