Eye on Culture

Networks an ‘Inferno’ of Hype for Dan Brown

matt.philbin — Tue, 14 May 2013 12:53:42 +0000

‘Da Vinci Code’ author gets 532 mentions, lots of praise on ABC, CBS, NBC. Will new book be as celebrated?

Katie Yoder, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

ABC, CBS and NBC mentioned author Dan Brown or his books and movies 532 times since 2003.
Nearly 40 percent of those mentions were in stories that had nothing to do with Brown or his work or were not the main topic of the segment.
Networks dignified Brown’s conspiracy theories, bad theology and anti-Catholicism, equating them with religion.

Updated: NY Times Hyped Pope Abuse Cover-Up Questions, Buried Them for New CEO

matt.philbin — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:03:17 +0000

Paper showed far less interest in new boss’ possible cover-up of BBC sex abuse.

Clay Waters

Matt Philbin

Update: There hasve been recent deveklopments in this story that cast Mark Thompson's veracity in doubt. From Bill Donohue of The Catholic League:

Lies My Textbooks Told Me: Cuban Missiles and Kennedy’s Resolve

matt.philbin — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 18:02:39 +0000

Five out of six American history textbooks ignore Kennedy’s secret compromise with Soviets during Cuban Missile Crisis.

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

With the 50^th Anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis upon us and new documents surfacing about just how close to World War III the United States and the Soviet Union came in 1962, it’s interesting to look at how the incident is regarded in the media and, especially, how it’s taught as history.

Media Lions Roar at Christian Athletes

Frenchy — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 18:44:37 +0000

From Tebow to Lolo, sports stars are penalized for not playing the secular game.

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

During the first centuries of Christianity, Christians were thrown to lions in arenas to be jeered by mocking crowds. Today, Christian athletes face the taunts of a media strongly opposed to their faith.

Spate of Documentaries Offers Ammunition to Conservatives

Frenchy — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 02:08:23 +0000

From ‘fracking’ to Obama’s ideology, films liberals don’t want you to see.

Ryan Robertson

Conservatives have long understood that they must fight through mainstream media bias to get their message out – or bypass the media establishment altogether. Conservatives have mastered talk radio, the internet and social media to reach broad audiences. Now, they’re increasingly turning to a traditionally liberal medium as another channel of communication: film.

Media Repeatedly Ignores Violent Attacks Against Pro-Lifers

matt.philbin — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:16:45 +0000

Networks silent on harassment of conservatives, instead devote coverage to Tom Cruise’s divorce.

Lauren Thompson

Lila Rose the 24-year-old founder and CEO of LiveAction told liberal website Jezebel she would sacrifice her own life to stop abortion. “I’d die to protect another life. I’m all in for this cause,” she stated in an interview with Katie Baker.

GLAAD Tidings: CNN, Gay Group in Committed Relationship

matt.philbin — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 19:17:35 +0000

CNN is a GLAAD Corporate Partner. GLAAD is CNN’s go-to for stories on gays.

Matt Philbin

CNN’s parent TimeWarner is a “Platinum Underwriter” of the GLAAD Media Awards.
In the last two years, GLAAD has nominated CNN reporting five separate times for its Media Awards, and given anchor Don Lemon an “Outstanding Citizen Award.”
In last two years, GLAAD has appeared in 41 stories on the network, and in 43 pieces on CNN.com.
CNN’s relationship with the group violates two separate items from the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics.

Media Crusade Against Chick-Fil-A Continues

matt.philbin — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 19:49:56 +0000

Press continues to hype made-up controversy, politicians continue onslaught

Ryan Robertson

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

The manufactured controversy over Chick-Fil-A won’t be dying down anytime soon, if media figures get their way.

Sports Media Launches Olympic-Sized Blitz from Left

matt.philbin — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 15:28:32 +0000

Sportswriters advocate progressive Olympics, assault Republican politicians on air.

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

The Olympic Games, which begin this week, is an exhibition of the sportsmanship, teamwork, and the competitive spirit that make sports so enjoyable. But for many in the media, sports is just another excuse to engage in divisive political commentary. The sports media transform an apolitical past-time into a forum for their own politics.

Liberal Media Cheer on Pro-Gay Discrimination

matt.philbin — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 18:18:15 +0000

Governments in America, abroad practice pro-gay discrimination, press approves.

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

The week of June 16-June 24, 2012 has been designated by the homosexual community as Gay Pride Week, during which LGBT people take pride in their triumphs over “violence and discrimination against gay, lesbian, and transgendered individuals.”

Pay Cable’s Race to the Bottom

matt.philbin — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 15:36:34 +0000

Lauren Thompson

Good news for pay cable viewers who like their sex scenes graphic, bloody and spiked with an unhealthy dose of violence. HBO’s original series “True Blood” is set to begin its fifth season on June 10.

While it remains to be seen if “True Blood” can top a scene from a previous season in which a male vampire twists a female’s head around 180 degrees during a bout of blood-drenched “hate sex,” the promos make clear that the season won’t skimp on the sex and violence.

With Friends like Obama: President Undercuts U.S. Allies to Media Silence

matt.philbin — Fri, 18 May 2012 13:59:11 +0000

Matt Philbin

Update -- President Obama has done it again, and again, the networks aren’t interested. On May 29, in a ceremony posthumously awarding the U.S.

The Real Dan Savage Part II: Proudly Perverse

matt.philbin — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:50:38 +0000

Lauren Thompson

Part II of II

Americans tempted to turn to Dan Savage’s Seattle sex-advice column shouldn’t waste time. No matter what the question or how perverted the urge, Savage will – using the crudest possible language leavened with rabid attacks on Christians, Catholics and traditional lifestyles – advise you to go ahead and indulge.

The Real Dan Savage: The Bully against Bullying

matt.philbin — Thu, 10 May 2012 15:11:12 +0000

Lauren Thompson

Part I of II

Dan Savage is a bully. How ironic, since he heads the most high-profile anti-bullying campaign the United States. But for Savage, it only gets better if you support a rabidly liberal, “anything goes” lifestyle.

Lies My Textbooks Told Me: Judging Recent Supreme Court Justices

matt.philbin — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:52:48 +0000

Paul Wilson, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media

Perhaps it’s unrealistic to expect history text books to present and analyze events and epochs with complete objectivity. But it’s entirely reasonable to demand that they don’t actively reinforce the news media’s liberal bias when it comes to recent history and individuals who are still alive and active in shaping that history.