Risibly bad TV coverage of Synod from Chicago

Some of the worst analysis from a TV broadcast and journalist that I have ever heard about the Church.  HERE

Count the problems.

Remember… this is about the coverage.

Moderation queue is ON.

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6 Comments

  1. acardnal says:

    Fr. Z, I know you don’t watch much TV but the above is very mild compared to what was broadcast by the TV journalists and their guest analysts – which included clergy – during the Pope’s visit to the USA.

  2. rodin says:

    Ha! I suppose the first is referring to Jay Levine as Jay Levin. After that I lost track.

  3. Phil_NL says:

    Interestingly, Dutch TV – normally a place where you expect the worst possible commentary – fared a bit better than this. There 80% of the item simply revolved around the observation (quoting Card Eijk) “the will be absolutely no change in the Church’s teachings”. Which of course the reporters saw as disappointing, but at least that observation was spot on.

    (Right, your eminences…?)

  4. aviva meriam says:

    we cannot address our political malfunctions without confronting the culture. And unfortunately, any politician who does so is instantly targeted as “reactionary”.

    The Left took the long view and infiltrated education, media and the Arts…. after several generations of this cultural programming, how many reporters could identify what was wrong with that report?

  5. Paulo says:

    Over the years, I have become very fond of Terry Mattingly’s “Get Religion”, and although I am not up to par to any of the contributors, let us see if I learned some lessons:

    (1) “The Forces”: “…He says there are forces both inside and outside the church that aren’t happy with the direction Pope Francis is taking.” Oh well, were there not forces that were not happy with the direction B XVI was taking? “Gay Mafia”, anyone? Anyhow, there are no attempts by the CBS reporter to identify or, at least, suggest an identity to such “forces”. And let me tell you: there are forces that are not happy when I pray… or GO TO CONFESSION!

    (2) A synod “called by Pope Francis to discuss modifying some church positions or requirements to make it more inclusive.”: really?! Well, sure, many can think so, but… really?! Wasn’t it a synod on the family? Heck, I sure have a family! Actually, as a white, Catholic, male, married with children, who makes sure the family observes Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation I do feel that, on occasion, I am “ignored by society”, and would not mind “being reached out as well”. Now on the topic “modifying some church positions or requirements”: I suppose the “reporter” imagines that the Church is like CBS’s boardroom on board meeting days; I suppose he imagines Cardinal Kasper pointing at the colorful PowerPoint graph attempting to correlate “Church Revenue” with “Inclusiveness”. I leave the rest to your imagination.

    (3) “The Pope’s landmark, “who am I to judge?” response to a question about gay Catholics made headlines…”: Ah! the infamous “who am I to judge?” brought up without context. I am convinced that, one day, “in a galaxy far, far away”, some sane editor will proscribe the use of this quote, right there in the “Style” handbook.

    (4) “… but he’s also opened the door for divorced Catholics to receive communion without getting formal church annulments”: Huh?! First of all, divorced Catholics can receive communion. The ones in a problematic situation are the civilly remarried divorced Catholics. So, I guess this door has been wide open for a while.

    (5) ” ‘People cannot pick and choose what they believe or not believe,’ [Archbishop Blase Cupich] says.”: Now, THAT’s not Jay Levine’s fault… or is it? What was the context of this sentence? How does it fit with the story? In one moment Archbishop Cupich is talking on the personal history of divorced Catholics and, by the magic of editing, the words “pick and choose what they believe or not believe” come right after, and are used to caution “not to expect much from the synod”? This is a baffling one, that only Terry can pick apart.

  6. Matt C. Abbott says:

    As one who lives in Chicago, Levine’s reporting on matters Catholic has usually been somewhere between bad and awful.

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