Masters of media control - The Culture War

Humanist, Sept-Oct, 2003 by Kimberly Blaker

As Barbara M. Jones, author of Libraries, Access, and Intellectual Freedom." Developing Policies far Public and Academic Libraries, points out, "The religious right has become a particularly important interest group in shaping public opinion." The Christian right accomplishes this in several ways. In addition to its ownership of many media outlets, Christian organizations and denominations such as the Southern Baptist Convention and Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights have come to be known for their power over the mainstream media. They threaten lawsuits and public embarrassment and participate in letter-writing campaigns. In addition, they boycott companies that sponsor programs or publications to which the Christian right is opposed. Through such actions they are able to silence negative publicity and most programming critical of religion or in direct conflict with their views.

I saw the reality of the media control firsthand when I unexpectedly encountered the Catholic League--an organization whose purpose is to prevent and eliminate all criticism of Catholicism and its leadership. On September 20, 2001, the San Francisco Examiner published a commentary I wrote identifying the similarities between Islamic extremists and their Christian counterparts. I revealed the Catholic League's use of intimidation to keep opponents and the media in line:

  While less violent in nature, The Catholic
   League for Religious and Civil Rights, a contradiction
   in itself, exists for the purpose of
   Canon Law 1369, which states: "A person is
   to be punished with a just penalty, who ...
   utters blasphemy, or gravely harms public
   morals, or rails at or excites hatred of or
   contempt for religion or the Church."

Furthermore, I pointed out:

  At a prayer breakfast during the 2000
   Republican Convention, Father Frank
   Provone of Priests for Life claimed, "The
   church does not dictate the policies of the
   nation. The Church proclaims the truth of
   God to which all these [public] policies
   must conform."

The Catholic Church is one of the main organizers and supporters behind the Christian right. However, it has kept its identity concealed by calling on Baptists and other Christian sects to do its bidding. In a concerted effort, a wide range of Christian right groups are working to break down the wall between church and state.

Following the publication of my opinion editorial, William Donahue, president of the Catholic League, immediately telephoned Editorial Page Editor Michael Stoll at the Examiner. Donahue charged that I had libeled "millions of Christians." According to Donahue's account, he requested the Examiner "provide [him] with evidence, drawn from criminal records, that the Catholic League is a violent organization." Stoll responded that, while his criticisms may have been valid, my comment, "while less violent in nature," was no more than a "rhetorical flourish," as was obvious, and my own "opinion" to which I was entitled. Donahue then retorted, "And it is my opinion that she be fired for making patently reckless, and arguably libelous, accusations against the Catholic League." Anyone reading the full opinion piece would have easily recognized the metaphor for what it was. I made no claim the league had acted in violence. Rather, I indicated the nature of the organization, while not as extreme as those I had previously discussed, was still, based on the wording of Canon Law 1369, a dangerous organization to be reckoned with.

Following Donahue's call, the league issued a news release on its website that later appeared in its print edition of the Catalyst, as well. Both of these are outlets dedicated to the harassment of all who dare speak out publicly against the abuses of the Catholic Church and its political agenda. Those who offend Catholics in any way are candidates for severe censure. Using my words out of context and misleading its own members, the league then urged "members to write to Michael Stoll, San Francisco Examiner ... and ask why the newspaper still hasn't dropped Blaker."

Intimidation is the league's means to an end. Opinion that doesn't paint religion or Catholicism in a positive light is libelous according to Donahue and his allies, despite laws to the contrary. Donahue's ludicrous call for the firing of a freelance writer was a further attempt at bullying the Examiner into compliance and silencing me.

Following the posting of the Catholic League's news release, the Examiner was bombarded with more than a hundred letters coming from states other than California. Nearly all of them demanded I be fired from a publication I had never been employed by. And, not only had I been elevated to a "staff" member, many of the league's letter writers took it to higher levels and were "enraged" over the fact I was a "reporter" who had opined in the "news."

That, however, was just the beginning. Most letters to the Examiner had included words like libel and slander. Many went so far as to hope the league would sue the newspaper. One woman wrote requesting that the Examiner supply her with "proof" the league is a threat to liberty. Stoll responded: