Sarah Pulliam Bailey

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How a religion story is made for NPR

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Religion reporting is no easy task, especially when you ask to participate in usually private gatherings like Bible studies or ask to observe a worship service. And then some people want to pray with you or convert you, even if you’re trying to keep yourself out of the story like any other kind of coverage.


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Those fundamentalist missionaries

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You know those shoes with the little “TOMS” logo on the side that hip people tend to wear? They’re kind of loafer-like but for the cool kids. There was a mini-dust-up over the weekend when the founder of the shoe organization distanced himself from Focus on the Family, you know, that organization that James Dobson founded.


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Testing death before it comes

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Some friends of ours recently told of us of their marital disagreement over what happens to them when they die: cremation or burial. It might seem strange for a pair in their late 20s to have this discussion, but posing the possibility might come sooner for some rather than later. Their discussion included theological questions over whether God intends to raise physical bodies from the grave or whether it doesn’t matter and cremation is more environmentally friendly. Average date night conversation, you know?


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Bachmann's 'devout' husband

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Michele Bachmann has certainly drawn a media spotlight in recent weeks since she announced her candidacy, as some wonder whether she’s just the media’s “flavor of the month.” We’ve talked a little bit about how the media has handled her faith with mockery or puzzlement, and it’s a bit depressing to see little serious coverage of her beliefs so far.


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No more National Anthem

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Happy Canada Day to any of our Canadian readers out there. In honor of our own national holiday coming up on Monday, I dug into my guilt file and pulled out the coverage from a few weeks ago of Goshen College’s decision to stop playing the National Anthem.


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Rolling Stone's holy war against Bachmann

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Rolling Stone‘s piece on “Michele Bachmann’s Holy War” is “The Hit Piece That Hit Itself,” as John Hudson says, a profile that raises ethical questions about drawing heavily from previous reporting and what passes for journalism, even for magazines that allow more directed reporting.


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