Christian group angry over media’s portrayal of Christians
by Maria Mackay
Posted: Tuesday, May 27, 2008, 14:25 (BST)
The Christian Broadcasting Council (CBC) has voiced concern over the media’s portrayal of Christians and pro-life campaigners following recent coverage of their views on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.
Parliament voted last week in favour of the creation of animal-human embryos for stem cell research and “saviour siblings”, but threw out measures to lower the upper legal limit for abortion and to retain a reference to the need for a father for IVF children.
CBC’s Chairman, Olave Snelling, said the group was “disappointed and saddened” by the votes because “the public and MPs were not adequately informed about the issues and the consequences of certain parts of the Bill, despite the best efforts of many Christian and pro-life groups who worked tirelessly with MPs”.
Ms Snelling also said that the size of the vote indicated MPs were heavily whipped to vote along party lines, despite the Government promising a free vote on the issues of animal-human hybrids, saviour siblings, the need for fathers and a reduction in the time limit for legal abortion at this stage of the Bill.
The week before the votes, Lady O’Cathain hosted a meeting for the Christian Broadcasting Council joined by a number of speakers, including David Burrowes MP, the Christian Medical Fellowship’s Dr Peter Saunders and Rebecca Bensted, a barrister with the Lawyers’ Christian Fellowship. In the meeting, the speakers agreed that issues of concern over the preciousness of life and the protection of the unborn “had not been substantially raised in the public arena”.
Ms Snelling criticised the way the media had portrayed the views of Christians and pro-life campaigners during debate on aspects of the Bill.
“The CBC is concerned that Christians and pro-life campaigners are portrayed in the media as people who do not care about the cure of diseases, research and the plight of unwanted pregnancy,” she said.
“Yet Christians and non-Christians alike argue the measures being put forward offer no guarantee of cures to illnesses and there are proven alternatives which will not result in the drastic consequences to human life and the family which will result if this Bill becomes law.
“The majority of people, whether they follow any faith or not, place the highest value on human life and the family.”
Ms Snelling went on to criticise a recent episode of “Dispatches” broadcast on Channel 4 on 20 May, “In God’s Name”, which followed the work of Christian lawyer Andrea Minichiello Williams and appeared to imply that Christians are ‘fundamentalist’.
The programme “was wrong to pour ridicule and scorn on those who hold to Christian values”, she said. “It was a wrong use of investigative journalism, presented as facts to the general public.”
Ms Snelling said that CBC would continue alongside the church, “to uphold and fight for the values that are dear and implicit to the Christian faith”.
“We will support the unborn and speak out for the intrinsic value of life itself. We ask our members to continue to pray.”
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The comments below are readers' personal opinions and are in no way intended to reflect the editorial opinion of Christian Today.
Added: Wednesday, May 28, 2008, 12:52 (BST)
What has gotten into channel 4 ? not only did they air the dispatches program but then went on to air 'Jesus Camp' last night on the 'more' channel. Is it bash the christian week ?
vinny, Edinburgh
Added: Wednesday, May 28, 2008, 12:01 (BST)
As I go about day to day this is not a major issue on everybody's lips. Where it is talked about MP's seem to have accurately reflected the views of the nation. Certainly there are many people who believe in a Supreme Being that are not members of organised religions because they do not find the doctrine to be always moral or ethical or about goodness. Aesop was a moralist but there was no actual dog and manger. Organised religions should concentrate on harmony within the community and doing good for its own sake rather than coercion and unproven doctrine because even non believers support goodness and morality for its own sake.
Keith, Rayleigh England
Added: Wednesday, May 28, 2008, 9:00 (BST)
Channel 4's portrayal of Andrea Williams was fair. She refused to deny the proposition that the earth is only a few thousand years old - clearly a fundamentalist position.
Chris, London, UK
Added: Tuesday, May 27, 2008, 23:17 (BST)
Here in Barbados, I have not had the opportunity to see this programme, but I would like to make a comment on what I think is an issue here. I have become seasoned (not experienced - I think there is a difference) into the conflict between believers and non-believers: theists and atheists, if you like. I cut my teeth in this conflict in a teachers' website in the UK, and I was very surprised that so many so-called teachers were declared atheists, but of course, it may only be the atheists who post. The topic was the neo-Darwinism/Intelligent Design debate.
If anyone here has ventured into this explosive territory, I think they will have noticed that any debate becomes eristic rather than dialectic, mainly from the responses of the neo-Darwinists. it appears to me that secular society is on the defensive, and they are getting worried, if not aggressive. When asked why, they usually cite that they are on the side of "truth", or of "education", and some even declare their faith in science ( scientism, I think it is called!). However, when challenged, they usually back-track and say faith plays no part in the scientific endeavour!
In Barbados we are finding that the mainstream media, that is the dead tree newspapers and the local TV, are going with the trend. They want to be seen to be politically correct and liberal, and therefore do not challenge the mores of our society as we drift into sin. PBS TV in America often has the same problem as Channel 4 TV. They produce some excellent programmes, but when it come to anything which might upset the general population they go with the mainstream. As Christians we need not get outraged at these weaknesses, we just soldier on and if we have the time and inclination, point out to Channel 4 (and PBS) their occasional pathetic and ill-informed programming. Personally I do it through the blogs.
Mathsteach2, Barbados
Added: Tuesday, May 27, 2008, 19:19 (BST)
I saw the dispatches programme and was utterly disgusted by Channel 4's portrayal of Christians. The filming shots and angles were made to project that the interviewing was done in some kind of secret way; the tone of the voice of the interviewer as well as the way the interviews were projected made it seem as if Channel 4 was uncovering some amazing "secret" underground movement of "fundementalist" Christians.
Yet the Christian values promoted - against abortion, that homosexuality is a sin...are all values held by the Church for centuries. Channel 4 showed themselves to be ignorant and lacking in dignity in the way they conducted the programme, and has gone a long way to misleading the members of the public that maybe do not know better. I for one will not be watching any dispatches programmes again after this farce!!
Andi, London, UK
