Opinion Language Christian Is Not Synonymous With Conservative by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 30, 2012 • A Morning Edition interview about an anti-abortion movie labeled a "Christian" film provoked a backlash from progressive Christians. But what do you do when that is the name of the genre and politically conservative Christians appear to have a lock on the Christian name? What is a Christian anyway, and what do they believe? Oh, and what would Jesus do?
Opinion Ethics Round Two: News and NPR's Sponsors by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 28, 2012 • Of the hundreds of responses, some made me squirm. Dismissive, selling out, conflict of interest, insipid—I address these and other responses in a revisit of my post on whether to acknowledge corporate sponsors in news reports on them.
NPR Public Editor Open Forum by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 26, 2012 • Want to post a comment about something we're not covering? Here's a space for readers to share their thoughts about media, policy and NPR's journalism.
Ethics Does Roasting The Pope As A Gay Icon Cross The Line? by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 22, 2012 • Many listeners said Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me insulted Catholics when it joked Pope Benedict XVI was a gay icon. The sensitivity is understandable, but much depends on your acceptance of homosexuality, which most Catholics in fact do. Humor lightens the tension of a nation caught in social transition.
Language Quran Burnings: Accidental, Intentional Or Unclear? by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 21, 2012 • Whether the burnings are "accidental" is unproven. NPR's calling it that buys the military's frame, some complained. Not calling it that suggests ill intention and provokes more violence, others argued. Investigations continue; the press is lost. Suggestions appreciated.
Opinion Ethics An Impossible Standard: When NPR Covers Its Sponsors by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 16, 2012 • A segment on All Things Considered about the founder of 5-Hour Energy raised concerns among listeners about conflict of interest and a violation of NPR's new ethics handbook.
Opinion Fairness & Accuracy The Cost of Fear: The Framing of a Fukushima Report by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 15, 2012 • Some listeners said a report on the cost of emotional trauma following the Fukushima disaster underplayed the danger of nuclear power. Science correspondent Richard Harris explains the editorial decisions.
Opinion NPR Public Editor Open Forum by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 15, 2012 • Want to post a comment about something we're not covering? Here's a space for readers to share their thoughts about media, policy and NPR's journalism.
Opinion Ethics An Introduction To NPR's New Ethics Handbook by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 13, 2012 • NPR's new Ethics Handbook, which revises its long-standing News Code of Ethics, powerfully focuses on principles more than rules, acknowledging that much of journalism is judgment. This is the first of several posts exploring the handbook, a "living document" designed to evolve.
Language Mailbox: When Saying "Politically Correct" Is No Longer Correct by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 12, 2012 • The assistant dean of students at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and blog readers share their reactions to the term "politically correct."
Language Politically Correct: An Aspiration or Pejorative? by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 8, 2012 • In last week's column, I asked whether it was taking political correctness too far to question the word "nutcase" in an NPR report. Most readers agreed it wasn't, but some – including NPR's own Vice President of Diversity — disliked framing the conversation in terms of "political correctness."
Ethics Catholics, Contraception and the Consequences of Poor Poll Reporting by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 6, 2012 • An NPR report failed to cite Planned Parenthood as the sponsor of a poll on the birth control insurance mandate and interpreted the results questionably. A second report repeated an error in a Guttmacher press release on birth control use by Catholic women and never cited Guttmacher. Critics charged liberal bias. What happened? What's the impact?
Language The Treadmill of Stigma, Language and Mental Illnesses by Edward Schumacher-Matos March 1, 2012 • When Nina Totenberg asked if someone was a "nutcase," listeners objected. Mental health experts say that so much of the language used by the media, and by all of us, stigmatizes people with temporary or chronic mental illnesses, affecting their ability to get jobs and housing. But can political correctness go too far?
Fairness & Accuracy Ralph Nader and Whether NPR Ignores Progressives by Edward Schumacher-Matos February 28, 2012 • NPR is constantly hammered for allegedly being liberal, but last week I met with Ralph Nader to hear his complaints. He thinks NPR is not just too conservative, but that what liberals it does have on the air are too middle-of-the road. How can I measure this?
Opinion Media Racism on Fresh Air? Lessons from Archie Bunker and Stephen Colbert by Edward Schumacher-Matos February 23, 2012 • Fresh Air repeated a popular 1970s riff on "How to be a Jewish Son," featuring Mel Brooks and David Steinberg on the old David Susskind show. Some shocked listeners said the clip insulted blacks and Jews. Comedy can make us laugh, squirm—and think. Where do you draw the line?