In the early days I admired Mother Angelica; a feisty old nun who at times stood up to bishops. As nuns sometimes have had to do in the past. And EWTN was an effort at a tv media presence, where in the past there had been no Catholic televised media presence (at least not in a meaningful way). As far as content goes, it was pretty straight-laced and conservative, but it served as a counterbalance to other, more liberal influences. It focused on spirituality, catechetics, and a televised Mass.
But things have changed. It is no longer a conversation balancer. It has become an alternative magisterium, more or less Fox News at prayer. And presents a point of view often at odds with Pope Francis.
And the comparison with Fox News is not mere hyperbole, EWTN host Raymond Arroyo has become a regular contributor on Fox.
From the NCR article:
"The bishops themselves are now apparently shaped by the EWTN empire. According to a recent study of the U.S. episcopate, the EWTN-owned National Catholic Register is the religious publication read by the most bishops, with 61 percent saying they read it."
"But what the bishops — and others, Catholic and non-Catholic alike — are getting is a very particular slice of Catholicism from EWTN and its affiliate organizations, one not necessarily representative of the U.S. church as a whole. Polling and ongoing studies of the Catholic population in the United States consistently finds a far greater diversity of views and tolerance for questions than is the case on EWTN broadcasts. EWTN has become the only regularly televised image of Catholicism in America."
'While secular alternatives to Fox News exist — from its counterpart on the left, MSNBC, to more centrist major network broadcasts — no alternatives are available to EWTN in the Catholic world. Once it overtook an early and flawed attempt by the U.S. bishops to form their own network, EWTN quickly became the only major Catholic voice on the television landscape in the United States — and that voice has gone global."
"...EWTN also provides free radio programming to more than 500 domestic and international affiliates and on SIRIUS/XM and iHeart Radio, as well as through its worldwide shortwave radio station. It also owns and operates the largest Catholic website in the United States, as well as the National Catholic Register newspaper, an English- and a Spanish-language online news wire service, a book publishing arm and a religious goods online catalog."
"It is truly a global media empire, one so diversified and complex it can be difficult to estimate its total budget or net worth. The television 501c3 non-profit alone (there are at least three others) has a budget of about $50 million to $60 million a year — with the other enterprises likely contributing another $10 million, according to tax documents."
"In addition to its slanted political coverage, EWTN and its affiliate journalistic enterprises also have connections to economic libertarian ideologues, including EWTN governors' board member and major donor Timothy Busch, who has said he supports anti-union "right to work" laws, opposes minimum wage increases and advocates for free market capitalism as a tool for raising people out of poverty."
The article also discusses the connection to the former Crystal Cathedral, soon to be consecrated as Christ Cathedral, for the Diocese of Orange, in Garden Grove, CA. Again, follow the money:
"The plan is to make the cathedral campus home to "multiple movements" in the church, Busch told a Breitbart reporter in 2014. "This is going to create great synergies among those ministries, to collaborate on donor bases and organizational structure," he said."
"In fact, the idea for the diocese to purchase the Crystal Cathedral was Busch's, according to an article detailing the involvement of multiple Legatus members in the decision and funding. "It's like going to a Legatus meeting," one Legatus member said of meetings of the Cathedral Guild, a group of major donors to the project."
"EWTN's alignment with Busch, fellow board member Frank Hanna III and other individuals, as well as organizations such as Fox News and the Catholic University of America, has either been done knowingly as a strategy, or the network is being unintentionally used by outsiders, said a theologian who studies religion and history."
"Either way, "it's a dangerous game," said Jesuit Fr. Mark Massa, director of the Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life at Boston College"
"While they claim to be simply trying to educate Catholics in useful piety and a robust spiritual life, they're being used by people on the right for their own purposes," Massa told NCR. "Either they are disingenuous or not awake."
I program in EWTN for the noon Mass for my mother. If they broadcast a papal event, I'll tune that in. But their news and commentary is just like listening to Fox. No thank you. The spirituality and religion has no seeking in it. Doesn't appeal to me. Yes, the symbiosis with the right wing agenda and big money is appalling.
ReplyDelete"Seeking" is a pejorative term to a lot of believers, certainly Church Ladies. Their attitude is that the faith is all laid out for you like a banquet, and your job is to eat it, not to play with your food.
DeleteNot sure how politics gets mixed up in faith--I can think of lots of theories--but Pew numbers show that Catholicism is about the only flavor of Christianity that is not overwhelmingly Republican, maybe about 50-50. I don't think Catholicism is the only sect plagued by conservatives and money.
I picture politics and faith like a Venn diagram. There are areas where the circles intersect, such as how one defines a just society. The problem is when the faith circle is all or mostly inside the politics circle. The other way around isn't good, either.
DeleteI haven't looked at statistics on it, but I was under the impression that the so-called mainline Protestant churches have a lot more political diversity than the Evangelicals, which do trend very Republican. However I have read of chinks starting to show up in that alignment, probably because of difficulty living in the cognitive dissonance.
DeleteHere's the link to the 2016 Pew study. Scroll to the bar with list of denominations. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/
DeleteThanks Jean. That's interesting. It kind of went the way I would have predicted, except for a few surprises. I was actually surprised to see that the Catholics pretty much matched the "All U.S. Adults" category at 37% R, 44% D. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person in our local congregation who is even a "Q" politically (that would be "questioning" of Repub party at prayer orthodoxy). Another surprise was that the Seventh Day Adventists, whom I would consider pretty conservative, were 35% R and 45% D.
DeleteSo if Catholics are really pretty evenly split along political lines, why does the EWTN juggernaut carry so much weight? I know part of it is big money influence, but still.
Somewhat facile explanation is that money is largely Republican. Conservatives, even when they're in the minority, can make their ideas and influence felt beyond their actual numerical "weight."
DeleteIn our old Episcopal parish it was rich Republicans who donated the stained glass, the altar accoutrements, the kneeler cushions, etc. The Church Ladies, who are Legion, would give tours of the place with an emphasis on stuff that came from their families. They kept the priest on a short leash.
I have been in way too many Episcopal parishes like this, where the church was treated as a swanky mausoleum for the First Families who are almost always conservative Republicans.
I got my first whiff of Arroyo four years ago when Pope Francis was in the U.S., and Arroyo and a dog collar sitting with him were "covering" the event by telling the unwashed that the pope was saying nothing new, nothing interesting and nothing noteworthy, as indeed, he couldn't, or he would be a heretic. It was so obnoxious that I emailed EWTN during one of the motorcades saying the pope was explaining himself a helluva lot better than the commentators, who either couldn't hear or couldn't process what he was saying. I got, in return, an email saying EWTN valued my comment.
ReplyDeleteLater I ran across mentions that he and Laura Ingraham -- in a merger of smarm and vileness -- were exchanging pulpits on Fox and EWTN. I get too much angina from their Moloch every day to waste time listening to them praise him.
I, too, was amused when the bishops looked at what Mother Angelica had wrought and said, "We'll take over now," and she said, "No, won't." All in all, they should have. However having EWTN officially unofficial gives them the same cover they enjoyed when Father Charles Coughlin ruled the airwaves with his own smarmy vileness. They get their message out without having to take responsibility for it. When they realize that rich mens' dollars speak louder at EWTN than their strictures, they'll shut it down before it shuts them down. And the two power centers -- EWTN and the USCCB -- deserve each other in many ways. I remember when Archbishop John Hallinan of Atlanta, on his death bed, assured Art Winter that there were a dozen good bishops in the United States (out of 280 or so at the time) and started to name them. I try not to pay too much attention to the hierarchy; paying attention could be a near occasion of sin.
"...smarm", you nailed it, Tom. That pretty well describes what comes out of Arroyo's mouth.
DeleteAs far as rich men's dollars speaking louder than the USCCB, there may come a point where they want to shut it down, but they already lost that game. The thing's taken on a life of its own.
The NCR article mentions "...the effect of money, largely making its way through the expanding and uniquely American non-profit system, on the Catholic narrative both inside the church and beyond." And it also discusses the global reach of the EWTN family of media. Since overseas the worldview and the view of religion is different than that in the US, I wonder what, for instance, the European perception is of this narrative? Maybe they just think we're a bit crazy.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMore on the USCCB:
ReplyDelete"Three years ago, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops pressured a respected longtime editor at Catholic News Service to resign after he tweeted his frustration with controversial religious-liberty bills in the Tennessee legislature. Self-appointed Catholic watchdog groups on the right that had targeted other conference officials they deemed insufficiently orthodox unleashed a campaign targeting the editor for “promoting the LGBT agenda.” The episode marked the end of a distinguished journalistic career for Tony Spence, a recipient of the Catholic Press Association’s top award in 2010.
"I’m thinking about that now in light of some unambiguously partisan tweets from Judy Keane, the current director of public affairs at the U.S. bishops’ conference. In a May 29 tweet, Keane gushed about President Donald Trump’s record. “Lowest unemployment rate EVER, incredibly robust economy under Pres. Trump,” Keane wrote. “Read all accomplishments here.” Keane linked to a web site called MAGAPILL that touts Trump’s successes in the categories of government, economy, and national security. “ICE has conducted a MASSIVE raid on sanctuary cities this week—498 illegal immigrants arrested,” reads one headline on the page. “DACA renewals drop 21 percent,” reads another...
"A few tweets might seem like a minor thing. Yet they are in keeping with a larger trend: the conference’s general shift to the right over the past fifteen years.
"Keane hasn’t limited her political commentary only to cheer-leading for Trump. She has also criticized Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Responding to a news story headlined “Kamala Harris promises teachers a raise if elected president,” Keane retorted in a March 26 tweet: “She’ll be promising all kinds of things to get elected. Then she’ll raise taxes so hardworking Americans have to pay for it all. No thanks.” In her personal capacity, Keane has the right to slip on a MAGA cap and vent about Democratic candidates. But for someone who serves as a public voice for a conference of religious leaders that is supposed to avoid even the appearance of partisanship, her social media praise of a nativist, xenophobic president whose immigration policy is built on breaking up families is more than a little troubling.
"A few tweets might seem like a minor thing. Yet they are in keeping with a larger trend: the conference’s general shift to the right over the past fifteen years..."
From "Partisan Tweets, NAPA Parties & Bishops: Are these signs of a trend?" By John Gehring, Commonweal, July 10, 2019 https://www.commonwealmagazine.org/partisan-tweets-napa-parties-bishops
I saw that article in C'weal, and found the unseemly partisanship of someone who is supposed to be a spokesperson for the USCCB disturbing. Especially in view of what happened to Tony Spence.
DeleteSpeak of the debbil. EWTN is currently broadcasting the dedication of Christ Cathedral, formerly the Crystal Cathedral. I kinda miss poor old Bob Schuller. It would be nice if they thanked him or said a prayer for him for building it but I guess not.
ReplyDeleteWow, some layman, don't know who, gave a respectful mention of Schuller while presenting a booklet with plans for the cathedral.
DeleteStanley, I sort of liked Schuller too. He wasn't a grim Christian.
DeleteYes, Katherine. He seemed a cut above the usual televangelist to me, anyway. Meanwhile, broadcast commentary on dedication mentioned his visit to JPII when he shared with him his plans for the cathedral. Apparently a relic of JPII will be placed at the Cathedral.
DeleteGag me with a reliquary. I wonder if I will live long enough to read the book (which is out there, waiting to be writen) about how JPII blazed the pathway down with Burke & Bannon, Sarah & the Gingrich marched. Probably not. Those things take centuries.
DeleteThe series on EWTN continues in the NCR, including a commentary by Michael Sean Winters.
ReplyDelete