Some meetings feel like just words passing back and forth. But some meetings are about meeting. This past Friday, I had the chance to be in a meeting with real meaning. I had the chance to listen in on “Exploring Best Practices: Journalism & Faith Communities,” a roundtable discussion hosted by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI), the Industry Affairs Council (IAC), and the Faith & Media Initiative.
Three key themes were threaded throughout the conversation. The most fundamental was the need to prioritize relationship-building. Co-moderator Bruce Degn from the IAC noted succinctly, “It’s hard to be a journalist if you’re not nurturing the relationships.”
Mary Ann Gomez Orta, President and CEO of CHLI pinpointed another key theme: “At the core of it is trust. How do you build it, what do you do when trust is misused?” David Peña, Executive Director of NAHJ, concurred, while emphasizing that this begins with training of those just entering the field. “Building trust and ongoing engagement with diverse communities, especially the faith community, is of utmost importance—not only for working journalists, but for students and emerging journalists.”
Hamil Harris from the Washington Post and Religion Unplugged spoke emphatically about authentic representation. “You can’t teach what you don’t know. In order to cover the news, you have to understand the community.” This was the third theme: the need for journalists to not just tell the story as an outsider peering in.
Conversely, it was also noted that just assigning someone a story because they happen to be part of a community could also be a mistake. Doing so assumes an understanding that might not exist, and it put someone in an unfair position where they feel like they have to represent their entire community.
As to the importance of ensuring faith is fairly represented in the media, James Standish, senior consultant at SCC, and an expert in issues related to faith communications and religious freedom commented, “Ignoring the role that faith-based groups play within communities is probably the wrong thing to do. In many communities, the religious institution is the strongest civil society group.” Simply, reporting on certain communities—like the Hispanic community—without considering how central faith is to them is to only tell part of the story.
It was also noted that we must advocate for journalists, especially as they are increasingly under attack both from intense criticism and from actual violence. In Mexico alone, eleven reporters have been killed so far this year. Amy L. Hinojosa, President and CEO of MANA, stressed, “Journalists are trying to tell a story for the right reasons. How do we get back to place where this is a reasonable conversation between reasonable people, no matter what the subject matter is?”
One of the most powerful moments for me was a thoughtful illustration of what faith means in today’s complicated world. Danny Vargas from VarComm Solutions observed, “As we’re riding this fast-moving train, sometimes the best way to grab some stability is through faith. In a sea of chaos and turmoil, it gives us something to hold on to.” Faith inspires us to pause, to assess, to breathe, and to have empathy both for those with whom we are in concert and those with whom we are not—yet.
Deseret Management Corporation, which sponsors the Faith and Media Initiative, was proud to be a supporter of this convening, both in its capacity as a relevant voice in the media sector and as part of the organization’s support of the Faith & Media Initiative. The insights and stories form the roundtable validated and personalized a lot of the data we’ve been compiling.
The discussion was also a reminder that, ultimately, the work of bringing faith and media closer together is not about sectors. It’s about professionals who want to do their job better, and people who want to be represented more fairly and completely.
In the end, Degn said, “This is a great opportunity to pause, sit back, and explore the relationship between journalism and faith, because our faith informs so much of who we are.”
As great journalism informs us about our world, it only seems right that those worlds help tell the human story—together.
Deseret Management Corporation, which sponsors the Faith and Media Initiative, was proud to be a supporter of this convening, both in its capacity as a relevant voice in the media sector and as part of the organization’s support of the Faith & Media Initiative. The insights and stories form the roundtable validated and personalized a lot of the data we’ve been compiling.
The discussion was also a reminder that, ultimately, the work of bringing faith and media closer together is not about sectors. It’s about professionals who want to do their job better, and people who want to be represented more fairly and completely.
In the end, Degn said, “This is a great opportunity to pause, sit back, and explore the relationship between journalism and faith, because our faith informs so much of who we are.”
As great journalism informs us about our world, it only seems right that those worlds help tell the human story—together.
