Post by Moses on Dec 8, 2004 11:59:31 GMT -5
From the Worldwide Faith News archives www.wfn.org
UMNS# 04572-Faith-based communicators react to nixing of church
From "NewsDesk" <NewsDesk@UMCOM.ORG>
Date Mon, 6 Dec 2004 17:01:28 -0600
Faith-based communicators react to nixing of church ad
Dec. 6, 2004 News media contact: Kathy Gilbert * (615) 7425470*
Nashville {04572}
NOTE: Additional materials are available online at umns.umc.org.
NEW YORK (UMNS) - A nationwide group of faith-based communicators has added their voice to challenge the refusal of the CBS and NBC television networks to air a message from the United Church of Christ.
The statement, drafted by Communication Commission of the National Council of Churches USA, calls the networks actions "arbitrary" and contrary to the principals of freedom of speech and equal access to media.
The two networks have refused to run the commercial because the all-inclusive message "implies acceptance of gay and lesbian couples," according to the United Church of Christ.
The ad states that - "like Jesus" - the United Church of Christ seeks to welcome all people, regardless of ability, age, race, economic circumstance or sexual orientation. The ad has been accepted and will air on a number of networks including ABC Family, AMC, BET, CNN, Discovery, Fox, Hallmark, History, Nick@Nite, TBS, TNT, Travel and TV Land.
The United Church of Christ made public a statement it said it received from CBS. "Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples and other minority groups by other individuals and organizations, and the fact that the executive branch has recently proposed a constitutional amendment to
define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast on the (CBS and UPN) networks."
News reports quoted an NBC statement that the ad "violated our longstanding policy against accepting ads dealing with issues of public controversy." ABC said it would air the advertisement on its ABC Family cable channel but not on its broadcast network.
"This is not about gays and lesbians; this is about the constitutional rights of a responsible organization to exercise the freedom to speak on a medium licensed to serve the public interest," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, top executive with United Methodist Communications, the denomination's communication agency.
"This decision calls attention to the reality that, for self-serving reasons, corporations in control of major media are in a position to filter and even block the legitimate speech by responsible voices," Hollon said.
The National Council of Churches, founded in 1950, is the leading force for ecumenical cooperation among Christians in the United States. The NCC's 36 Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox, historic African American and Living Peace member denominations include 45 million people in more than 100,000 local congregations in communities across the nation. The statement from the
Communication Commission of the National Council of Churches USA follows:
"The controversial issue here is not the content of the ad, but the arbitrary standards of the network gatekeepers. Church doors are open to all who would come; but broadcast channels are increasingly closed to all but the wealthy and well-connected.
"It is important to note that the broadcast networks are not being asked to give free time to the United Church of Christ to express its message -- the church is ready to pay dearly for that privilege, even though the networks do not pay for their highly profitable use of the broadcast spectrum.
"The Federal Communications Commission, in giving free access to the public's airwaves to commercial corporations--with virtually no strings attached--has handed them powerful control over America's media "public square." The for-profit keepers of that square are all too willing to promulgate messages laced with sexual innuendo, greed, violence, and the politics of personal destruction, but a message of openness and welcome that merely says 'church doors are open to all' is being silenced as too controversial!
"Advocacy advertising abounds on TV: agribusinesses, drug manufacturers, gambling casinos, oil companies, even some government agencies regularly expose viewers to messages advocating their products and programs, in the interest of shaping public attitudes and building support for their points of view.
"Are only the ideas and attitudes of faith groups now off limits? Constitutional guarantees of religious liberty and freedom of speech, not to mention common fairness, beg for leadership by the FCC to assure that America's faith community has full and equal access to the nation's airwaves, to deliver positive messages that seek to build and enrich the quality of
life."
Initial signers include the following:
Thomas L. Hoyt, Jr., president, National Council of Churches USA (Shreveport, La.)
Wesley M. Pattillo, associate general secretary for communication, NationalCouncil of Churches USA (New York, N.Y.)
Fr. Bernard R. (Bob) Bonnot, Roman Catholic author, producer (Los Angeles, Calif.)
Sr. Maureen Fiedler, SL, Ph.D., Host, Interfaith Voices (Washington, D.C.)
Jo Bales Gallagher, National Training Center for Resource Center Directors (Richmond, Va.)
Daniel Gangler, director of communications, Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Mike Hickox, director of communications, New England Conference of United Methodist Church (Lawrence, Mass.)
Larry Hollon, general secretary, United Methodist Communications (Nashville, Tenn.)
Vince Isner, director, FaithfulAmerica.org (Washington, D.C.)
N. J. L'Heureux, Jr., executive director, Queens Federation of Churches (Richmond Hill, N.Y.)
Kermit Netteburg, Seventh-day Adventist Church (Silver Spring, Md.)
John L. Peterson, communication director, The Interfaith Alliance (Washington D.C.)
David W. Reid, publisher, Vital Theology (Fort Collins, Colo.)
Eric C. Shafer, director for communication, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (Chicago, Ill.)
Louis C. (Skip) Schueddig, president, The Episcopal Media Center (Atlanta, Ga.)
Nikki Stephanopoulos, director, News and Information, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (New York, N.Y.)
Shirley W. Struchen, executive director, Religion Communicators Council (New York, N.Y.)
Jerry L. Van Marter, news director, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) (Louisville, Ky.)
William C. Winslow, retired communications officer, United Church of Christ (New York, N.Y.)
Additional signers will be listed on the Commission's website,
www.ncccusa.org/about/comcomadvocacy.html
# # #
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or
newsdesk@umcom.org.
United Methodist News Service