Displaying items by tag: Media

The BBC has announced that it will focus more programmes on the coronavirus outbreak, offering more education, fitness, religion and recipes for those stuck at home. A dedicated coronavirus podcast will be released daily, and local radio stations will provide support phone-ins to communities around the country. ITV will broadcast news specials and suspend some planned entertainment shows; others will go ahead without a live audience. There will be further developments and challenges filling the gaps left by the suspension of sporting events - weekly prime-time coronavirus specials on BBC One, podcasts filmed for BBC’s News Channel, crisis phone-ins, programmes for health and wellbeing advice, education programming for school children, and virtual church services on Sunday mornings. A daytime programme on BBC One will address concerns of viewers in isolation, and ITV has a new weekly coronavirus report to ‘give viewers in-depth insights into issues affecting them during the crisis’.

Zabbai, son of a Jamaican pastor, used the name of God for his personal benefit. ‘I was a phony Christian, living in sin, knowing I could ask forgiveness.’ At seventeen he came to terms with the Jesus he avoided while he was smoking marijuana and chasing girls. ‘I realised that truth is not a thing but a person.’ He struggled with fitting in with his peers instead of standing out as a church goody-goody. ‘I found my identity within a love for playing the saxophone.’ One day while alone he closed his eyes for a second. When he opened them, everyone was frozen. He felt a warmth from God, who said, ‘This is what my love feels like.’ ‘And with the snap of a finger, time began again. I had just encountered the Lord, and it scared me. With reckless abandon, I began pursuing the Lord.’

A recent report has looked at different aspects of belief and belonging in London. It finds that inaccurate, sensationalised and simplistic coverage by the media reinforces negative stereotypes of religious groups, increasing the potential for suspicion, fear and communal violence. The report recommends that journalists and editors improve their religious literacy and engagement with local faith groups to understand how religion works in practice. It calls on newsrooms to provide better access to religious and ethnic minority journalists, and more spaces for local faith and belief groups to represent themselves. It also urges organisations to train more local faith/belief groups, and individuals to share their own stories. Government regulators need to improve directives and enforcement for media companies who regularly print false stories. Pray for those in the media to work with integrity and grace, and for God to use them to celebrate His Church.

Conservative peer Charles Moore, as a guest editor on Radio 4's Today programme, said the BBC has a liberal bias: ‘What I am objecting to is preaching.’ He said the BBC is a secular church which tells us what we ought to think about things. Mr Moore had difficulty trying to get information about climate change onto the programme, even though he was the guest editor and should have had a free rein. He said the obstacles came because of bureaucracy and the fact that Roger Harabin, the environment editor, is ‘so biased’. Nick Robinson defended his colleague, stating the BBC is regulated by Ofcom. The director of Affinity, a network of UK churches, said that he has ‘a lot of sympathy’ with Mr Moore; BBC intolerance of any other view causes questioning and framing of questions to be based on a number of presumptions.

Dr Maged presents The Coach, an Arabic TV programme on SAT-7. He said there’s a lack of awareness of how to raise children in a healthy way in North Africa. Many cultures are based on a patriarchal model where women and children are not encouraged to speak up, share an opinion, or disagree with the male head of the family. Many parents use parenting techniques of beating, shouting and intimidation. This is where The Coach steps in, discussing the parenting issues that many families face. The programme encourages healthy, open conversations between parents and children, preparing them to cope with the world and helping them feel safe within the home environment. Children can express themselves or admit to a mistake without the fear of being beaten or belittled. It is clear that the programme is making a real-life impact in Arab families. Dr Maged’s end goal is for healthy parenting to become the norm for parents.

Christians in the world’s 6th largest nation make up just 2.5% of the population. Many are poor and experience discrimination because of their faith. The struggle to survive is silencing the voices and eroding the faith of many young people. But also there are remarkable leaders emerging in the Church - strong in the Lord, intellectually bright, culturally aware. PAK7 is a new approach to strengthen and support the Church in Pakistan and her witness for Christ to 200 million countrymen, many of whom know nothing about Jesus. It empowers young Pakistani Christians in the use of media so that they have strong faith, confident voices, and a platform to explain who they are, what the Bible means to them, and the difference Jesus makes in their lives. Click the ‘More’ button to watch a short video about PAK7’s work.

European Gospel Radio (EGR) is a non-denominational Christian radio touching any country in the world 24/7 on shortwave, streaming and satellite. It is a non-profit organisation, staffed by volunteers and professional broadcasters based in Milan. Since 1988 Christian broadcasters from around the world have trusted EGR to provide a radio link between their radio programmes and listeners globally. They cover Europe, Africa, Asia/Pacific, and the Middle East with daily Bible programmes, Christian news, and information both in English and in regional languages. There are still many places globally and millions of displaced people out of reach of modern communication - FM, AM, TV, satellite, Internet - and even without electricity. However, shortwave radio reaches anywhere.

A Christian footballer has expressed how his family is leaning on God following the recent death of his two-year-old daughter. Benik Afobe has spoken publicly in the wake of Amora's death on 29 November due to complications from a severe infection. ‘We trust in our Lord Jesus Christ and when we're weak he comforts us. He will protect the family and give us strength always’, he said. ‘We want to bounce back and show people that even when we are grieving we can make a comeback and be strong and never need to quit in anything you want to do or become.’ In an initial statement,the 26-year-old Congo international admitted he and his family had been left ‘totally devastated and heartbroken’. In the past he has been vocal about his faith on Instagram. May God continue to support the family in the coming weeks.

Hungary has pulled out of the Eurovision song contest, amid speculation it is ‘too gay’. A source inside Hungary’s public broadcaster, MTVA, said they assumed hostility to the contest’s LGBT+ links were behind the decision. One pro-government commentator described Eurovision as a ‘homosexual flotilla’ and said the country’s mental health would be better if it did not join the competition. MTVA, which discourages positive coverage of LGBT+, usually hosts the song contest whose winner goes on to represent the country at Eurovision. It said, ‘Instead of taking part in Eurovision, we will support the valuable productions created by the talents of Hungarian pop music directly.’ The winner will instead be given the chance to appear on domestic media shows and at festivals. Associates of prime minister Viktor Orban have control of much of the country’s media including state media.

A plural, sustainable and diverse media is vital for a healthy democracy, but the UK has just three companies dominating 83% of national newspaper circulation. Last year a survey of 250 political articles and news segments from the largest (online and television) providers revealed that the anchors made 29 false statements or claims, a further 66 clear instances of misleading or distorted coverage including misquotations, reliance on single source accounts, omission of essential facts or right of reply, and repeated value-based assumptions made by broadcasters without evidence or qualification. In total, a quarter of the sample contained at least one documented inaccuracy or distortion. At this time of election media fervour, please pray for an end to the overwhelming imbalance of news reporting that this survey reveals. Pray for improvements and changes to be made in reporting so that the UK communications environment functions in the public interest. See also the next article, Christians in media.