NOW Convention vs. Southern Baptist Convention: Who Does the 'Liberal' Media Love Best?

In a recent Queer Thoughts column, Joyce Arnold writes about the paltry MSM attention given to recent demonstrations "in support of religious diversity and in support of health care as a basic human right."

Snippets from Freedom Press:

"You could say, of course, that these were also protests “against”: against judgmental statements about “homosexuals,” among others, by the Southern Baptist Convention, and against the actions, or the lack of actions, by our elected representative to deal with a crisis of TennCare.

I was struck this morning, looking at what the Tennessean and the City Paper covered (by way of their web sites), to see how little there was about the TennCare sit-in, and how nothing there was about Faithful Witness. It’s not a surprise, though still disappointing, that the latter would be missed, or let’s face it, maybe ignored. It’s a bit of a surprise to see how short the one, Tennessean piece on the TennCare sit-in was.

Anyway, all of this made me curious, so I did a quick look at what the Tennessean had covered, regarding another local story, the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting itself, being held in Nashville. Starting last week, and going through the Tuesday paper (using their web site) I found:

“Baptists go door-to-door 'planting seeds’”; “Cowboy hats, biker boots aid Baptists' effort to reach more”; “Five-year slump in baptisms worries Baptists”; “Black Baptists look beyond racial strife of the past”; “Baptists send up praises throughout the Midstate”; and “Baptists count 449 doorstep conversions.”

Maybe Faithful Witness and TennCare Sit-In organizers should have included “Baptist” in their press release headlines. For that matter, whatever story or event you wanted to promote for the last two weeks, could have included “Baptist.”

Baptists Receive Faithful Witness. Baptists Meet While TennCare Advocates Sit-In Governor’s Office. While the Baptists Go Door to Door Yard Sale. Baptists Are In Town While Frist Meets with Bush." >

I had reason to remember this column earlier this evening when I was googling to see if the Tennessean had ever gotten around to writing a story about the upcoming National Organization for Women convention (July 1-3). I mean it seems like news to me. (And by news, I mean something deserving more than an itty-bitty mention in a calendar of events.)

I mean it's not like a thousand feminists invade the Bible Belt every year.

So I typed in my key words: "Tennessean: National Organization for Women."

And this is what I got:

"Baptists tackle big issues today The Tennessean, TN - Jun 22, 2005... some in the audience countering that women already are ... have been controversial, attracting national attention ... of Soulforce, an advocacy organization for sexual ... "

So there you have it. Want the MSM, or the "liberal" Tennessean, to cover the struggle for social justice? Take a tip from Joyce Arnold and sprinkle the word "Baptist" liberally throughout your headlines and press releases, like so:

Southern Baptists Clear out of Nashville Just in Time for NOW Convention