Ombudsman - Featured Posts
In protest of state law, a same-sex couple attempts to obtain a marriage license at the Forsyth County Register of Deeds office in Winston-Salem, N.C., Thursday, May 10.
Eight Days of Same-Sex Marriage (The Coverage)
()From Biden and Obama's announcements to Romney's graduation speech, interviewees favoring gay marriage outnumbered those opposed 3-2 on NPR. Anti voices are needed, but history made it rightfully a pro week. The bigger question: what should NPR's values be going forward? Gay rights is a defining issue.
NPR Ombudsman
Black, Latino, Asian and White: Diversity at NPR()
April 10, 2012 After a series of messy mishaps, NPR isn't doing badly when it comes to racial and ethnic diversity in its coverage and staffing. Management is trying to do better. I explore what audiences identify with NPR and who really is producing the news that you hear and read.
NPR Ombudsman
Christians: Who Are The 78 Percent?()
April 4, 2012 Has the term 'Christian' been co-opted by conservatives or abandoned by liberals? These are among the several hundred, almost uniformly thoughtful reactions to last week's column about whether Christian has become synonymous with conservative. Here are some of the best responses.
NPR Ombudsman
Christian Is Not Synonymous With Conservative()
March 30, 2012 A Morning Edition interview about an anti-abortion movie labeled a "Christian" film provoked a backlash from progressive Christians. But what do you do when that is the name of the genre and politically conservative Christians appear to have a lock on the Christian name? What is a Christian anyway, and what do they believe? Oh, and what would Jesus do?
NPR Ombudsman
Does Roasting The Pope As A Gay Icon Cross The Line?()
March 22, 2012 Many listeners said Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me insulted Catholics when it joked Pope Benedict XVI was a gay icon. The sensitivity is understandable, but much depends on your acceptance of homosexuality, which most Catholics in fact do. Humor lightens the tension of a nation caught in social transition.
NPR Ombudsman
Quran Burnings: Accidental, Intentional Or Unclear?()
March 21, 2012 Whether the burnings are "accidental" is unproven. NPR's calling it that buys the military's frame, some complained. Not calling it that suggests ill intention and provokes more violence, others argued. Investigations continue; the press is lost. Suggestions appreciated.
NPR Ombudsman
An Impossible Standard: When NPR Covers Its Sponsors()
March 16, 2012 A segment on All Things Considered about the founder behind the 5-Hour Energy drink raised concerns among listeners about conflict of interest and a violation of NPR's new ethics handbook on disclosures. The real problem? The handbook. At some point, you just have to trust.
NPR Ombudsman
The Cost of Fear: The Framing of a Fukushima Report()
March 15, 2012 Some listeners said a report on the cost of emotional trauma following the Fukushima disaster underplayed the danger of nuclear power. Science correspondent Richard Harris explains the editorial decisions.
NPR Ombudsman
The Treadmill of Stigma, Language and Mental Illnesses()
March 1, 2012 When Nina Totenberg asked if someone was a "nutcase," listeners objected. Mental health experts say that so much of the language used by the media, and by all of us, stigmatizes people with temporary or chronic mental illnesses, affecting their ability to get jobs and housing. But can political correctness go too far?
NPR Ombudsman
Ralph Nader and Whether NPR Ignores Progressives()
February 28, 2012 NPR is constantly hammered for allegedly being liberal, but last week I met with Ralph Nader to hear his complaints. He thinks NPR is not just too conservative, but that what liberals it does have on the air are too middle-of-the road. How can I measure this?
NPR Ombudsman
The Contraception Mandate: Where Are The Women?()
February 17, 2012 E.J. Dionne and David Brooks debated the issue of religious freedom versus the Obama Administration's insurance mandate and both sided with the Catholic bishops. But as some listeners complained, neither is a woman. We looked at the gender voices in all of NPR's coverage on the issue. Read on.
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