Dr. Albert Mohler
Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., serves as the ninth president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He hosts a daily radio program for the Salem Radio Network and writes a daily commentary. Both are available at www.albertmohler.com.

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Well-intended failure

An elite journalist reinforces the stereotypes that he sets out to dismiss | by R. Albert Mohler

A COLUMN HEADLINED "GOD, Satan, and the Media" in The New York Times is almost certain to get attention. The Times rarely names God or Satan in its headlines, and adding "media" to the mix must have sent journalists into apoplexy. What is going on here?

Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof takes his colleagues in the elite media to the woodshed in his March 4 column, accusing "nearly all of us" in the news business of being "completely out of touch with a group that includes 46 percent of Americans." That group is America's evangelical Christians, and Mr. Kristof calls upon journalists to understand evangelicals' growing clout and stop sneering at conservative Christians.

"Evangelicals have moved from the fringe to the mainstream," Mr. Kristof notes, pointing to the influence of evangelicals in the Bush administration. He explains that President Bush cannot be understood "without acknowledging the centrality of his faith," warning that the president may be driven by a "messianic vision" to remake the Middle East.

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