LifeSite accused of fuelling web war on Salt+Light
Thursday, 17 September 2009
Written by Michael Swan, The Catholic Register,
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Fr. Tom Rosica has come out publicly against LifeSiteNews after a series of threats he and Salt+Light TV have received for not condemning the Catholic funeral of Sen. Edward Kennedy. (Photo by Michael Swan)
TORONTO - Salt+Light Television CEO Fr. Tom Rosica has reacted to daily threats against his life, reputation and ministry, blaming LifeSiteNews for stirring up “division, destruction, hatred, vitriol, judgment and violence.”
Since controversy erupted over Senator Ted Kennedy’s funeral in Boston, e-mails and blog postings directed at Rosica have included: “Your grave is dug”; “We will bring down your network”; “We will force you to resign”; and “We will get the Vatican to rescind your appointment.”
Rosica said his office phone messages have included threats and violent language. He called them “vile, vile phone calls.”
“My secretary is often with me when I download the (telephone) messages, and she says, ‘These are Catholics calling like this?’ ” Rosica told The Catholic Register.
The controversy started with posts on LifeSiteNews.com condemning Boston’s Cardinal Sean O’Malley for allowing a large, televised funeral Mass for Sen. Kennedy, who supported abortion. LifeSiteNews readers began calling Salt+Light demanding it condemn the funeral. When Rosica refused to chime in on the condemnations, the threats began.
“It’s a mixture of the LifeSite crowd, LifeSite subscribers combined with EWTN viewers who have now set themselves above the church,” said Rosica.
Rosica went public with his frustration over the threats and bullying in his own blog on saltandlighttv.org and then in an interview on the Sirius Radio Catholic Channel newsmagazine show Across the Nation with Bob Dunning.
LifeSiteNews editor and co-founder John Henry Westen said it should not be blamed for overzealous, intemperate language of a few angry people.
“We’ve gone to great lengths at LifeSite to even develop a document on effective communications, because we know that when people — and sometimes good people, good pro-life people — see things that upset them they tend to go off,” Westen said.
The majority of the hundreds of postings to Rosica’s blog were respectful and charitable, said Weston.
Rosica’s condemnation of pro-life leaders and LifeSiteNews for the actions of a few rogue pro-life activists is uncalled for, he said.
“I’ve never heard this kind of language from a clergyman in public,” he said. “The language was so unbelievably cutting that it was something that I thought obviously wasn’t a reaction to what pro-life leaders of note put out.”
In an attempt to lower the temperature, LifeSiteNews has announced it will refrain from publishing further letters to the editor on the controversy.
Blogs and web sites such as LifeSiteNews have coarsened Catholic dialogue in recent years, said Catholic News Service director and editor-in-chief Tony Spence.
“The blogosphere is full of venom and vitriol. Certainly there has been a notable loss of civility in the public square and public discourse,” Spence said from Washington.
While traditional Catholic newspaper publishers in North America belong to the Catholic Press Association and subscribe to the association’s fair publishing and practices code, including the standard practices of professional journalism, there are no such guidelines for web sites claiming to be Catholic.
“Now everybody with a computer fancies himself a canon lawyer or a theologian,” said Spence. “Just because I have a blog, it does not make me a theologian, or a particularly good ecclesiologist — or even a good journalist.”
Rosica, who sits on the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, questions whether LifeSiteNews has any notion of journalistic ethics.
“When they run up against somebody they disagree with they condemn them and they do an ad hominem attack. It’s character assassination,” Rosica said.
“Our reports are accurate and to the point,” countered Westen.
Most LifeSiteNews reports end with e-mail addresses, phone numbers and other contact information, and a warning that communications should be respectful.
“Our mandate is to educate and to activate,” Westen said.
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops has scheduled a closed-door session on independent blogs and web sites claiming to be Catholic at its October plenary. Rosica said he also hopes the Pontifical Council on Social Communication takes up the issue.
Michael Swan is Associate Editor of The Catholic Register. He is an award-winning writer and photographer and holds a Master of Arts degree from New York University.
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29-01-2010 14:48
Re:LifeSite accused of fuelling web war
First of all thanks a lot for the great and informative article. I have to admit that it was really interesting to read your post about fuelling website war. Many information was really a new for me and I have known many new things about this subject. Thanks a lot one more time for the ability to express my opinion and I will be waiting for other great and interesting information from you in the nearest future. Regards, Adam Peterson from web application development
I invite all readers to review Fr. Rosica's interviews and blogs which are far more hurtful and venomous than any reports by LifeSite News about him. If Fr. Rosica is receiving threats they are in response to his writings, not the reporting of LifeSite News. Again, one only needs to review his radio interview with Sirius Satellite Radio's The Catholic Channel where he said LifeSite News was doing the work of Satan and in his blog there are very harmful comments. More importantly, Fr. Tom's denial of the truth will cost him greatly in the heart and mind of God.
Zapor's reporting was not just an error of fact. Zapor reported Royal’s column exactly the opposite of what he wrote. She implied that Royal objected to the Catholic funeral of Kennedy. False. He did no such thing.
Zapor further reported that Royal only approved of a Kennedy funeral that would "focus attention on his failings, namely his support for legal abortion." Also, false. He wrote no such thing.
How did the award winning Zapor come to such conclusions if not because she reported through the fog of ideological bias?
I am delighted that Mr. Ruse is amused by my comments. I cannot say the same about his. Pat Zapor is a distinguished and award-winning reporter for Catholic News Service. Her reporting is not partisan, nor is any other CNS reporter's work.
Indeed, Mr. Royal contacted CNS about a story in which his comments appeared. Ms. Zapor, her editor and I agreed with his point and updated the story the next day, addressing his concerns. Mr. Royal was gracious and civil, a lesson others could learn.
It is the breadth of Father Rosica's comments that are objectionable. I read LifeSite news and am an EWTN viewer. According to Father Rosica, I am now a member of a "crowd" that sets itself up above the Church. My first observation is that one does not need a degree in theology or canon law to acquire an informed and principled view on ecclesiastical events. Presumably, Father has no qualms about the views of those without such credentials but who support his position. Lastly, there was clearly a legitimate controversy about the quantity and quality of coverage of the Kennedy funeral.
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