Without basis, The Fox Nation wonders: "Is Obama Targeting Catholics?"
SUMMARY: The Fox Nation featured the headline, "Is Obama Targeting Catholics?" but the article to which the headline linked simply reported that Newark Archbishop John Myers is the latest bishop to criticize Notre Dame's decision to invite President Obama to speak at commencement.
On April 2, Fox News' newly launched website, The Fox Nation, featured a headline asking: "Is Obama Targeting Catholics?" However, the April 2 Newark Star-Ledger article to which the headline linked in no way suggested that President Obama is "[t]argeting Catholics." Rather, The Star-Ledger reported: "Newark Archbishop John J. Myers joined a growing list of Catholic bishops yesterday to publicly condemn the University of Notre Dame's invitation to President Obama to be principal speaker and recipient of an honorary doctorate at its commencement May 17."
As Media Matters for America previously noted, despite Fox News' claim that its new website eschews "biased media," The Fox Nation recently labeled Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) a "[d]angerous duo," linking to an Agence France-Presse article that simply reported that Dodd and Frank "promised President Barack Obama on Monday they would work with the White House to enact a sweeping overhaul of US financial regulatory structures by year's end."
From The Fox Nation:
Sounds like Catholic leaders are targeting Obama.
must be something in their condomints.
A reasonable assumption would be that they meant "targeting" in the same sense that advertising targets demographics, BUT the linked article says that Notre Dame invited Obama to speak, not the other way around, so it still doesn't make any sense.
You're right, it makes no sense, whatsoever. It's just bs crap there to feed the fans that go to the web site to solidify their ignorance. I'm no progressive, but for an entire news organization to be so bent one way is just sick.
the Fox Nation headline doesn't even make sense. and don't these bishops have anything more important to do than worry about Obama speaking at Notre Dame's commencement? It's none of their business.
While I disagree with their opinion, it certainly is their business. Notre Dame is the most prominent Catholic university in the country. The actions of the university reflect on the Catholic church as a whole.
I believe it isn't their business unless they want the Catholic church to be nothing more than some pro-life movement.
Is there something preventing you from discussing the misinformation contained in these items?
and you wonder why you get nothing but insults for posting such nonsense. I said the headline made no sense.
You are correct, Fox Nation's headline is not only misleading, makes no sense, but is completely inaccurate and downright rude. This Fox Nation outfit is as slimy as the Fox News Channel.
james....allow me to introduce you to the bishop of the Scranton Diocese.....Rev. Joseph Martino. and to answer your question no.....this bishop has nothing better to do.
this is a guy who refused to recognize a teachers union as he consolidated and closed a number of catholic schools in NEPA.
his next crusade was to denounce and threaten to strip Miseracordia University of its "catholic" affiliation because they had a gay activist come and speak at the university about president obama. even though he cannot strip the university of that affiliation.
now im not a catholic and thank god for that, my father, who converted a few years ago is grossly ashamed of Martino and many people i know and talk to on a regular basis feel the same way.
to me this whole thing is a distraction because of the preist sex scandal and they are tryign to divert attention away by being louder than anyone else.
Wow...a religious leader sticking to his/her religion's principles. Crazy.
The priest sex scandal was sooo 5 years ago...better find another red herring.
a religious leader sticking to his/her religion's principles.
Isn't tolerance a religious principal?
No...I would say that tolerance is a principal of no theistic religion...the followers claim to know "the way" or "the God."
I meant "diestic", meaning believing in a diety.
and please tell me where KILLING in the name of God those who do no't believe is acceptable?
oh wait its not in the bible, its just the number of times the Church has said that killing in the name of God was ok
Yeah and because it was "sooo 5 years ago" all the "red herring" victims should shut their traps and let the old men in Rome live in their opulence and narrow-mindedness. Sheesh.
sticking to principles is one thing...but his methods are quite another thing. and besides.....there are many catholic teachings that are conflicting with their own actions over their long history. and believe me, ive had the pleasure of studying that history. allow me to give a quick run down.
abortion is wrong....going on Crusades against Muslims, that will earn you a way into heaven.
slavery is wrong......you can be involved in slavery as long as we don't know about it.
the holocust didn't happen........even though there was clear evidence that most knew about.
"do unto others as they would do unto you"....unless they are not of the catholic faith.
these things ive listed are blatent contradictions, which to me is my problem.
i have no problem with Martino preaching what he feels is correct. but again his actions speak far louder. compared to his predecessor James Timlin, who himself tried to reach out to people and tried to convince them he was right through healthy debate and not threats.
This is actually kind of funny.
MM is assigning a sinister motive to the headline. MM interprets "targeting" as in negatively targeting.
The article obviously means that Obama is "targeting" Catholics for their support by accepting ND's invitation and hoping to deepen his base there.
What article are you talking about?
Shouldn't the headline then be,
"Obama Reaches Out To Catholics"
I think the Newark Star Ledger's Headline is pretty accurate to the actual story:
Notre Dame invite to Obama 'pains' Newark archbishop
I have no idea what Fox Nation and Shoes are on about.
limit is referring to the Fox Nation headline, not the Newark newspaper. you have no idea what you're going on about.
Ummm.... Limit was responding to Shoes who wrote about what "the article obviously means". Try and keep up.
shoes was saying that mmfa was giving a sinister motive to Fox Nation's headline, and then tried to explain why they, Fox nation, used "targeting". Limit offered "reaches out to" as a better Fox nation headline. I know it's a little complicated for you to follow, but that is what it is.
Shoes and Fox Nation have it completely backwards, so of course you can follow their logic better than most. Congrats!
Victor, You are wrong on this.
Wrong on what?
Correct me if I am wrong, but it looks as though in your response to Limit above, you assumed he was talking about the Newark headline, when in fact he was talking about the Fox Nation headline that MMfA takes issue with.
Like Limit Corp. Ownership, I was responding to what Shoes was maintaining, with regard to what Shoes thinks "the article obviously means". Regardless, I think we all agree (except for Shoes) that the so-called Fox Nation headline makes no sense.
Don't listen to those crackheaded idiots, Victor.
To me, it looked as though Limit gave an example of how the headline could have read if Fox Nation wanted to be honest about it.
Then it looked to me as though you offered another headline, one which you read in another medium, and mentioned that it, too, could be an example of an honest headline.
What these others are going on about, I have no idea....but if you meant it the way I caught it (and explained above), then these others are just, well, idiots with reading comprehension issues.
He'll never reach those Catholics and he knows it. But thank God, most Americans who consider themselves Catholics don't allow their bishops to influence their political or scientific beliefs.
Being Catholic must really be like being Jewish then, if your religious leaders have no bearing on your religious views.
I was talking about political and scientific beliefs, not religious.
ummmm... growing up on Long Island, that WAS the case with most people I knew. I know lots of people who consider themselves "non-practicing Catholics" and plenty who go to Catholic church but don't follow the church teachings very closely (hence the term "Cafeteria Catholic") and even some people who aren't religious at all but refer to themselves as Catholic as a sort of proxy ethnic/nationality explanation.
So while very orthodox Catholics would disagree with all of the above, if you were talking about "people who identify themselves as Catholic in political surveys/censuses" all of the above would apply.
I'm not so sure. I read an article yesterday that said the majority of catholics are polling liberal. I'll have to find it and post it.
Ah, here it is.
Thanks for the link Snoop. I didn't phrase that the way I should have. I meant that there are a small percentage of American Catholics who do as the pope and bishops say. These are the Catholics Obama will never reach.
The overwhelming majority don't adhere to all of the Church's restrictions. Even those who consider themselves the most in line with the church's teachings part ways with the pope on matters of war and the death penalty.
::sigh:: Really? The Catholic Church is extremely anti-death penalty. Are you saying that the majority of Catholics are pro-death penalty?
Do you having comprehension problems?
Where the hell did I say that the majority of Catholics are pro-death penalty?
If you read my post, I was talking about American Catholics and that the overwhelming majority don't adhere to all of the Church's restrictions. In my next sentence I mentioned the others, who consider themselves followers of the churches teachings but don't agree with them on war and the death penalty.
now they are anti death penalty.....what were all the Crusades though? what was that?
Accepting an invitation is passive. Targeting is active. Even if what you're saying is true, the framework here is very strange.
This crap is outrageously, outlandishly partisan. I wish the other news organizations would band together and expose this crap for what it truly is...just bias.
and here comes the culture warshots
I couldn't care LESS about the opinion of a Catholic Arch-Bishop.
I'm not clear on why some bishops oppose the President of the United States speaking at a commencement ceremony...I mean...Notre Dame is not a religious institution...it is a UNIVERSITY. Besides...President Obama is not a catholic.
because its is catholic affiliated. read my above post about the Scranton Bishop and for kicks search his name in google and see what pops.
"Wow...a religious leader sticking to his/her religion's principles. Crazy."
I would love to know what passage in the bible forbids unions.
"Is Obama targeting Catholics?" I hope so. Thank God I'm an atheist.