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Globe hires religion reporter; could start separate publication about Catholicism

The Globe's hired John Allen, who now covers the Vatican for the National Catholic Reporter:

[Globe editor Brian] McGrory said Allen, 48, will play “several roles of prominence. He will be a correspondent first and foremost. He will be an analyst on all things Catholic. He will also help us explore the very real possibility of launching a free-standing publication devoted to Catholicism, drawing in other correspondents and leading voices from near and far."

Dan Kennedy explains why giving Allen his own publication could be a good idea for the Globe.

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Comments

I don't understand why. Isn't the Pilot a catholic newspaper? Is the Globe doing this in order to reach a new audience, and why just catholics?

Maybe someone else see's the reasons this is a big plus for the BG, that I've obviously missed.

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Well, that might be the wrong word, given the percentage of Catholics among the Boston population, but there's potential value to adding sections or stand-alone publications on specific topics.

The Denver Post, for example, just hired an editor and launched a site dedicated to marijuana.

The Pilot's certainly a Catholic newspaper, but it's basically the house organ of the Archdiocese. Presumably a Globe site would bring an independent perspective to the religion and church - and be more able to consider the intersection of the religion and the greater society.

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The Globe is a newspaper in a world with continually shrinking interest in printed media.

It might as well start a new publication focused on religion in a world with continually shrinking interest in religion.

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Kaz, maybe in your little corner of Massachusetts and the liberal Northeast, Religion isn't important but to the vast majority of Americans and people worldwide, it's a major part of life that is probably way above your ability to understand. As far as the Globe itself shrinking in influence? I could not agree with you more..

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Sometimes, it is just too easy.

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I agree with your comment and I think that is what Dan Kennedy is getting at. It's a new venture for newspapers, as he compares it to what Ezra Klien left the Post about.
I guess I just don't understand their focus on catholics. I say that as a catholic which grew up in a home where the Pilot was read and I do remember the religion section of the Globe.

I may be reading more into this and who knows, I may find it to be a welcome addition but for now remain suspicious.

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What drugs are they on over there at the Globe? This part of the country is the least religious, with many nominal only Catholics.

Newspapers and other traditional media outlets, but especially print newspapers, are in pernicious decline. I don't know what the solution, if there is one, is.

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It's amazing that the commies and atheists at the Globe would even care about what goes on at the Vatican unless it's to have an inside view to better report negatively on it like they do with pretty much all things related to Christianity.

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Back in the ancient days of the 60s and 70s (and prior to that as well, but that would be before my time) I believe the Globe had a religion section as a matter of course. The day to day activities of Cardinal Cushing regularly made it to the front page. I'm not saying this is good or bad, i'm just saying it used to happen.

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They had a fulltime religion reporter.

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Until a few years ago they had a reporters.

Today they have columnists, slideshows, and pink bags.

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They should stick to only the nice things about Christianity. Then again it would take away from the Globe's objectives that everyone be on EBT and Obama be made President for life, amirite?

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Yes, I do believe you're right dvdoff. The Globe probably WOULD prefer that all Americans be on EBT and that Obama remain president for life. It's their idea of what a 'Progressive' nation should be.

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if having a socialist for a President means the market will stay above 16K, then I know a few capitalists who would love to see Obama as President for life, amirite?

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Herald comment page Tourette's.

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Anyone would dismiss a newspaper staff as a bunch of "Commies and Atheists" like some kind of wound-up 1950s mouth-breather, unless they were playing it for laughs.

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Because the Catholic Church, especially in Boston, has never been implicated in any sort of horrible scandal involving systemic sexual abuse of children over decades that was exposed with the help of investigative journalism.

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Maybe its just a plot by the new ownership to find out which side God (by means of the Pontiff) is on, on the baseball diamond.

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The Globe was brutal to Catholics in neighborhoods involved in Boston's forced busing. We often called for boycotts. And now they are making a move to appeal to Catholic readers? Good luck! I wouldn't pay a penny for the Globe if they told me a cure for cancer was printed inside.

Although I am not surprised that they would poach a writer from NCR. Within the Catholic world NCR is about as liberal as you can get.

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I was but a child but were they "brutal" to Catholics because they were Catholics because they were Catholics or because of what was going on with busing? What did being catholic have to do with busing except that sending your kid to catholic school became an even more appealing option?

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you were not reading the globe or residing in Boston from 1973-1983.

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But as I said, I was a kid so I read the Globe strictly for the funnies.

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hard to separate the funnies from the news and opinion at the globe.

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You think I was reading the Op Ed? I was reading Garfield! I'm just asking whether there was truly an anti-Catholic slant or is this just old bitterness and paranoia?

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... for a charge of "anti-Catholic bias" at the Boston Globe.

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its all in one's opinion created out of perspective. I'm not looking for support but merely an acknowledgemnt that the globe was and still is viewed as elitist anti working class. Those working class folks of the early 1970's happened to be Irish and Catholic. The globe and its defenders will argue that these charges are untrue. Having read the paper for over 40 years I disagree. Just look at their assessment of Marty Walsh's chances. They still can't believe he won and that the "new" Boston didn't listen to them and go with their guy.

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And violently bigoted idiots happened to be working class Irish Catholics, so calling out their violent bigotry isn't fair?

poor persecuted Whitey

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For clearing that up.

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Of course, the Globe obviously is viewed as elitist and anti-working class by the folks in Boston who rely on the Herald (and talk radio) for their political "facts". That does not mean the view is correct.

I personally was seriously aggravated by the Globe's lousy (and biased) mayoral election coverage (and abysmally inadequate coverage of the City Council races). But the Globe's _favored_ candidate was just as much a "true Bostonian" (white, Irish Catholic) as Walsh. The real determinant of the paper's support was the fact that Connolly was more in favor of privatization (or quasi-privatization) of public education than Walsh -- and seemingly more hostile to unions (and the Globe generally is very much in favor of public education privatization and also quite hostile towards unions).

Does the Globe particularly care about the working class? Not that I can tell. But neither does the Herald -- which mostly panders to a certain segment of right-wing voters (who often vote against their own economic interests based on animosity towards "undeserving others").

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the herald they drool over it.

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I know at least some people who read the Herald because they prefer its coverage of sports.

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Does make that section readable.

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Don't you know that if you express support for any government policy that runs contrary to a religious teaching, that's "anti-religious bias"? New rules, bro.

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I need more time to read the second piece, but yeah--I'm not seeing the explicit Catholic connection here at all, only evidence that the Globe leaned in favor of busing which we all knew.

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Wahhh ... they won't let the Church run the state

Wahhh ... they won't let priests hide their own/other priests kid diddling

Wahhh ... they don't realize that bigotry is religiously protected

Wahhhh.

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I have an anti dickhead bias.

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