Mainstream media doesn’t cover Christianity well. What can the Church do about it?

Does Jesus make good headlines? A scroll through your typical newsfeed or glance at a tabloid stand would tell you one answer: not really.

The newly launched Christianity in Media report by faith-based PR group Jersey Road reveals that Christian stories are consistently under-reported and misrepresented in mainstream media.

For example, stories of Christian persecution around the world make up just two per cent of the headlines we consume. Researchers also found that stories which do mention Christianity frequently take a negative view of it, and fail to reflect the full and varied array of church denominations.

Yet a burgeoning wave of interest in spirituality across Britain means there is an appetite for faith stories. So what’s going wrong, and how can churches and Christians play their part in seeing fairer, better and more positive coverage of our faith? 

Changing the narrative 

Speaking ahead of the report’s release, Gareth Russell, CEO of Jersey Road, said: “Our founding motivation was that the public narrative around Christianity – often influenced by the media – was narrow and stereotyped.

“The lived reality of Christians - and the impact they are having in the UK - is often under-reported.”

Researchers analysed over 5,000 stories from the UK’s most widely read outlets across the span of a year.

They found the rapidly growing Pentecostal movement, which accounts for 10% of British church attendance, was under-reported. By contrast, the Catholic Church was the most widely discussed denomination, with 1,247 stories, followed by the Church of England with 846 stories.

The most popular category of news story which mentioned Christianity was personal testimony, with Brits reading over 1,635 articles mentioning a celebrity’s faith journey. Topping the most-read list were Olympic swimmer Adam Peaty describing his faith transformation, and Married at First Sight’s Sacha Jones crediting Christianity for helping her get over a break-up. Another popular category was “quirky” stories – such as Portugal’s ‘Surf Church’, and wrestler-turned-reverend Steve Horne sharing how boxing goes hand-in-hand with his ministry.

“There is good news - literally,” said Russell, “the UK media and public love human interest stories. The number one theme in Christian coverage is personal stories of faith, and the positive impact it’s had on their lives.”

However – controversy is never far away. Several personal stories pertained to the faith of more divisive public figures, such as Russell Brand, or the devout Catholic NFL player Harrison Butker who received negative media coverage because of his conservative views regarding women, LGBT rights and abortion.

Over a third of stories reflected Christianity in a negative light. This included church abuse scandals and culture war issues, including the place of religion in schools or debates over what constitutes hate speech. Christianity was more likely to be portrayed negatively when linked with Donald Trump, with 111 negative Trump stories to 24 positive ones.

CEO Gareth Russell acknowledges: “In some cases, Christian organisations, churches or leaders have deserved these perceptions.” However, he noted that the lived experience of most Christians is richer, fuller, and more complex than the shortcomings of the church’s most prominent leaders – and it is this reality which gets overlooked. “Our hope was that we could help redress the balance and tell some of the good news stories, while encouraging the Church to become better at saying sorry when there had been an abuse of power.”

WHY AREN’T CHRISTIANS GETTING more AIRTIME?

The irony of attending the report’s launch was not lost on me; as a news journalist for Premier, my bread and butter is Christian stories. From the horrors of global persecution to heart-sinking church scandals, as well as the encouraging tales of community outreach, Christian faith is splashed across every bulletin and every online story our team produces.

My time in secular newsrooms also means I’ve seen the gritty, sausage-gets-made process of writing the most clickable headline. Hearing a former editor at a major national newsroom say: “Can you get me a picture of a busty barmaid, I need teenage boys to click on this,” as my colleague typed an article on Oktoberfest, was a toe-curling reality check that certain ideologies are prioritised because they “sell”.

What can church leaders do to ensure better informed coverage of Christianity in the UK?

Jersey Road hope the report can be an encouragement. Researcher Harry Lunt said: “Rather than saying: ‘How negative is the media’ – the question should be: ‘Why do some stories get covered at all?’

“Stories become newsworthy when they reinforce or challenge the dominant cultural narratives about Christianity. Once we understand those narratives, we are able to engage with them and even shift them over time.”

They explain that churches can help journalists to tell better stories. Journalists need press teams to send out good releases, and spokespeople to come on air. Churches should be able to publicise the good work they are doing in a way which is clear, catchy and cooperative.

On the whole, the churches with the resources to do this best are the more well established denominations - such as the Church of England and Catholic Church. This partly explains why the media covers Catholic and CofE stories far more than other denominations. Growing networks of churches may be doing great work, but perhaps haven’t yet organised press teams to shout about it.

But the PR group is calling on churches of all backgrounds to not shy away from media – but to build relationships with journalists, and tailor press releases to mention cultural hot topics.

James Stinson, associate director at Youth Alpha says the spiritual ground is fertile. He told Premier he’s noticing a trend of openness to faith – especially among younger generations. “We’re getting excited,” he said, “but we need to remember this is an openness to spirituality as a whole, not just Christianity. So we need to make sure we’re getting the message of Jesus out there.”