The Religions Next Door: What We Need to Know About Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam - And What Reporters Are Missing

by Marvin Olasky

Overview

The Religions Next Door: What We Need to Know About Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam - And What Reporters Are Missing will educate readers as to the truth about world religions that the media often misrepresent. Our neighborhoods are full of religious diversity these days, but the media would have us believe they all hold different variations of the same tenets. But this isn’t so, and it is in those missed details that serious and grave misjustice is done to the American people by the misreporting of religion. The Religions Next Door provides insight into the beliefs of four growing religions in America, and challenges the media community to report religion as real news - not as community relations fodder, but as stories of human and theological interest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433674617
Publisher:	B&H Publishing Group
Publication date:	11/01/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	245
File size:	476 KB

About the Author

Marvin Olasky is professor of journalism at the University of Texas at Austin and editor-in-chief of World, AmericaÕs fourth most-read newsweekly. He is also a syndicated columnist and a senior fellow of the Wilberforce Forum and the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, Fortune, National Review, and many other leading publications. Olasky is the author of fourteen books, including The Religions Next Door and Monkey Business, and a graduate of Yale University (B.A.) and the University of Michigan (M.A., Ph.D.).

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	ix
	Introduction	1
	Judaism's Rules	7
	Hermits in a Shopping Mall	31
	Hinduism's Flow	57
	Untouchable Problems	79
	Buddhism's Detachment	99
	The Japanese Experience	125
	Islam and Attachment	145
	Nonattachment to Grace	171
	Missing the Story	195
	How to Do Better	221

Editorial Reviews

Best known for Compassionate Conservatism: What It Is, What It Does, and How It Can Transform America, Olasky (journalism, Univ. of Texas, Austin) has no problem sharing his conservative Christian views. Here, he points out inconsistencies in media coverage of various religions and offers guidelines for journalists covering religious topics. Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam are each given two chapters, the first seeming to provide a historical overview and the second clearly attempting to criticize the religion based on Christian ideals. He offers few citations for his claims, and those he does include are incomplete, with no dates or titles in many cases. These omissions give the book the disjointed feel of a writer trying but failing to be objective. The tips for journalists in the last two chapters are superficial, pointing out the problems and differences among non-Christian religions while praising Christianity. In the end, the author fails to deliver a fair critique of newspaper coverage of religion. For a more balanced view, try Jim Wallis and Diane Sterling's The Soul of Politics: Beyond "Religious Right" and "Secular Left." Kenneth Heineman's God Is Conservative: Religion, Politics, and Morality in Contemporary America offers more information on the conservative viewpoint. Although flawed, Olasky's book may be appropriate for libraries needing a balanced collection.-Jennifer Kuncken, Williamsburg Regional Lib., VA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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