At a Glance
Increasingly, news culture pushes stories that advance their agenda from writers sitting behind a desk. Gone are the days when reporters would get onto the street to reveal the facts about what is happening at the heart of an issue. Dr. Marvin Olasky calls us back to this foundation, reminding us of the importance of hearing from diverse viewpoints and going beyond austere sermonizing to tell stories that are not only useful and true, but interesting. Olasky is quick to point out the profound impact that Christianity had on culture as he recounts the mistreatment of people in other times and parts of the world. Join us and consider the news you are hearing and sharing with others.
Special Guest
Marvin Olasky is a Senior Fellow of Discovery Institute and its Center for Science and Culture. He edited WORLD magazine from 1992 to 2021 and was a professor, provost, chairholder, and dean at The University of Texas at Austin, The King’s College, Patrick Henry College, and the World Journalism Institute from 1983 to 2021. He is the author of 28 books including The Tragedy of American Compassion, Fighting for Liberty and Virtue, Abortion Rites, Reforming Journalism, and Lament for a Father.
Dr. Olasky earned an A.B. from Yale University in 1971 and a Ph.D. in American Culture from the University of Michigan in 1976. He was a Boston Globe correspondent and a Du Pont Company coordinator, and has written 5,000 articles for publications including World, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, and Fortune.
Dr. Olasky is a Presbyterian Church in America elder and has chaired the boards of City School of Austin and the Austin Crisis Pregnancy Center. He has spoken on six continents and his writings have been translated into Chinese, Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, and Russian. He has been to 79 major league and spring training ballparks, all 254 Texas counties, and all three Delaware counties.
Marvin has been married for 45 years and has four sons, four daughters-in-law, and five grandchildren. He has been a foster parent, a PTA president, a cross-country bicycle rider, an informal advisor to George W. Bush, and a Little League assistant coach.
What You'll Hear
Using the link above, you can read the transcript or listen along while highlighted text follows the podcast audio.
"Good journalism is based on street-level reporting, not suite-level opinionating."
Dr. Marvin Olasky
Quotes
What is biblically objective journalism and where can I find it? Find out in the latest "Ideas Have Consequences" podcast episode with Dr. Marvin Olasky.
Go Deeper
Reforming Journalism
By Marvin Olasky
Is there such thing as “Christian” journalism? What would that look like? In this three-part work, editor in chief of World magazine Marvin Olasky (1) lays out foundational principles of journalism, explaining why and how journalism ought to be done, (2) addresses practical, nuts-and-bolts issues such as interviewing subjects, structuring news stories, and responding to complaints, and (3) closes with a historical overview of journalism in the United States. Throughout the book, he points to the example of Christian journalists in China, who courageously continue a nearly three-thousand year history of news reporting in the face of government pressures. You will learn how to be a more discerning reader of news as well as a competent citizen-reporter in your own community.
Find more from Dr. Olasky:
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