The religious Left wants more air time, and some are attempting to leverage a new report toward that end. The study, dubbed Left Behind, asserts that conservative religious voices are heard three to four times more often in the mainstream media than their liberal counterparts.
The study was done by a liberal group called Media Matters for America. Katie Barge of Faith in Public Life said she agrees with the basic conclusion of the study.
"What Media Matters wanted to do was take a look at who's getting quoted among religious leaders when it comes to the news of the day to give a religious perspective."
But Barge said the study didn't consider the context of the interview. Often, conservative Christians are brought in to offer balance not just to the other side, but also to the institutional liberal mindset of the media. Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, said bringing on one liberal to talk to another about what they agree on just doesn't make for good television.
"The more liberal view is the host's view," he told Family News in Focus. "So, you don't need someone who's going to come on and have a love fest with him. And that's often what you see from the evangelical Left."
Gary Schneeberger, senior media director for Focus on the Family Action, said the study draws a false comparison. For example, Perkins is the conservative Christian who topped the list as the most often asked to comment. But, Schneeberger said, Perkins isn't a religious leader, he's a public policy analyst who happens to be a conservative Christian.
"They're comparing apples and pastors in this case," he said. "The folks that they list as religious figures aren't religious figures on the conservative side."
