Warren Smith is vice president of the World News Group and associate publisher of World Magazine, the largest Christian magazine in the United States. He spoke on campus as a guest of the Hillsdale College English Department and the Dow Journalism Program on Oct. 16. The topic of his talk was “Confronting the Anti-Christian Bias of the American News Media.” Compiled by Kate Patrick.
Which would you say is more important for Christian journalists: presenting the truth or presenting all angles of an issue so the reader can decide?
That they present the truth — we call that biblical objectivity. The mainstream media will often want to present all sides, and yet if you examine that approach even a little bit, you realize how ridiculous that idea is. Let’s take, for example, the Nazi Holocaust. Do you really think that it is reasonable and valid to say that the Nazi Holocaust had some positive benefits for population control or for medical experiments? Is it worth saying that the Holocaust or the imprisonment of people unjustly somehow had some good? I think most reasonable people would say the answer to that question is no. If we look at that idea of presenting all angles of an issue, we know that it’s not valid. The question is, what is the source of truth? For the Christian, the source of truth is God’s revelation to us. God’s revelation comes in the form of the Bible and the Incarnation, the person of Jesus. At World magazine, we pursue the idea of biblical objectivity rather than, say, the Fox News “fair and balanced” approached or the secular media’s approach, which is neither fair nor balanced.
What would you say is the mission or the highest end of a Christian journalist?
I think that telling the truth is a big part of it. Storytelling is a very high calling for a Christian journalist. It’s often not persuasive to say abortion is wrong. It might be true, but it’s not persuasive. It’s often more persuasive to say, “Here’s Jane. When Jane was 17 years old, she found herself pregnant and not married. She chose to keep her baby and not have an abortion. Fast forward 20 years, she has a beautiful son. There have been ups and downs in her life, but she doesn’t regret keeping that child.” That story is more compelling, more convincing, and more persuasive than the assertion “abortion is wrong.” Telling stories is an important part of what I believe a Christian journalist is supposed to do. Christian journalists tell the truth, and they shouldn’t avoid telling the hard truths. But the calling of a Christian journalist is really a call to being a storyteller, a storyteller who is directed by the truth of Scripture. We call that “biblically directed storytelling.”
What advice would you give to Christian writers?
First and foremost, my advice would be to develop a sound Christian worldview. Develop your own personal spiritual life. Learn how to think Christianly. Developing an appreciation for and an ability to articulate ideas relating to truth and liberty — whether you are a journalist or a consumer of journalism — I think is what Hillsdale College and a Christian worldview is all about. That will allow you to go out into the world and be able to discern truth from error. Secondly, I would say that if you’re a writer, you should write. Get good at it. Practice at it. Even if nobody is reading your writing, you’re getting practice. It’s like running laps. No one has to see you, but you’re still getting stronger.
Are there any writers that you think Christian journalists should take notes from?
I think Christians and Christian journalists should pay attention to good storytellers, journalists or not. I’m a big fan of Flannery O’Connor and Walker Percy. Among current writers, I think Bret Lott is really excellent.
