RESHAPING THE “GOD BEAT”: HOW THREE COMMUNITY NEWS WEBSITES FRAME RELIGION A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Graduate School At the University of Missouri In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts by KELLIE KOTRABA Dr. Debra Mason, Thesis Supervisor MAY 2012 The undersigned, appointed by the dean of the Graduate School, have examined the thesis entitled RESHAPING THE “GOD BEAT”: HOW THREE COMMUNITY NEWS WEBSITES FRAME RELIGION presented by Kellie Kotraba, a candidate for the degree of master of arts, and hereby certify that, in their opinion, it is worthy of acceptance. Dr. Debra Mason Dr. Jeanne Abbott Dr. Richard Callahan Professor Janet Saidi DEDICATION To Dr. Uwe Siemon-Netto: You introduced me to the intersection of journalism and religion, inspired me to pursue my calling and have shaped my life more than you know. If it weren’t for you, this probably wouldn’t be my thesis topic. To Professor Adam Lee: You have done so much for me. I’m struggling to find the right sentence. All I can say is thank you. To my mother, Julie Kotraba: I asked for wings so I could fly to the moon. Instead, you gave me the world when you put a pen in my hand and taught me to write. To my father, Mike Kotraba: You taught me to work hard and use my time wisely. Without you, this thesis wouldn’t be finished. To my sister, Kari Kotraba: You reminded me that there is more to life than academia. Thanks for helping me keep life in perspective. To my brother, Kam Kotraba: With your excitement about Legos and new adventures, you helped me stay excited about the little things. P.S. Thanks for the Starbucks card. To my man, Joshua Karges: You never stopped saying, “Keep up the good work.” Soli deo gloria. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is humbling to think about how many people helped this thesis come together. Thank you to my committee members, Dr. Debra Mason, Dr. Jeanne Abbott, Dr. Chip Callahan and Janet Saidi. With your expertise and enthusiasm, you have guided and affirmed me. Knowing you were there helped me keep typing, one paragraph at a time. Thank you to my friend and co-worker Emily Smoucha — without your copy editing skills, who knows what misplaced punctuation would lurk inside these pages. Thank you to my editors at the Columbia Missourian. I am a different reporter now than when I arrived at MU in fall 2010. You transformed me. Liz Brixey and Katherine Reed, thank you not just for the journalism, but the life lessons, too. Thanks to all my other MU professors, too — you pushed me and challenged my thinking. Thank you to those who helped me get into graduate school with their letters and advice: Dr. Peter Senkbeil, Dr. Jack Preus, Dr. Susan Bachman and Adam Lee. In addition to Dr. Bachman and Lee, thank you to the rest of the English department at Concordia University Irvine: Dr. Kerri Tom, Dr. John Norton, Thea Gavin, Kristen Schmidt and Katharine Borst. You prepared me for this great graduate school adventure and taught me what it means to be a reader, a writer and a scholar. Thank you to Christy Bottom, my first-ever newspaper advisor, and Sarah Berson, one of my first editors. And thank you, Kyle Mittskus, for convincing me to write for The Concordia Courier when I was a freshman in college. I had no idea that decision would eventually lead to a master’s degree in journalism. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................................................................................II LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ................................................................................. V ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................... VI Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................................... 3 Defining religion.................................................................................................... 3 Religion in the news and American life ................................................................ 9 Conversation on culture....................................................................................... 12 Religion news in the community ......................................................................... 15 Theoretical foundation......................................................................................... 19 Research Question ............................................................................................... 22 3. METHODS.......................................................................................................... 24 Gathering process ................................................................................................ 30 Reading process................................................................................................... 33 Interviews ............................................................................................................ 34 4. RESULTS............................................................................................................ 38 Textual results: Silk’s frames .............................................................................. 39 Good works..................................................................................................... 39 Tolerance ........................................................................................................ 44 Hypocrisy........................................................................................................ 46 False prophecy................................................................................................ 50 iii Inclusion.......................................................................................................... 51 Supernatural belief ......................................................................................... 56 Declension ...................................................................................................... 58 Textual results: new frames................................................................................. 59 Intersection ..................................................................................................... 60 Peace............................................................................................................... 63 Resurrection.................................................................................................... 64 Interview results .................................................................................................. 66 Houston Belief................................................................................................. 67 Salt Lake Tribune............................................................................................ 70 Faith in Memphis............................................................................................ 74 5. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION ................................................................. 78 Differentiation of coverage.................................................................................. 81 Overall religion coverage: The big picture.......................................................... 84 Limitations and future studies ............................................................................. 86 Final thoughts ...................................................................................................... 87 APPENDIX A. Articles analyzed: Houston Chronicle .................................................................... 89 B. Articles analyzed: Salt Lake Tribune ...................................................................... 95 C. Articles analyzed: Faith in Memphis....................................................................... 98 D. Interview notes: Kate Shellnutt, Houston Belief................................................... 101 E. Interview notes: Peggy Fletcher Stack, the Salt Lake Tribune.............................. 106 F. Interview Notes: David Waters, Faith in Memphis ............................................... 111 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................................... 115 iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Table Page 1: Total articles in each frame............................................................................................38 Figure Page 1: Houston Belief screenshot .............................................................................................25 2: Salt Lake faith screenshot..............................................................................................26 3: Faith in Memphis screenshot .........................................................................................27 4: Overall breakdown of frames ........................................................................................39 5: Breakdown of frames at the Houston Chronicle ...........................................................67 6: Breakdown of frames at the Salt Lake Tribune .............................................................70 7: Breakdown of frames at Faith in Memphis ...................................................................74 v RESHAPING THE “GOD BEAT”: HOW THREE COMMUNITY NEWS WEBSITES FRAME RELIGION Kellie Kotraba Dr. Debra Mason, Thesis Supervisor ABSTRACT With a downsizing of newspaper