MK forum

The ABWE MKs from Bangladesh are deeply concerned about the choice made by a writer at Religion News Service to avoid naming ABWE in two different articles about BJU's firing (and re-hiring) of GRACE.

They make some very valid points about the omission of the name of the mission.

Please consider contacting RNS, as they request. If you want to read the RNS articles mentioned below, follow this link to the Bangladesh MKs Speak website, and then click on the Articles 1 and 2 links there.

http://bangladeshmksspeak.wordpress.com ... ifference/

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With Bob Jones University’s recent firing and then rehiring of GRACE several evangelical news outlets were once again remembering that precisely a year ago ABWE fired GRACE as well.

We found it interesting and disturbing that in the first Religion News Services (RNS) article (Article 1), they did not name ABWE, but simply referred to them as “an independent Baptist missions agency.” They also linked to ABWE’s highly controversial and widely disputed statement regarding why they fired GRACE.

The complaints we lodged were initially ignored. The general editor was contacted and emails were not returned. Then, after a week of efforts, the link to ABWE’s statement was finally removed, but ABWE was still not named.

Well … you might be saying … it wasn’t intentional on the part of RNS or the article’s author. Right??

Fast forward to Bob Jones rehiring GRACE. RNS ran yet another article (Article 2) by the same journalist and yet again did not name ABWE. Once again, ABWE was simply a nameless “independent Baptist mission agency.”

There is truly no reason in either RNS article NOT to name ABWE. It is a newsworthy matter and they were worth mentioning. Why weren’t they worth naming? Why aren’t the victims worth this small effort?

RNS has chosen to be an active participant in ABWE’s reputation protection either because they deem ABWE and its victims to be unworthy of mention or because they are unaware of what a victory that kind of anonymity in the midst of scandal is for an agency like ABWE. RNS handed them a victory, whether they intended to or not and they dealt the victims a blow. We are not surprised. We are used to evangelical journalism turning a blind eye to ABWE. But we think that our voices deserve to be heard.

If you believe that RNS should absolutely be naming ABWE in relevant articles as opposed to referring to it vaguely as a nameless “independent Baptist mission board” then please drop a quick line to Kevin Eckstrom, the general editor of RNS: kevin.eckstrom@religionnews.com

WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT AND THANKFUL FOR THOSE WHO WILL TAKE THE TIME TO BE SURE RNS GETS THE MESSAGE LOUD AND CLEAR.

A rapid response from the editor at RNS. The name of ABWE has already been inserted in both articles about Bob Jones University. There is no need to send further e-mails regarding this to Mr. Eckstrom.

I believe RNS does want to tell the stories of abuse in the Christian environment. I applaud them for their courage and sensitivity.

Ladies and gentlemen:

I'm writing to respond to the deluge of emails I've received from you in the past 24 hours about RNS coverage of Bob Jones and, indirectly, the ABWE. We always appreciate hearing from readers, even and especially when they think we've missed the mark.

A couple of points:

-- I have asked my staff to insert the ABWE name into the articles you referenced. That has been done.

-- I can assure you that there is absolutely zero attempt on our part to protect or expose anyone, ABWE or otherwise. We are not, as some of you have alleged, trying to "protect their reputation" or "giving them the gift of anonymity" or "saying that the victims do not deserve or need justice." Nothing could be further from the truth.

-- In fact, there was zero discussion on our staff about naming or not naming ABWE in our stories. Perhaps that was an oversight, but it was not an intentional one. In journalism -- where space, deadline and staffing pressure loom large — some decisions are made for no particular reason. Both of these stories were written on tight deadlines with minimal staff, and the focus of the stories was meant to stay on Bob Jones; the ABWE was mentioned only in passing, and nothing more.

-- You should know we take your concerns seriously, and have responded appropriately. You should also know that RNS is the only mainstream media out with a paid writer (Boz Tchividjian) who is dedicated to writing about abuse in religious settings. So we take this matter seriously and respectfully.

I believe we have addressed your concerns to the best of our ability, and now I would ask you to remove my personal email address from your website --- on the Internet, that's like listing your personal cell phone number for people to call at any hour of the night, and makes my inbox vulnerable to spam.

Thank you,

Kevin Eckstrom
Editor-in-Chief
Religion News Service

Now THAT'S what I call a response.