Coverage of Faith and Spirituality is on the Rise. ABC-TV and National Public Radio hired religion correspondents. Magazines of all sorts from TV Guide to Time to The Atlantic Monthly featured cover stories on religion and the spirituality search. One need only browse the aisles of a bookstore and note the extensive New Age and spirituality sections that are located apart from the religion section to get a sense of the interest in spirituality, suggests Larson, former religion writer for the Chicago Sun-Times. That the 1990s are marked by an intense renewal of interest in spirituality is a given among students and scholars of religion.
Spirituality is difficult for journalists to cover.
The Archdiocese of Chicago has a large public relations arm that stays in touch with reporters and generates stories, for example. Newer traditions don't yet have that kind of institutional infrastructure. Despite a general focus on America's changing demographics, the Garrett-Medill study found that religious coverage remains focused on Christianity, Judaism and, most recently, Islam. There are a lot of people in this country who are not seeing themselves reflected in the media. Limor Peer, adjunct assistant professor of communication studies at Northwestern and project director of the research project, says the study was designed to spark conversation between journalists and religious leaders by providing a snapshot of journalistic treatment of religion and spirituality.