Anti-Catholicism in American Culture [Hardcover]

Robert P. Lockwood (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 087973342X | ISBN-13: 978-0879733421 | Publication Date: January 2000

Would a major American newspaper accept a full-page ad viciously denigrating African Americans, Jews, or another minority? Of course not. But when the target is the Catholic Church, the rules change. Anti-Catholicism has been an integral part of American culture from the time the Pilgrims landed at Cape Cod. Even in today's supposedly tolerant climate, vicious stereotypes, falsified history, misrepresentation of religious beliefs, as well as ridicule and public attack of Catholics are commonplace. Anti-Catholicism has become the last refuge of acceptable bigotry. In Anti-Catholicism in American Culture, a series of essays that includes the Center for Media and Public Affairs' newest report on media coverage of the Catholic Church, discover first-hand: --The seven anti-Catholic assumptions common to the American experience --The sordid account of an anti-Catholic diatribe that

Product Details

• Hardcover: 249 pages
• Publisher: Our Sunday Visitor (IN) (January 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 087973342X
• ISBN-13: 978-0879733421
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,144,572 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Proves Anti-Catholicism is alive and well in America., April 10, 2000

By 

Tim Drake "Author and Journalist" (Saint Joseph, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Anti-Catholicism in American Culture (Hardcover)

Historian Arthur Schlesinger once described anti-Catholicism as the last acceptable prejudice in America. This book shows he was right.

Consider some of the evidence presented by a Center for Media and Public Affairs report.

- More than 90 percent of TV news reports were critical of the Church.

- Nine out of ten media sources criticized the Church's ecumenical efforts.

- Church teachings and practices received less support now than in any previous decade.

This insightful books examines the evidence. Not surprisingly it finds a media which uses negative generalizations, invented history, vicious stereotypes, shared prejudices, and outright denigration of Catholic religious beliefs.

This excellent resource includes a comprehensive analysis of media coverage of the Catholic Church from 1963 to 1998. It includes contributions from former Our Sunday Visitor president Robert P. Lockwood, Catholic writer Lou Baldwin, associate director of communications for he New York State Catholic Conference Rick Hinshaw, veteran Washington correspondent Russell Shaw, and Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights president William Donohue.

The book also features a practical chapter outlining 12 ways individuals can improve their relationships wit the secular media.

This book should be required reading among the politically correct, anti-prejudice and diversity training fare taught on our nation's college campuses.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Anti Catholicism In American Culture, November 21, 2000

By 

"yoco" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anti-Catholicism in American Culture (Hardcover)

"Anti-Catholicism in American Culture" Is a well written and comprehensive history of anticatholicism in America. Anticatholicism in America is as old as America itself. It arrived on the shores of America with the pilgrims who brought with them Anti-catholic feelings stirred up by the British royalty after Henry the VIII'S break with rome and the gunpowder plot in the late 16th and early 17th century. As detailed in the book Anti catholic bigotry has evolved over the years from one of True doctrinal difference and political differece's to a bigotry based on rejecting anything upholding moral standards and a belife in a christian God. A large part of this book deals with bigotry in the media, and contains a chapter by William Donahue on how to deal with and respond to antiCatholicism in the media. William Donohue is a course one of the most effective in this area and his work alone in this book is worth the price of the book.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Presentation Of American Catholicism!, January 3, 2002

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Anti-Catholicism in American Culture (Hardcover)

I ordered this book form Amazon a few weeks ago and loved it. It is well-organized and tells you a lot of information about a dark side of American history: Anti-Catholicism. It tells you about the prejudices and misinformation used by those who attack the Church. I recommend this book to every Catholic and those who are interested in learning about anti-Catholicism.