Page 225 - Religion in the Media Age Media, Religion & Culture

214 Representing outcomes

entertainment. I don’t really think I see something religious that I find
interesting and then try to follow up on it by seeking information on
the media.
Interviewer: Does that include the Internet?
Steph: Oh yeah, I have. I take it back. I just kind of type in certain things
and there is always a website that says, “These are our beliefs” and
stuff, so I just sort of type in different religions and see what they have
to say about different issues and stuff.

She makes an interesting distinction between something being “about reli-
gion” and being “just entertainment.” This distinction, which we have
seen expressed in many different ways by different interviewees, seems
important to Steph, who lives in a “metaphysical seeker” household. One
way of looking at this would be to say that she has in mind some sort of
idealized notion of what something “about religion” would be, and that
that is something separate from her experience and her experience with
media. It also seems important that Steph is particularly prone to think of
the Internet as a place for this sort of “information-seeking.” The fact that
she initiates and controls an Internet search may well be important to her,
rooted in notions of self and personal autonomy. Unlike conventional
entertainment media, she can recall having sought out information about
religion online.
If we think of this information-seeking behavior as relating to things
that are more separate from one’s own deeply held beliefs, then it makes
sense that such seeking might well be related to religions other than one’s
own. Bill Baylor is a 41-year-old father of four sons, who lives with them
8
and his wife, Donna, in the suburbs of a major western city. He is a regis-
tered nurse, and describes himself as a Presbyterian and a “born-again
Christian.” He changed faiths as an adult, under Donna’s influence. “I was
Mormon . . . and converted to Christianity” he says rather unproblemati-
cally. The family is seemingly skeptical of “religious” television, making
fun of some televangelists during our interview, but at the same time are
aware of the Christian stations in their area and of the PAX network. They
prefer inoffensive “family” programs, with Bill identifying as a favorite the
classic western series, Gunsmoke. When asked about what he does when
he comes across programs or websites that advocate beliefs other than his
own, Bill replies,

Bill: [I] read them for the knowledge. [To] see how different people believe
because I have in my life switched major religions. So, in doing so I’m
very open – and talking to people also. Like if I see an article. Right
now, the guy that’s the atheist that wants God taken out of the Pledge
of Allegiance, he was on TV, I think it was last month. Because I was
flipping through channels. So I paused for a few minutes just to see