hey, what gives?

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Oct 04, 2005

In March of 2004, National Catholic Reporter reporter Chuck Colbert planted himself in a parish mass near Boston with the purpose of disrupting it to protest a family-rights video shown at homily time. A couple weeks later, NCR editor Tom Roberts announced he was giving Colbert the hook:

In stories and newscasts that followed [his disruption], Colbert was correctly identified as a freelance writer who regularly contributes to NCR. What wasn't said, however, is that Colbert has not written for NCR since the issue of March 19, not since he made the decision to cross the line between reporter and activist. At that time, we talked about the situation and Colbert understood that becoming a public activist on the gay marriage issue would prohibit him from reporting on our pages.

Roberts admitted that Colbert's "decision to disrupt the Mass was the decision of an activist, not a journalist." Exactly.

So why is Colbert back in the NCR, reporting on Father Walter Cuenin?