Lindsay, LeBron, Who Cares?

Today as I scanned the “most popular” headlines at an online news source, I found it odd that two of the top three most widely read and followed news stories are about celebrities.

Lindsay Lohan’s public self-destruction is, at this time, the most popular news item at Google News. While it all seems rather sad, why is this young woman’s outrageous behavior of such interest to so many?

Tonight NBA superstar LeBron James will announce which team he will play for next season, via an hour-long ESPN special. He needs 60 minutes to tell us something that could be captured in two sentences?

Together, these two pop icons have generated more news reports than these other top stories combined. In fact, a quick tally revealed that people are more interested in Lindsay and LeBron than these other  important items:

Pretty lopsided “news,” don’t you think? And something I heard on the radio this morning makes me wonder: is the media driving this celebrity culture – or are consumers driving the demand for such reporting?A sports writer observed that ESPN is airing what is plainly an hour-long LeBron James infomercial because lots of people will watch it. The public demand for such programming is there, and the network is happy to deliver to the audience (and deliver that audience to advertisers).

Its a chicken-egg question. What do you think?

What's driving our celebrity culture?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Your Feedback

As you probably know, Focus on the Family is here to come alongside families like yours with relevance and grace at each stage of the journey.  We support families as they seek to teach their children about God and His beautiful design for the family, protect themselves from the harmful influences of culture, and equip themselves to make a greater difference in the lives of those around them.

As we often say on-air, we’re here to help.  With practical resources – like our 1-800 Family Help line, counseling, and Websites – we’re committed to providing trustworthy, biblical guidance and support.

Of course, one aspect of our outreach involves radio, and it has been a true privilege to work on the daily Focus program for most of my tenure here at the ministry.  And some of the greatest joy is in hearing from folks who have been touched by our work. We receive a significant number of comments every day about our radio programming, much of it quite encouraging and touching. Let me share just one story that we just received:

Over twenty-five years ago, I began listening to your radio program at the recommendation of a mentor and friend. As a result, I’ve been touched by many of your guests over the years. I just wanted to take a moment to thank Focus for all of your wise counsel. In this day and age when it’s often difficult to see evidence of godly families, be assured that many of us in your listening audience are living testimonies that all of your prayer, hard work, and perseverance has paid off. I praise the Lord for the outstanding ministry of Focus on the Family!

We are grateful that God uses our work to impact lives, and I’m wondering if YOU have a story to tell? Leave a comment below and let others know how these broadcasts have made a difference in your life.

Also, I’d ask that you take a few minutes to answer our broadcast survey. Your answers to eight quick questions will help us evaluate and improve our programming. Here’s the link to that survey.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Take Our Listener Survey

I’ll invite you to participate in a new survey of Focus on the Family radio listeners. We’ll ask some questions about your listening habits and things you like – and don’t like. Help us out – take ten minutes and give us some honest feedback. The survey is here.

Strange Days

What are we to make of such days, which seem to have an overabundance of sad, weird, even disturbing stories about family, faith and culture?

Alright, enough railing against the culture…and back to raising my kids and loving my wife.

New Webcast Launches Today!

Your Family Live! launches today live Noon-1 p.m. MT, with Yvette Maher, Juli Slattery and guests Jill Savage, Tammy Maltby, Jennifer McKinney and TobyMac. Live calls and forum questions about balancing the busyness of motherhood. Here’s where to see this exciting new telecast.

Reading Harry

My 15 year-old asked me last night if she can read the Harry Potter books. I know the pros and cons of saying yes, and I am sure my decision will offend someone.

After remembering some excellent opinions from Chuck Colson and Plugged In and further personal deliberation, and after seeing one or two of the Potter movies, I told my daughter she can read the books. She was quite happy and gave me a big hug!

This was a matter of letting go, just a bit, so my daughter can exercise discernment and can apply some of the values and truth-training we’ve given her. She is, after all, almost 16. And I think that as a result of this decision we’ll have some good conversations about the Potter worldview, Truth and life.

I wonder if you’ve allowed – or prohibited – your kids from reading Harry Potter? If so, why? And if they’ve read the books, are you pleased with your decision?

Now That The Oscars Are Over

The Best Picture award went to a war film, and the epic by James Cameron was only a runner up. The Oscars provided a bit of drama for the audience gathered in L.A. It was a surprising night for many film enthusiasts, including our own Plugged In team. Read their live blog account and see Paul and Steve’s reactions to the ceremony. And before you try to see The Hurt Locker, go here for a trustworthy review by Plugged In.

Your Vote For “Best Picture?”

There’s a lot of excitement about this weekend’s Oscars. The movie-going public is seemingly enthralled about Avatar and The Hurt Locker and The Blind Side. While the Academy has expanded the entries to ten for the Best Picture category, I’m sorry to say I’ve only seen one of the possible winners, the Pixar-produced, “Up.” Truth is, I just don’t have a lot of time go to movies, even though I enjoy the art and impact of film.

So, of the ten films nominated for Best Picture, what is your favorite (and note, please, that neither Focus nor I are endorsing any of these films…just learning what you like)?

What's your pick for this year's winner in the Best Picture category?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Tim Tebow and The Super Bowl Ad

What’s the big deal? Perhaps you’ve noticed that there’s quite a bit of media coverage about the Super Bowl advertisement by Focus on the Family. The 30-second spot, featuring Pam Tebow and her son Tim, has created a lot of buzz. Google “Tim Tebow” and you’ll find millions of mentions – many of those referencing his association with Focus on the Family and some showing his recent comments about the matter (one example is here). Focus President Jim Daly has been on several television networks and shows, and some colleagues have also been speaking to the media about the ad, which has not yet been released.

I’ve found it interesting that objections to the spot are based on conjecture – not one of our critics has seen the ad. Despite having all the facts, many “women’s groups” are decrying the decision by CBS to air the ad, and many are calling for it to be pulled. Their bias certainly reveals a strong dislike to the consistent pro-life message Focus on the Family has (for more than 30 years) stood for, as well as anything that might cause folks to rethink their position on abortion.

Kudos to CBS for standing firm against such misguided protests, and many thanks to the Tebows for joining us for this spot – which is really a wonderful call to celebrate family. And thanks, too, to a handful of Focus supporters who made special donation toward the significant costs of placing the ad.

Keep Haiti On Your Mind, On Your Computer

Here’s an easy way to remember Haiti: install this touching desktop photo-illustration.

← Previous Page — Next Page →