Advocacy / Government
Stories cover groups or individuals campaigning for the government to address their grievances, possibly resulting in civic or public policy change; the involvement of local, regional and national government officials in religious parades, banquets, and events; self-identified members of faith traditions participating in government; and elections and voting.
Arts / Entertainment
Stories cover any artistic intersection with religion, i.e. television shows, films, documentaries, musical groups, benefit concerts, rappers, dancers, art shows, media, and other forms of performance.
Business / Workplace
Stories cover freedom of religion in the workplace, including discrimination disputes, corporate chaplaincies, investments, Islamic banking, businesspeople winning awards or meeting a niche religious market.
Center Openings / Milestones
Stories cover new religious center openings, including non-zoning controversies over openings, publicized plans for projected centers, major renovations, anniversaries of buildings, open houses and other physical building issues not covered in other key themes. Also includes new personnel appointments.
City Hall / Mayors
Stories cover any religious events, displays, or controversies that take place in the context of city hall, with or without controversy. Also includes stories that specifically mention city leaders’ (i.e. mayors, city counselors, etc.) response to religious diversity among their constituents.
Civil Liberties
Stories cover (real or perceived) infringements on civil liberties, including unlawful or inappropriate detentions, arrests, or searches, and delayed visas.
Colleges / Universities
Stories cover campus-based religious and multireligious activities such as interfaith residence halls or discussion groups, Islam awareness week, etc.
Courts / Justice
Stories cover disputes that enter into legal proceedings, such as workplace discrimination cases.
Discrimination / Accommodation
Stories cover a range of discrimination and accommodation issues. Discrimination covers any action of exclusion or any direct mention of “hate,” overt hostility, or making a group or individual to feel unwelcome. Accommodation covers attempts to include religious diversity in policy and practice.
Education / Schools
Stories cover faith schools, religion taught in public schools, curriculum about religion, and other religious concerns that emerge within the context of Pre-K-Grade 12 education.
Environment
Stories cover interfaith movements toward “greener” places of worship, environmental service days, intersections of religious practices with government environmental practices, conferences, reactions to global warming, ethical investing practices, practices pertaining to environmental stewardship, developing world practices, wilderness retreats, and natural disasters.
Experience / Lifecycle Events / Expressions
Stories cover a broad range of topics, from naming ceremonies and marriage practices to coverage of religious nursing homes and cemeteries.
First Amendment / Public Square
Stories cover debates and controversies over First Amendment rights, including freedom to practice religion, freedom from government promotion/establishment of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of peaceful assembly. This category covers only domestic stories; analogous international stories are covered under Religious Freedom/Religion in Public Life.
Health / Healing / Hospitals
Stories cover healing rituals, complementary and alternative healing practices, trends in hospitals such as interfaith chaplaincies, medical curriculum, health statistics by religious tradition, advocacy and hospice work on AIDS and other diseases.
Holidays / Worship
Stories cover celebrations of major holidays, worship festivals, or trends in observance; school holiday calendars; and debates over holiday observance (“December Dilemma”).
Interfaith / Multifaith
Stories cover self-identified interfaith organizations, worship services or social action initiatives; also activities which involve multiple religious traditions.
Military
Stories cover self-identified religious minorities serving in the Armed Forces, particularly controversies over evangelism or religious symbols.
Peace / War
Stories cover social action initiatives that focus on building a culture of peace, especially in the international realm. This theme also includes terrorism and large-scale outbreaks of war or civil violence, and specific efforts in response to incidents of international strife.
Prisons
Stories cover prisoner rights to religious freedom, including access to prayer space and clergy, kosher or halal food, freedom from evangelization, and early release programs; this category also covers how religion has been transformative in prisons.
Religious Freedom / Religion in Public Life
Stories cover issues of religion in the international public square which have the ability to affect a large number of people beyond just a particular religious community; also includes debates and controversies over “rights” or lack thereof, and stories about conversion laws, religious identification requirements, interethnic relationships, religious quotas, religious center demolitions, etc. This category covers only international stories; analogous domestic stories are covered under First Amendment/Public Square.
Science / Technology
Stories cover how technological advances change the practice of religion; scientific research into the effectiveness of prayer or other forms of religious practice; creationism debates; science/reason/faith debates; and anything concerning the Internet or technological networking.
Social Action
Stories cover collaborative action in the civic sphere and community outreach, including food banks, charity, volunteering, and efforts to educate the larger community about a faith.
Statistics
Stories include quantitative data related to religious identification, whether self-reported by religious communities, formal studies on religious demographics, or references to the number of places of worship or practitioners in a given town or region.
Violence / Vandalism
Stories cover (alleged and confirmed) hate crimes, personal property or religious center vandalism or injury (including incidents which are not hate crimes), and community reactions to specific acts of local violence and vandalism.
Women / Gender Relations
Stories cover women’s social action, interfaith groups, and policy decisions that affect women.
Youth
Stories cover young people outside of school or higher education settings, such as scouting troops, interfaith or public service youth groups, and camps.
Zoning
Stories cover any dispute or publicity on the proposal, construction, or renovation/expansion of a religious center.
Opinion / Editorials
Stories which include an opinion or judgment from a columnist, newspaper editorial board, or blogger are covered here.
Articles by Diana Eck
Pieces authored by Pluralism Project Director Diana Eck – usually guest columns – are covered here.
Pluralism Project in the News
Pieces which refer to the Pluralism Project; to its mission, directory, or research; or to its staff members and affiliates are covered here.