Phil Robertson’s Remarks on Homosexuality

• The Remarks
• GQ
• Yahoo
• Time

The Repercussions

• Suspended: NYTimes
• HuffPo
• SF Chronicle
• Washington Post
• Sarah Palin Defends Phil
• Best Headline: Guardian http://guardianlv.com/2013/12/duck-dynasty-phil-quotes-bible-glaad-cries-foul-christians-silently-twiddle-thumbs/
• Huffpo on who has the right to be a victim.
• The Robertson Family’s Official Statement

The suspension is lifted

The Conversation

• First Things
• Rod Dreher
• Russell Moore
• Mollie Hemingway
• WSJ
• Think Christian
• Time: Brandon Ambrosini:  who by incredible timing wrote the Atlantic piece about bigotry earlier in the week.

• One of the conservative tweeters I follow—one of those Christians convinced that Obama is going to have him killed for his faith—lives for stuff like this. He quickly took to the Twitterverse and posted a side-by-side image of Pope Francis and Phil, with the following caption: “Both preach truth on homosexual sin. One is TIME’s Person of the Year. The other JUST GOT FIRED.”

  Read more: The ‘Duck Dynasty’ Fiasco Says More About Our Bigotry Than Phil’s | TIME.com http://ideas.time.com/2013/12/19/the-duck-dynasty-fiasco-says-more-about-our-bigotry-than-phils/#ixzz2nxN1qaXw

• The Atlantic on the Racial Comments
• CNN
• Matthew Paul Turner from Jesus Needs New PR
• Boeskool
• Another HuffPo, this one from Lori Sanders

Though many may wish A&E made a different decision, the truth is that the network reacted to Robertson’s comments because they feared a backlash from their more socially moderate viewers. Airing the show and promoting the family’s lifestyle serves as tacit approval from the network, fair or not, and it’s worth noting that both sides of the culture war are guilty of calling on networks to drop individuals they find offensive. Regardless of whether this turns out to be a good decision, it’s important to note that the media’s role in society is to both reflect and lead culture. It’s always a picture both of who we are and who we are becoming, and that tension can be incredibly difficult, particularly on thorny issues.

• The Dish: Why is A&E Punishing the Guy for being the character they’re profiting from? And continued

I have to say I’m befuddled by the firing of Phil Robertson, he of the amazing paterfamilias beard on Duck Dynasty (which I mainly see via The Soup). A&E has a reality show that depends on the hoariest stereotypes – and yet features hilariously captivating human beings – located in the deep South. It’s a show riddled with humor and charm and redneck silliness. The point of it, so far as I can tell, is a kind of celebration of a culture where duck hunting is the primary religion, but where fundamentalist Christianity is also completely pervasive. (Too pervasive for the producers, apparently, because they edited out the saying of grace to make it non-denominational and actually edited in fake beeps to make it seem like the bearded clan swore a lot, even though they don’t.)

• Relevant Mag weighs in with an opinion that we’re too opinionated, and gives room for comments so more opinions can be shared. 🙂
• Jon Stewart
• Ron Belgau on double standards
• More from Rod Dreher: Jeremiah Wright and Phil Robertson Dreher is reading Dante via Prue Shaw’s book coming soon and that’s been paralleling his posts.
• Christian Today (not ChristianITY Today) from Nov 22:
• The Film: “I am Second” by the Robertsons
• How Duck Dynasty broke the script on reality TV
• Larry Taunton in The Atlantic