By Bobby Ross Jr. | GetReligion

My three favorite holidays: Thanksgiving. Christmas. Opening Day.

I’m on vacation from my regular job this week and headed — as soon as I can type this post and throw a few baseball shirts and jeans into a suitcase — to Arlington, Texas. My beloved Texas Rangers open the 2017 season at home tonight against the defending American League champion Cleveland Indians.

If you need me, I’ll be Section 115, Row 33, Seat 5.

Given the peanuts-and-Cracker Jacks nature of this Monday, it seems only appropriate that I critique a baseball story — and thanks to my friend Ron Hadfield, an avid Detroit Tigers fan, I’ve got a terrific one to highlight.

“Here’s one Detroit sportswriter unafraid to write about a player’s faith,” Hadfield said in sharing a link to this story.

If you’re a baseball fan and a GetReligion reader (by my rough count, there are three of you), I know what you’re thinking about this ghost-free Detroit Free Press profile of Tigers pitcher Daniel Norris.

And I agree: It’s about time someone in the mainstream press delved into Norris’ faith and took it seriously. We’ve been begging for this since Norris first burst onto the national scene with an in-depth ESPN the Magazine profile two years ago.

Read the full column.

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More of my GetReligion columns (April 2017):

Continue reading “From ‘van man’ to man of God: Quirky Detroit Tigers pitcher Daniel Norris”

Five questions for leaders of churches, Christian schools and parachurch ministries to consider. By Bobby Ross Jr. | The Christian Chronicle FORT WORTH, Texas — For 30 years, an Idaho newspaper reporter wrote a weekly column with the simple premise that “Everyone Has a Story.” David Johnson, who retired in 2013, focused on the ordinary lives of people chosen randomly from a phone book. From … Continue reading ‘Everyone Has a Story’: In a digital age, tips for sharing yours

By Bobby Ross Jr. | GetReligion

Years ago, I helped cover the funerals in a small West Texas town after eight senior citizens were killed in a church bus crash.

I couldn’t help but recall that heart-wrenching tragedy as news broke Wednesday of another church bus crash — this one with an even higher death toll.

As a reporter, I always hate handling first-day stories on tragedies such as this. Pressing crash investigators for the basic details of what happened is no problem. But seeking comments from grieving loved ones is never easy. Never.

With my personal experience in my mind, I am impressed with the San Antonio Express-News’ main front-page story today.

The piece offers sensitive and insightful reporting on the tragedy, which occurred in the San Antonio paper’s coverage area.

The lede nicely sets the scene:

Read the full column.

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More of my GetReligion columns (March 2017):

Continue reading “How to cover a tragedy: San Antonio paper offers sensitive, insightful reporting on church bus crash”