From Catholic Culture
By Phil Lawler
The headline on a Boston Globe story read: Providence bishop faces backlash for homophobic tweet.
Here’s the story, in its entirety as it appeared on the Boston.com site:
Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin took to Twitter Saturday to tell Catholics not to celebrate Pride Month this June, saying the event runs counter to the teachings of the faith.
“A reminder that Catholics should not support or attend LGBTQ ‘Pride Month’ events held in June,’’ Bishop Thomas Tobin tweeted Saturday morning.“They promote a culture and encourage activities that are contrary to Catholic faith and morals,’’ he continued. “They are especially harmful for children.’’
Do you see anything there about a backlash? No; the Globe headline is a prediction, or maybe a wish, rather than a description of the news story. And the word “homophobic,” of course, is an editorial judgment, not supported by anything in the text.
A news headline would have conveyed the main thrust of the story: that the bishop had warned Catholics not to join in Gay Pride celebrations. But this wasn’t a news headline. It was a rallying cry. The backlash was coming—the Globe staff knew that—and the headline writer just couldn’t wait.
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