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Dateline Sacramento (2/12/2010)

 

Dateline Sacramento
News with a View from the California Capitol
February 11, 2010
That’s It? Tebow Ad Unmasks the Abortion Movement
In the days running up to last weekend’s Super Bowl, the media and blogosphere erupted in a frenzy of debate over an innocuous pro-life ad sponsored by Focus on the Family. The news was that 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow and his mother Pam would be featured in a “Celebrate Family, Celebrate Life” spot, which, it was assumed, would tell the story of Tim, “the miracle baby” whose mother refused an abortion during a difficult pregnancy. Missionaries in the Philippines, Pam and Bob Tebow refused to choose the doctor-advised abortion option, although Pam had been taking heavy medication following a bout with dysentery. 
Without seeing the ad – and with very little information – groups like Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America, and NOW (National Organization for Women) responded with a fury that awakened mainstream America. Expecting the ad to convey an anti-abortion message, they demanded CBS remove it from airing. A protest letter, penned by the Women’s Media Center, suggested the ad be refused because it was sponsored by Focus on the Family. "By offering one of the most coveted advertising spots of the year to an anti-equality, anti-choice, homophobic organization, CBS is aligning itself with a political stance that will damage its reputation, alienate viewers, and discourage consumers from supporting its shows and advertisers," the letter said. Jemhu Greene, president of the group, said, "An ad that uses sports to divide rather than to unite has no place in the biggest national sports event of the year -- an event designed to bring Americans together."
The characters of both Tim and Pam were maligned and subjected to malicious gossip. A charge by feminist Gloria Allred that Pam Tebow was a liar grew wings of its own as it spread throughout talk radio and the Internet. Allred based her charge on the fact that abortion was illegal in the strongly Catholic nation of the Philippines. An ESPN columnist warned Tim not to be manipulated by the far right. “Tebow is not an innocent, and he does not appear to be deluded. He may agree with everything Focus on the Family represents. But he's still a young man, still breathing the fumes of a home-schooled background with two parents who believe in the inerrancy of every single word of the Bible. Now, they could be right and I could be wrong on the Bible thing – although it's going to be hard to convince me the whole belly-of-the-whale thing wasn't allegory – but he could be setting himself up to be associated with causes and beliefs that may not be his own. All the qualities that make him admirable – earnestness, devotion, a willingness to expound on his beliefs – make him vulnerable.”
Both CBS and Focus on the Family assured audiences that the ad had been approved and was suitable for broadcast. Yet the nation was drawn into this debate, as the life issue made its way onto business and sports pages, talk radio, and Facebook pages. Over 250,000 “fans” joined one Facebook group supporting the commercial.   Surveys found support for CBS to run the commercial outnumbering its opposition. 
On the Friday before the game, host Stuart Shepherd talked with Gary Schneeberger, Vice President of Media Relations for Focus on the Family, in a Focus Action Update. They shared the surprising turn of events as an inspiring, uplifting commercial promoting life and family rolled out under God’s marketing plan. 
Because of the false controversy, thousands more viewers were attuned to a commercial, which, when it ran, seemed anti-climactic. The two 30-second spots aired early in the bowl game were what they claimed to be – non-offensive, pro-family spots showing light humor, banter, and genuine love between a young man and the woman who chose to give him birth. 
The reaction of most was to ask where the controversy was. Ironically, opponents opened a forum for the discussion of abortion and life that wouldn’t have materialized without the controversy – a forum filled with thousands of priceless conversations and personal stories intensifying in the media, online and around the water cooler. Pam Tebow made a choice and most Americans support her in it – no matter what their views on abortion are. The politicizing of the ad has led to countless souls questioning and debating the issue of life in open discourse.
Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life Action, commented, “This ad was funny, light-hearted, and had a positive message for everyone. The hate-filled reaction from pro-abortion groups reveals a radical abortion-at-any-cost agenda that is far out of step with the American people. Congratulations to Focus on the Family for inspiring us all in the face of extremism.”
Immediately following the Super Bowl, the voices of the opposition were silenced, but within days, the women’s groups found a new angle of attack. Opponents claimed that Tim teasingly tackling his mother at the end of one ad glorified violence against women and could lead to domestic violence. 
Read more about the Tebow family and watch the ads at www.family.org.
Planned Parenthood Continues Efforts to Undermine Parents
A recent report by the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) continues the advance against parental authority by advocating for the expansion of sex-education programs to include children as young as 10 years of age. In the report, Stand and Deliver, the authors argue that children as young as 10 should be considered “sexual beings” who have a “right” to be provided comprehensive sex education, which excludes abstinence education.
Stand and Deliver follows a United Nations report that recommended children as young as five receive mandatory sexual education that would include teaching pre-kindergarteners about masturbation and sexual diversity. Both studies imply that children and teens do not have access to information, or proper guidance from heath professionals, teachers or parents, and thus argue for government-mandated comprehensive sex-education programs.
According to the study’s authors, Stand and Deliver explains in depth the disparities “young people” experience in both developed and under-developed countries, particularly in regard to sexual and reproductive health. The authors define “young people” as those from 10 to 24 years of age, and then explain that young peoples’ limited access to health services, education, employment, money and information (about sex, gender roles and relationships, for example), makes them vulnerable to poor sexual and reproductive health.
The report further asserts that religious institutions are greatly responsible for denying children access to comprehensive sexual programs and education. It states, “Fundamentalist and other religious groups – the Catholic Church and madrasas (Islamic Schools) for example – have imposed tremendous barriers that prevent young people from obtaining information and services related to sex education and reproduction.” 
The report presupposes that sex education proponents believe that all humans are sexual animals who lack self-control, and assumes that the natural tendency of young people is to engage in sexual relations regardless of parental or biblical instruction. 
The author’s failure to recognize or consider the importance of abstinence education demonstrates the study’s bias. In last week’s Dateline Sacramento, CFC shared a new study by the American Medical Association’s Archive of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, which found that abstinence education, is effective in reducing teen sexual activity. Research has repeatedly shown “that abstinent teens report, on average, better psychological well-being and higher academic achievement than sexually active teens.” Further, abstinence dramatically decreases an individual’s exposure to sexually transmitted diseases. 
Studies have also shown that abstinence-based programs have effectively reduced sexual activity, or delayed a teen’s participation in sexual activity. These studies soundly refute the belief that teens cannot practice self-restraint when provided with consequences and options. For example, a study of seventh-graders from Northern Virginia found that students that participated in the abstinence education program were half as likely as non-participants to engage in sexual activity.
The success and effectiveness of abstinence-based programs resulted in the enactment of Section 510 of Title V of the Social Security Act. Section 510 established the State Abstinence Education Program, which teaches abstinence from sexual activity outside of marriage as an expected standard for all school age children and stresses the social, psychological and health benefits of abstinence. 
Contrary to what the IPPF report asserts, valid and reliable research shows that abstinence education programs are effective and that parents should have the primary responsibility for teaching their children about sex, not the government or our schools. In a recent Rasmussen Poll 50% of Americans believe abstinence-only programs are effective, while 68% believe sex-education programs should include abstinence education. The poll also found that 80% of Americans believe it is the responsibility of parents to teach their children about sex. 
Other Resources
New Study Reveals Disturbing Trend In Television Programming
The results of a new special report just released by the Parents Television Council (PTC) found that television programming is increasingly airing depictions of violence against women.
Violence has always been a part of television programming, yet this new research reveals that depictions of violence against women and young girls are increasing at an alarming rate. In addition, depictions of violence against females are more graphically shown, in ways that have not been seen in the history of television.
“Our new research points to a disturbing trend: by depicting violence against women with increasing frequency, or as a trivial, even humorous matter, the broadcast networks may ultimately be contributing to a desensitized atmosphere in which people view aggression and violence directed at women as normative, even acceptable,” said PTC President Tim Winter.
The study examined fatal and nonfatal female victimizations on prime time broadcast television and found that there was a significant increase in all forms of female victimization storylines. This included an increase in the depiction of teen girls as victims, an increase in the use of female victimization as a punch line in comedies, and an increase in the depiction of sexual violence against women.
PTC Director of Communications and Public Education Melissa Henson stated, “Just last week, actresses like Nicole Kidman testified before the Congress that Hollywood probably has contributed to violence against women by portraying them as weak sex objects. We all must pay attention to the fact that this is a problem in our society. The fact is that children are influenced by what they see on TV and that certainly includes media violence.”
Major findings:
  1. Incidents of violence against women and teenage girls are increasing on television at rates that far exceed the overall increases in TV violence. Violence, irrespective of gender, increased on television only 2% from 2004 to 2009, while incidents of violence against women increased 120% during that same period.
·         The most frequent type of violence against women on television was beating (29%), followed by credible threats of violence (18%), shooting (11%), rape (8%), stabbing (6%), and torture (2%). Violence against women resulted in death 19% of the time.
·         Violence towards women or the graphic consequences of violence tends overwhelmingly to be depicted (92%) rather than implied (5%) or described (3%).
  1. Between 2004 and 2009 every network except ABC demonstrated a significant increase in the number of storylines that included violence against women.
  2. Although female victims were primarily of adult age, collectively there was a 400% increase in the depiction of teen girls as victims across all networks from 2004 to 2009.
  3. The Fox network stood out for using violence against women as a punch line in its comedies – in particular Family Guy and American Dad –trivializing the seriousness of the issue of violence against women.
  4. From 2004 to 2009 there was an 81% increase in incidences of sexual violence on television.
The results of this recent study are alarming, but not surprising to anyone who regularly watches television. Television violence has, no doubt, decreased sensitivity toward the dire effects of violence against innocent women and children in our society today, and the results are devastating. Recent research shows that an estimated 60% of children in the U.S. have been exposed to violence in their daily lives, scarring them emotionally, physically and psychologically for the rest of their lives.
Providing supervision over television viewing is essential for concerned parents who are striving to provide a safe and nurturing environment for their children. California Family Council will continue to keep you informed on the latest research and developments that affect California’s families including the trends in television programming. Visit our website regularly at http://www.CaliforniaFamily.org.
Local Links
FRESNO – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has sent a letter of complaint to the Fresno City College president in which they charge a science professor is inappropriately presenting religious-based and anti-homosexual material in a health class. Read more in the Fresno Bee.
SAN FRANCISCO – As the Proposition 8 trial to protect the vote of California citizens continues, revelations about the sexual orientation of U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, who is a homosexual, has raised questions of his impartiality. Read more in the San Francisco Chronicle.
SAN FRANCISCO – Planned Parenthood’s latest attempt to banish sidewalk counselors from in front of its clinic in San Mateo appeared likely to go down in defeat, after a judge’s preliminary ruling that the abortion business had failed to prove its case against long-time pro-life advocate Ross Foti. Read more at MetroCatholic.
SACRAMENTO – The political campaign organized to convene a constitutional convention in California is, in the words of a top campaign official, “pausing" its efforts to get the measure on the November ballot. Read more at KQED CapNotes.
SAN FRANCISCO – Despite facing a $113 million budget deficit, the San Francisco Unified School District on Tuesday night approved a resolution guaranteeing $62,000 for a non-academic anti-discrimination program. Read more in San Jose Mercury News.
Truth Project Opportunities
RIVERSIDE – California Family Council continues to expand its offerings of the acclaimed Truth Project group leader training seminars. Training in biblical worldview is a prerequisite to living out authentic Christianity in today’s postmodern culture, with its subjective claims of truth. 
The next Truth Project Group Leader Training Seminars:
Saturday, May 1, 2010 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Host Church: Big Valley Grace Community Church
4040 Tully Road
Modesto, CA 95356 (San Joaquin Valley)
Saturday, June 5, 2010 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Host Church: Big Valley Grace Community Church
4040 Tully Road
Modesto, CA 95356 (San Joaquin Valley)
For more information on attending or hosting a seminar, call the California Family Council at 951.354.8362 and ask for Trudy. Register online for seminars at: www.californiafamily.org.
 
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