UNITED STATES
Daily Times
Hooray for Hollywood!
The power of Tinseltown – the world’s most effective marketing machine – was on full display at this year’s Academy Awards. Unlike Washington’s partisan bickering that makes people tune out, Hollywood has the unique ability – when not in lazy mode – to shine the world’s biggest spotlight on people and events in a way that engages, endears and sometimes even enrages. People pay attention, and when that occurs, it can lead to monumental change.
Nowhere is that better illustrated than the impact Best Picture winner “Spotlight” is having on the national dialogue. The film follows a crack team of investigative reporters from The Boston Globe in their quest to uncover the pedophilia scandal in the Boston archdiocese.
This riveting true story, which millions will flock to see now that Oscar’s in the picture, has captured the public’s interest for many reasons: How the world’s most benevolent institution could look the other way as pedophile priests preyed upon the youngest among us; the lies of church leaders that the abuse was isolated, despite their knowledge of, and complicity in, the widespread scandal; the reassigning of sex-offender priests to unsuspecting new congregations; and, of course, the never-ending cover-ups.
But perhaps the single-most important factor in why “Spotlight” has grabbed our attention is the pervasive feeling among so many that church leaders still don’t get it. While Pope Francis has been leaps and bounds better than his predecessors in condemning the scandal and cover-up, the same simply cannot be said of many rank-and-file clergy. And, the pontiff’s actions notwithstanding, there is still considerably more he could, and should, be doing.
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