The Religion News Association (RNA) is an American

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

professional association A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) usually seeks to advocacy, further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that professio ...

which seeks to promote better reporting on

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

in the

news media The news media or news industry are forms of mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public. These include news agencies, print media (newspapers, news magazines), broadcast news (radio and television), and th ...

and to provide help and support to

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

s who cover religion. It was founded in 1949 and in 2007 had 570 members and subscribers. Membership in the RNA is open to journalists who regularly report on religion in the secular print and broadcast media. Since 2006, the RNA has been associated with the

Missouri School of Journalism The Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri in Columbia is one of the oldest formal journalism schools in the world. The school provides academic education and practical training in all areas of journalism and strategic comm ...

at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...

. In 2016, RNA members approved a proposal to change the name from the "Religion Newswriters Association" to the current name. RNA awards

scholarships A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarshi ...

for full-time journalists who wish to take college courses on religion, gives awards and scholarships to college journalists, sponsors seminars and conferences and publishes a "primer" for religion reporters and an online style guide, as well as other resources for journalists. RNA is funded by membership dues, donations, and Religion News Foundation support. In 1999, former RNA executive director Debra Mason said in an interview that the topic of religion is very complex and requires extensive research, something which newspaper

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

s don't always appreciate. In 2005, Steve Buttry writing at

Poynter Online The Poynter Institute for Media Studies is a non-profit journalism school and research organization in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The school is the owner of the ''Tampa Bay Times'' newspaper and the International Fact-Checking Netw ...

said, "The Religion Newswriters Association does a tremendous job helping reporters learn the beat." RNA was cited by Kenneth G. C. Newport and Crawford Gribben in their 2006 book ''Expecting the End: Millennialism in Social and Historical Context'' for helping reporters get in touch with credentialed scholars on religion, leading to better public understanding of religious issues. Since the 1970s, RNA has published an annual list of the top ten religion-related news stories of the previous year. In 1999, RNA was criticized by the Islamic organization the Wisdom Fund for listing a story on a special "Top 10 Stories of The Millennium" list which gave inaccurate information on the history of

Islam in India Islam is India's second-largest religion, with 14.2% of the country's population, approximately 172.2 million people identifying as adherents of Islam in 2011 Census. India is also the country with the second or third largest number of Musli ...

. In the same year, RNA also published a list of the top ten religious news stories of the Twentieth century, with the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

being the most important event. In 2006, representatives from

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

and the

Church of Scientology The Church of Scientology is a group of interconnected corporate entities and other organizations devoted to the practice, administration and dissemination of Scientology, which is variously defined as a cult, a scientology as a business, bu ...

spoke to the annual RNA conference and discussed issues concerning their respective faiths.Faiths 'that don't fit' educate journalists

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

September 10, 2006

References

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External links

RNA membership site"Reporting on Religion: A Primer on Journalism's Best Beat"Religion StylebookReligionLink
a free service sponsored by the RNA that publishes religion story ideas and sources for reporters weekly. Journalism-related professional associations University of Missouri Organizations based in Columbia, Missouri Religion in Columbia, Missouri *