Robert Downen almost burned out on newspapers and went into the insurance business.
Instead, the talented journalist, now 28, stuck it out and spearheaded what the Religion News Association chose as the No. 1 religion story of 2019.
I’m talking about the Houston Chronicle’s bombshell investigation that revealed more than 700 victims of sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention and spurred reforms by the nation’s largest Protestant denomination.
Come April, Downen’s work on the “Abuse of Faith” project could earn him and his colleagues a Pulitzer Prize. For now, it has resulted in a new gig for the former City Hall reporter. As of last week, he’s covering religion full time for the Houston newspaper. This is wonderful news for Downen and Chronicle readers.
“Mr. Downen has already demonstrated the importance of the beat with his impactful investigative work,” said Peter Smith, the RNA’s president and the veteran religion writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “Houston will benefit from his attention to the religiously diverse population of this major American city.”
Texas’s largest daily newspapers — including the Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram — all used to have full-time Godbeat pros.
But no more. At the Chronicle, Downen steps into an important role that has been unfilled for a while. (Here’s hoping those other papers decide to keep up with the competition.)
“Our decision about the beat was sparked by Abuse of Faith and the thought that there will be an ongoing discussion about these sorts of issues in Southern Baptist churches, and those of other denominations, for some time,” Chronicle executive editor Steve Riley told Religion Unplugged.
“But that’s not the only reason for us to do more on the religion beat,” added Riley, who was the investigations editor when the Abuse of Faith project started. “It’s such an important part of the lives of many of our readers, and we hope to find ways to reflect that in our coverage. Rob, of course, did a great job on Abuse of Faith, and he was interested in this beat, so we decided to try to make it work.”
Christine Fox Parker, who runs PorchSwing Ministries Inc. to help victims of sexual and spiritual abuse, praised Downen’s passion and concern for survivors.
“His depth of knowledge, his desire to bring to light the problem of abuse in churches and by church leaders, and his willingness to do what it takes to do so were evident in the hour or so we spent talking,” said Parker, who was quoted in one of Downen’s recent stories.
In the “Inside the Godbeat: Behind the Bylines” section of this week’s column, learn more about Downen and his career journey.
Power Up: The Week’s Best Reads
1. What’s really going on inside the Minnesota church accused of trying to expel its elderly members: The St. Paul Pioneer Press produced the original report on a United Methodist congregation’s alleged attempt to “usher out gray-haired members in (an) effort to attract more young parishioners.” The story quickly went viral. Everybody from The Atlantic’s Emma Green to The American Conservative’s Rod Dreher commented on it. Thankfully, the Washington Post’s Sarah Pulliam Bailey and then Slate’s Ruth Graham dug a little deeper. Also, GetReligion’s Terry Mattingly discusses this topic on this week’s “Crossroads” podcast.
Yes, nuance is a wonderful thing. The real story is more complicated than it first appeared.
2. Multiracial churches growing, but challenging for clergy of color: Production editor and national correspondent Adelle Banks recently celebrated her 25th anniversarywith Religion News Service. She was kind enough to do a Q&A with me about her time with RNS. Look for that interview in a future Weekend Plug-In. For now, read her latest in RNS’ “Beyond the Most Segregated Hour”series. (Bonus: It’s datelined Keller, Texas, which happens to be my hometown.)