About

About the Series

RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY delivers one-of-a-kind news coverage from around the nation and the world.

Since its debut in 1997, RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY has set itself apart from the mainstream media by providing distinctive, cutting-edge news coverage and analysis of national and international events in the ever-changing religious world. Hosted by veteran journalist Bob Abernethy and produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, the acclaimed one-of-a-kind TV show examines religion’s role — and the ethical dimensions — behind top news headlines.

Correspondents Saul Gonzalez, Fred de Sam Lazaro, Tim O’Brien, Deborah Potter, Betty Rollin, Lucky Severson, David Tereshchuk, and Judy Valente, along with managing editor Kim Lawton, travel around the nation and the globe to explore how issues of faith, religion and ethics shape both national and international events. Newsmakers, scholars and policy analysts also provide insightful perspectives in roundtable discussions from the show’s studio in Washington, DC.

Winner of more than 115 industry awards — including the Sigma Delta Chi, the Gracie Allen, the Chicago TV Fest, New York Festival and CINE Golden Eagle — the program has been hailed by the Religion Newswriters’ Association for setting “a national standard for balanced and fair coverage of religious topics.” Phil Mushnick with The New York Post says, “Week after week, R & E similarly delivers, helping restore one’s faith in, of all things, television.” And Charles Honey of The Grand Rapids Press writes, “As far as news stories go, there are none better.”

To complement the program’s weekly broadcast, RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY offers a Web site, pbs.org/religion. The Web site features individual show transcripts, streaming video of weekly reports, full transcripts of interviews with notable guests, related articles dealing with significant issues in religion and ethics news, a list of related resources and an online pressroom featuring downloadable versions of the program press kit, as well as detailed summaries of individual stories. Audio and video podcasts of the program are also available.

Major funding for RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY is provided by Lilly Endowment Inc. with additional support from Mutual of America Life Insurance Company and individual supporters.

Check to see when RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY airs on your local station

“I find Abernethy and his team of correspondents so refreshing. They take a thoughtful, in-depth approach to religious issues often skimmed over or sensationalized by mass media . . . Abernethy and crew are reporting the depths of meaning millions find in faith amid chaos. As far as news stories go, there are none better.”
— GRAND RAPIDS PRESS

“Week after week, R & E similarly delivers, helping restore one’s faith in, of all things, television.”
— THE NEW YORK POST

“Religion is usually covered only as it pertains to other news stories . . . That’s what makes news ventures such as PBS’s RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY . . . all the more newsworthy.”
— TELEVISION WEEK

RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY provides an important source of information to members of the general public who may not understand the nuances of the religious world that it reveals.”
— RELIGION NEWS SERVICE

“Anchored by an experienced, low-key TV newsman Bob Abernethy . . . RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY defies market expectations. The TV program and Web site . . . become a precious library for research.”
— NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER

RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY . . . has become a respected voice in the conversation about American religion and culture.”
— PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“The show has become something of a blueprint for how to accurately report on religion.”
— THE DES MOINES REGISTER

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Funding for RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY is provided by Lilly Endowment. Additional funding is provided by individual supporters and Mutual of America Life Insurance Company.

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