(The Nation. Michael F. Pettinger).
Reading for the bottom line has become almost instinctual in US public discourse; we’re hungry for a digestible takeaway. When The New York Times recently announced that a new “Vatican Document Casts Gender Change and Fluidity as Threat to Human Dignity,” it’s safe to assume that most readers skimmed the article, if they even read past the headline. It’s the sort of headline that zeroes in on the personal interests of a significant part of the Times’ audience, addressing political hot buttons in language that, understandably, arouses strong feelings in the reader. When the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) released Dignitas Infinita on April 8, many had likely already made up their minds about the document, and it’s not clear how many proceeded to actually read it. But those who did, particularly those who have most reason to feel threatened by it, might have found themselves bewildered.