It had all the hallmarks of a sensationalist tabloid sting. On July 21, 2021, an article appeared to allege that a senior U.S. priest, Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill, had used the hook-up app Grindr, with data from the app placing him at a number of gay bars. Burrill, the now-former general secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, promptly resigned. But the report was not published by an outlet that many Americans would associate with such sex "exposés." Indeed, most would have never have heard of it at all. It was The Pillar, a small newsletter founded in early 2021, that makes up just a tiny part of the Catholic media landscape in the U.S. As a scholar of American Catholicism and culture, I take a keen interest in Catholic media. My recent book, "Follow Your Conscience: The Catholic Church and the Spirit of the Sixties," draws upon dozens of articles in the Catholic media as primary sources for historical analysis. While many Americans may be familiar with evangelical outlets like Christianity Today or the Christian Post — not to mention the hundreds of evangelical radio stations across the nation — the Catholic media seems to have less prominence on the national stage. But as The Pillar's reporting on Burrill shows, Catholic journalism can nonetheless be influential — and can split opinion in just the same way as media with a wider audience. Tap link in bio to continue on @EDGEmedianetwork ✝️??️‍? (?️: Peter Cajka / ?: Getty)

It had all the hallmarks of a sensationalist tabloid sting. On July 21, 2021, an article appeared to allege that a senior U.S. priest, Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill, had used the hook-up app Grindr, with data from the app placing him at a number of gay bars. Burrill, the now-former general secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, promptly resigned. But the report was not published by an outlet that many Americans would associate with such sex "exposés." Indeed, most would have never have heard of it at all. It was The Pillar, a small newsletter founded in early 2021, that makes up just a tiny part of the Catholic media landscape in the U.S. As a scholar of American Catholicism and culture, I take a keen interest in Catholic media. My recent book, "Follow Your Conscience: The Catholic Church and the Spirit of the Sixties," draws upon dozens of articles in the Catholic media as primary sources for historical analysis. While many Americans may be familiar with evangelical outlets like Christianity Today or the Christian Post — not to mention the hundreds of evangelical radio stations across the nation — the Catholic media seems to have less prominence on the national stage. But as The Pillar's reporting on Burrill shows, Catholic journalism can nonetheless be influential — and can split opinion in just the same way as media with a wider audience. Tap link in bio to continue on @EDGEmedianetwork ✝️??️‍? (?️: Peter Cajka / ?: Getty)