Those ‘devil worshiping’ nonbelievers must be up to no good

I’ve only gotten through five minutes of CNN’s special tonight on atheism, and already the tone has taken a negative turn. Here is an exchange between Richard Dawkins and a journalist:

Interviewer: What is it about atheism that rocks so many people to the core?

Dawkins: It’s a very odd thing that the very word “atheism” has a sort terrible resonance to people.

Then seemingly answering her own question:

Interviewer: ‘Cause people (much like yourself, perhaps?) think devil worshiping, morally bankrupt.

Dawkins: I know. It’s possible that that word has become so deeply ingrained in sort of a horror reaction that we do need to find a better word.

Interviewer: And there are other words. “None.” “Humanist.” “Skeptic.” “Freethinker.” “Agnostic.” Millions of Americans.

I’m sure Dawkins gave a fuller reply that doesn’t make him sound like he’s tacitly agreeing with her suggestion, but the video cuts away to another segment at that point. What struck me, other than the paradox of a “devil worshiping” nonbeliever, was that the narrator lowered her voice on those last three words, turned to a gloomy inflection, and said “millions of Americans,” as if she was describing cancer patients or convicts on death row.

Hear for yourself:

I thought my DVR was recording the whole special, but there was apparently an error, so I didn’t get the chance to see the whole show, but I will provide my thoughts on the rest of it shortly.

In any case, CNN was set to air the first national TV ad from American Atheists before and after the show, according to Hemant Mehta, but even that was softened to try to prevent offending believers. In the original spot, the video was edited to remove a nun that could be seen singing with some nonbelievers, you know, in a show of harmony and human solidarity.

According to Mehta:

CNN said they couldn’t air the costumed nun because it mocked religion. I don’t really see how a still image like that constitutes mockery … but the final version had the nun cropped out.

Here are the two ads.

Original:

Edited: