Very odd: The way mainstream media 'reported' on Last Supper parody at Olympics

The Catholic Herald

Min read

share

One of the most striking features of the whole Last Supper parody debacle that has so unfortunately tainted the opening of this year's Olympics and what is meant to be such a thrilling testimony to human achievement is the way the mainstream media has reacted to it (or hasn’t in most cases). The BBC didn’t appear to run anything over the weekend about the incident, which occurred on Friday 26 July, until later on Sunday 28 July when it published – slipped in under the radar is more accurate – a <a href="http://A banquet sequence featuring drag artists in particular came in for criticism from Christian groups, who felt it parodied Leonardo da Vinci's painting 'The Last Supper'.">very short article</a> titled “Olympic chiefs 'sorry' opening ceremony caused offence”. It is such a cropped and reductionist piece of writing that it would make even Ernest Hemingway, the great master of pared-down composition, blush. The article sums up the great controversy as follows: "A banquet sequence featuring drag artists in particular came in for criticism from Christian groups, who felt it parodied Leonardo da Vinci's painting 'The Last Supper'." Note the "who felt". Presumably that is the BBC's famous "impartiality" on display. The Associated Press, one of the world’s largest and supposedly most professional news wires went with an <a href="https://apnews.com/article/olympics-2024-drag-queens-opening-ceremony-c635aa276be1147e4643231bdbe5478e">article</a> titled: “Drag queens shine at Olympics opening, but ‘Last Supper’ tableau draws criticism”. This analysis of what happened might as well have been penned by a drag queen lobbyist group or by the LGBT advocacy group Stonewall. “In an unprecedented display of inclusivity, drag queens took centre stage at the Paris Olympics opening ceremony, showcasing the vibrant and influential role of the French LGBTQ+ community – while also attracting criticism over a tableau reminiscent of 'The Last Supper',” opens the article. Note the "unprecedented display of inclusivity" and the "showcasing the vibrant and influential role". On various levels, the paragraph is a very odd opening for an article from an “objective” news wire, and which isn't meant to be some sort of LGBT-trumpeting propaganda machine. The Guardian, to its credit, has, unlike the majority of its brethren media, run coverage of the incident, including not trying to downplay the scale of offence caused to Catholics and Christians by what happened, or to make those who are offended sound, as the BBC article does with its reference to "Christian groups" like an esoteric assortment of hobbyists. But, nevertheless, there is remains the inclusion of interesting language and angles, as evidenced in the Guardian's <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/28/paris-olympics-organisers-apologise-to-christians-for-last-supper-parody">article</a> "Paris Olympics organisers apologise to Christians for Last Supper parody". One of the article's paragraphs notes: “Some commentators said the controversy was another example of 21st-century culture wars turbocharged by a 24-hour news cycle and social media.” No, that’s not what happened. Yes, those dynamics will have contributed to the furore – not that the Guardian would mention the same point in relation to an issue it cared about – but this particular controversial fallout was the result of, as <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/bishop-barron-slams-gross-mockery-of-last-supper-and-christian-faith-during-olympic-games-opening-ceremony/?swcfpc=1">Bishop Robert Barron highlighted</a>, the world watching on the most public of global stages the “gross, flippant mockery” of a central tenet of the Christian faith, which is followed by about 2 billion of the world’s inhabitants. The Guardian article also gives the last word to Thomas Jolly, whom the article describes as "the artistic director behind the flamboyant opening ceremony". Thus, the ending of the article would seem to suggest, while it is shame about Catholics and Christians getting annoyed, at least overall it was a fun and "flamboyant" ceremony – so that's all right then. On top of that, the Guardian has run another article <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/29/olympic-last-supper-scene-based-painting-greek-gods-art-experts">offering what seems like some counterfactual posturing</a>, with "art experts" arguing that the scene in question is not based on the Last Supper at all, rather on a 17th-century painting of the Greek gods. Always this effort to downplay or disassemble. It is very effective, and leaves the victim/aggrieved person – here the Christian – doubting the strength of their convictions: maybe I am overreacting a bit to all this; everyone else that I am reading seems not to have a problem with what happened; people were just trying to have fun and celebrate, after all; and it might even have been based on another painting... Hence <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/28/sports/olympics-opening-ceremony-last-supper-paris.html">this</a> from the New York Times: “An Olympics Scene Draws Scorn. Did It Really Parody ‘The Last Supper’?” Did it? Did it? There it is again, the mainstream media’s equivocating, not to mention clear display of bias against, or at least undervaluing, Christian concerns. One could go on: example after example after example plucked from the mainstream media’s "coverage" of this surreal episode from the opening ceremony, and which in fact on the whole looked entirely the other way. What occurred in Paris is a big story, and not just for 2 billion Christians. It was a colossal error – if it really was an error – on the part of the organisers of the Olympics, the ramifications of which could be bigger than many people realise. It's not just Catholics and Christians, but also people of other faiths and even atheists who have been left stunned and processing what was permitted to take place in Paris in front of the whole world looking on. People are still grappling with what the incident appears to have highlighted about the prevalence and brazenness of anti-Christian attitudes, not just in France but that also permeate mainstream culture today throughout most of the West. Attitudes that so many media prop up and contribute to either through directing messaging – or through omission. And that silence, or, to use that favoured phrase of the modern era and used especially by endless secular activists and human rights groups, their gas lighting, as so clearly demonstrated after what happened in Paris, is further evidence for the concerns that many Catholics and Christians increasingly have about anti-religious sentiments. As well as about the institutions both at governmental level and throughout civil society that are pushing and protecting that aggressively secularist creed against the Church, religious organisations and against ordinary Christians too. RELATED: <a href="https://catholicherald.co.uk/give-me-a-break-bishop-barron-calls-out-disingenuous-apology-by-olympics-committee/?swcfpc=1">‘Give me a break’: Bishop Barron calls out apology by Olympics’ committee as disingenuous</a> VIDEO: Dr Gavin Ashenden on the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony and what it tells us about the state of the Church in Europe and about the people in authority who run Europe: Photo: The Olympic Flag is presented at Place du Trocadero by the 'horsewoman' figure who played a central role during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, Paris, France, 26 July 2024. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images.)

The Catholic Herald

share

subscribe to the catholic herald today

Our best content is exclusively available to our subscribers. Subscribe today and gain instant access to expert analysis, in-depth articles, and thought-provoking insights—anytime, anywhere. Don’t miss out on the conversations that matter most.

Subscribe