When does scandal become old news?

In some circumstances, there are few excuses for a reader not to know the background context for a story. Today's New York Times article "Nun Pleads No Contest in Sex Abuse" is not one of them. The article, about a Roman Catholic nun's plea in Milwaukee yesterday, does not seem to merit attention in a national newspaper, but since it is in the NYT, perhaps the paper might find it helpful to elaborate on the situation for those of us who have not been following a Wisconsin story that dates back to accusations made 15 years ago for crimes committed half a century ago? Most of the missing context involves dates: the article does not explain why the plea is just being made now, when one of the two accusers stepped forward in 1992; it references "dozens" of accusations of abuse by nuns without saying over what period in history it is referring to; and it refers to "the Catholic sexual abuse scandal" without giving the context of the rash of accusations that began to come out against Roman Catholic clergy circa 2001. Furthermore, the article fails to back up its relevance in 2007, aside from this one plea. Why does Mary Pat Fox of Voice of the Faithful think that more victims of sexual abuse by nuns will suddenly step forward now? What impact has this Milwaukee case had nationwide that can back that claim up? While the sexual abuse scandals of several years ago did attract nationwide and even international media coverage, attempts to follow up such stories today seem to take past coverage for granted and end up feeding off stereotypes formed during that period.

A Boston Globe article today also talks about the Roman Catholic community in the U.S., but it is tailored more appropriately to its audience than the NYT article. The article reports on Pope Benedict XVI's upcoming trip to the U.S. in April, when he will visit New York and Washington but not Boston. The dateline reads Baltimore, which was somewhat confusing until it was revealed several paragraphs in that the papal visit was announced there at the semiannual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. After revealing the Pope's plans for his visit, the article then turns to theories that Boston archbishop Cardinal Sean O'Malley's efforts to obtain a papal visit in Boston were thwarted because of Boston's reputation following--wait for it--the sexual abuse scandal. (Is this surprising coming from a paper that won a Pulitzer for its coverage of the scandal, managing to alienate some Catholic subscribers in the process?) It's a perfectly legitimate point to make, since the article notes that it appeared in conversations among American bishops. The Globe, however, relegates these associations to the end of the article, where they are most relevant in light of the news being reported.

On a completely unrelated note, a feature article in the International Herald Tribune caught my eye today with its colorful language and vivid description of "Riding the train of dreams across India." The pace of the article is quick and jarring, like the train experience it seeks to convey. It tosses out a multitude of surprising images faster than the Western reader can figure out how to make sense of them, but in doing so, it rings authentic with the experience it describes of people from the country making their way to the big city of Mumbai, mythologized as the "City of Gold." The article is written to captivate its audience, but it also serves as a small-scale observation of larger changes in India, which is becoming more urban than it has ever been before.