Reply #9: here's more fun and games w/ "Reverend" Moon . . . [View All]

all quotes from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Washington_Times . . .

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The Unification Church calls Rev. Sun Myung Moon the "founder" of the Times:

"Fifteen years ago, when the world was adrift on the stormy waves of the Cold War, I established The Washington Times to fulfill God's desperate desire to save this world. Since that time, I have devoted myself to raising up The Washington Times, hoping that this blessed land of America would fulfill its world-wide mission to build a Heavenly nation. Meanwhile, I waged a lonely struggle, facing enormous obstacles and scorn as I dedicated my whole heart and energy to enable The Washington Times to grow as a righteous and responsible journalistic institution." <2> (http://www.tparents.org/Moon-Talks/sunmyungmoon97/sm970617.htm)
However, the Unification Church has been willing to run the paper at a loss to provide a political voice. In 2003, the New Yorker claimed that a billion dollars had been spent since the paper's inception. Critics of the Unification Church claim that operation of the Times is part of an attempt by the Unification Church to gain political influence in Washington, D.C.; to back up this claim, they also refer to the purchase of the UPI newswire service by the Church in 2001 -- a move that gives the Unification Church a press seat on Air Force One. The "Times" was also President Ronald Reagan's preferred newspaper.

Despite being owned by the Unification Church, it claims to be independent of the Church, and claims not to propagate the Church's teachings directly. (Compare Christian Science Monitor.) The Times is in favor of many topics other Christian conservative organizations support, including religious freedom for Christians worldwide and a dislike of government interference in private life. The Times states that it does not proselytize directly for the Unification Church.

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