Yeah, I guess that title fits. Here would be another one; "liberal prof who works for a Catholic institution of higher learning can't wait to mention the Church sex abuse scandals." Yes, the Church will have to accept for a long, long time that this is the first thing many people are going to think of when the Catholic Church is mentioned. But...

How big a part of Benedict's legacy is it really? He'll have been pope less than eight years at the time of his retirement. Yes, the Church was still dealing with the aftermath of the scandal during his tenure. But Cardinal Ratzinger was seen as a hard push to the right for the Church when he was chosen in 2005. Shouldn't whether or not that actually happened be the focal point of the discussion of his legacy.

And I don't want to single out WFRV but tracking down the local college profs for comment is lazy journalism. Yes, it makes sense to a degree in this case because SNC is a Catholic institution, but that fact never becomes relevant in this reporting. And yes, every newsroom has "the golden prof rolodex." But it's a dinosaur that should be put to rest, unless the prof has a specific connection to the story. I did it for years when I was in the newsroom but it's manufactured coverage.

A final thought: the friend who tipped me off to this story makes a great observation. During the coverage of the death of Teddy Kennedy, did anybody in the mainstream media mention Chappaquiddick? I was vilified for mentioning it on my Facebook Page.