As Election Day inches closer we are fortunate to have Relgious Studies Professor Daniel Vaca with us to discuss his book Evangelicals Incorporated! "The Religion Business: Evangelicals, Media, and Politics" New York Times columnist Kevin Roose '09, author of The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University documenting his "semester abroad" from Brown at Liberty University, will be moderating. Bring your questions for Professor Vaca and Kevin Roose!
Synopsis: American evangelicalism is big business. For decades, the world’s largest media conglomerates have banked on evangelical consumers, and those corporations in turn have helped mold evangelicals into prominent social and political groups. The same conglomerate that produces Fox News Channel, for instance, not only publishes bestselling religious books like Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life but also controls as much as 75 percent of the bible market. In his book Evangelicals Incorporated: Books and the Business of Religion in America, Professor Daniel Vaca explores how the evangelical book industry became a primary preoccupation of commercial media industries as well as conservative political strategists. In our discussion with him, he will present snapshots from his work that not only will help us understand the relationship between religion and business in the United States but also will shed light on the role of evangelicals in American society and politics.