A Forum for Faith and Politics
August 12, 2013鈥擜s the editor for the Washington Post鈥檚 blog On Faith, Elizabeth Tenety (C鈥�07) combines her passion for religion and politics to create a forum for the day鈥檚 most popular debates.
Growing up, Tenety was captivated by the discussions she had on values and religion with her family. 鈥淭he fact that people have radically different views about the world [when seen] through the lens of their own values became really fascinating to me,鈥� she continued. It wasn鈥檛 until she enrolled in with Visiting Assistant Professor of Theology that she discovered her academic interests could be a career.
鈥淪he was the first person to tell me I could have a career in religion and that had never crossed my mind. That you could have a job in this field in some way,鈥� Tenety explained.
In 2006, the and major became a research assistant for Professor of Government , and was one of the first students to work at the newly formed . 鈥淚 got started at the Post really through Georgetown,鈥� Tenety said. As a senior, Tenety garnered a spot as a blogger for On Faith, when the blog partnered with the Berkley Center. After completing a master鈥檚 in journalism, Tenety became the blog’s editor.
鈥淲e do news and commentary on religion, culture, and politics,鈥� she explained. In addition to writing her own stories and managing On Faith鈥檚 website and social media, Tenety edits and solicits articles from contributing writers.
鈥淭he goal everyday is to be a home for the conversation happening around religion. I think of religion as broadly defined, how people make moral decisions about their lives, politics, and culture,鈥� she said.
On Faith gives Tenety the opportunity to explore perennial questions about morals and values and to discuss how religion is shaping current events. 鈥淸Recently,] we covered abortion issues in Texas and Ramadan. So it鈥檚 really the full spectrum, not only of religious traditions but of ideologies within those traditions,鈥� she explained.
Tenety sees herself as a 鈥渢ranslator of these issues,鈥� finding ways to thoughtfully and accurately discuss popular debates, such as the decline of religion for people under 30. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 mean they don鈥檛 believe in God. [Because] their practices are not affiliated with an institution or denomination, they all believe and do different things,鈥� she said. 鈥淗ow do you make generalizations about a generation, [many of whom] are taking their own path to spirituality?鈥�
For current students hoping to follow her career path, Tenety encourages would-be writers to delve into a few topics while at Georgetown. 鈥淚 studied religion and politics, and there鈥檚 not a clear path to a job from that,鈥� she said. 鈥淸But] I鈥檓 a person who thinks there鈥檚 a real value, if you鈥檙e interested in journalism, to get an area of expertise, instead of just studying journalism,鈥� she continued.
To gain work experience as she studied government and theology, Tenety capitalized on living in Washington, DC, working at the Berkley Center and interning for journalist and author George Will. 鈥淚 wanted to work; I wanted my education to be more experiential,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y biggest advice would be to take advantage of the working, networking, and internship opportunities that Washington has to offer.鈥�
Tenety acknowledges that the job market is difficult for writers and journalists, but she believes there are more opportunities than ever to be published. 鈥淚 wrote for free for years before I had a paid journalism job. Unfortunately that鈥檚 just the reality,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou have to be willing to put a lot in without an obvious reward sometimes.鈥�
She still encourages students and young alumni to gain whatever experience they can. 鈥淚 really believe in raising your hand and saying, 鈥楥ould I work here?鈥� Don鈥檛 be afraid to ask and don鈥檛 be afraid to say yes when people ask things of you.鈥�
As she continues at On Faith, Tenety sees no shortage of topics to discuss. 鈥淚 definitely want to stay in religious journalism. For me, the topics I鈥檓 interested in are not just topics about marriage, sexuality, and children. I鈥檓 very interested in how tradition is meeting the modern world and how much and how quickly it鈥檚 changing.鈥�