Matthew McConaughey’s Oscar acceptance speech made headlines because the actor mentioned God. It begs the question, why has the media focused their attention on actor’s mentioning his religious beliefs?

After winning the award for Best Actor, McConaughey attributed his good fortunes to a higher power. This made US Conservatives very happy and some A-listers shift uncomfortably in their seats.

First off, I want to thank God, because that’s who I look up to. He has graced my life with opportunities that I know are not of my hand or of any other human hand. He has shown me that it’s a scientific fact that gratitude reciprocates … When you’ve got God, you’ve got a friend, and that friend is you,” said McConaughey.

The only other actors to have mentioned God in their acceptance speeches in the last 12 years were Denzel Washington, Jennifer Hudson and Forest Whitaker. When a black actor or sportsman thanks a higher power for their achievement, little notice is given by the media. But in McConaughey’s case the headlines read: “Matthew McConaughey talks God, heroes, in Oscars acceptance speech” and “McConaughey’s Inspirations: God, Family, Self.”

The focus on his mention of religion boils down to the many cases in the last decade where religious characters on film and TV are often portrayed as nutcases. The opinion of producer Michael Cieply is that Hollywood, outside of the black community,  has lost the ability to speak about “religion.”

To read more about the media fixating on the religious aspects of McConaughey’s speech, click here. 

[ Source : TheDailyBeast ]