Evangelical Solidarity with the Jews: A Veiled Agenda? A Qualitative Content Analysis of Pat Robertson's 700 Club Program

Abstract

The 700 Club television program presents a mix of information and opinion through a news and talk show format. Religious perspectives are often used to frame the high level of social and political content in the show. Using qualitative content analysis, two weeks of the program following the September 11 attacks were analyzed to distill its positions on Israel and the Jewish faith. Through the use of such devices as representative anecdotes and rhetorical narratives, Robertson's essential message is that the U.S. must support Israel's hard-line policies to combat Palestinian terrorism or risk the survival of Israel and America. But the key motivation for this position rests on the belief by many Evangelical Christians that apocalyptic events are coalescing in Israel, and that U.S. policy can and must help lay the foundation for Christ's return.