In the wake of a series of high-profile April Fool’s pranks and a hoax at the expense of mega-preacher Joel Osteen, the question remains: what makes us believe in bacon-flavored mouthwash, a Martian invasion, or the renunciation of faith by one of the world’s most famous Christians?
Deborah Whitehead
Deborah Whitehead is assistant professor of religious studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder, where she is also an associate faculty member with the Center for Media, Religion, and Culture’s “Finding Religion in the Media” project.
