Huff Post: Perhaps it’s because I’m one of the few (if not the only) working television producer in Los Angeles with a Ph.D. in Theology, but I’m often the “go-to” guy when the media is bewildered by Christianity. As a result, I’ve spent the last two weeks talking to various reporters about why Mark Burnett’s TV series aboutthe bible has been so wildly popular. While some understood the initial interest, they’re quite baffled that last week’s audience actually climbed by 11 percent and continues growing.
“Since’s it’s just fables and myths, why does anyone care?” or “Just when I thought we’d eradicated the Bible from the culture, it seems more popular than ever.” Those were just two of the responses I heard from shocked reporters. So I asked Jonathan Bock, a key member of the marketing team that promoted the series about its success, and he pointed out three important keys:
1) It’s popular because it’s agenda-free.
It’s not a network’s normal controversial approach of “Jesus: Did He Secretly Marry Mary Magdalene?” Or “Jesus: Was He Gay?” It’s just the story of the Bible with no ideological slant and no agenda.
2) It’s popular because it’s unifying.
There were more than 40 scholars, theologians, and pastors from the entire spectrum of Christianity involved in advising the production. It was designed to appeal to the wide range of Christians, not divide the audience.