While ABC-TV may have made “up close and personal” a standard part of video reporting, senior writer Tim Stafford has made it an editorial distinctive of CHRISTIANITY TODAY. Missions visionary Ralph Winter, church-growth pioneer Donald Mac Gavran, and “signs and wonders” proponent John Wimber have all been profiled by Californian Stafford, giving readers a behind-the-scenes look at individuals whose lives are making an impact on the church of Jesus Christ.
Not surprisingly, then, when staff decided last summer that a profile of psychologist James Dobson was in order, Tim was the unanimous choice to do the investigating and writing.
“I approach these assignments as a way of reestablishing a sense of community,” says Stafford. “Distance and technology have separated us from the many who minister to us. We see them, hear them, read them, but rarely do we know them as individuals.
“I. hope these journalistic pieces help.”
To gain perspective and develop an accurate picture of his editorial “subjects,” Tim not only spends time with these people (both in person and on the phone), but he also talks at length with family members, with friends and associates—and with occasional critics.
“In the case of Jim Dobson,” says Stafford, “it’s clear from everyone I talked with that he has a strong sense of ministry, and has made it a conscious priority.
“It’s also clear, yet little discussed, that he has offered younger Christians a great deal of encouragement by using his secular profession as a platform for ministry.”
HAROLD B. SMITH, Managing Editor
Cover photograph courtesy Mrs. Elizabeth Dobson McGraw. Color tinting by Gary Gnidovic.
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