‘Rolling Stone’ reverses, will accept Bible ad

The bible of rock ‘n’ roll, Rolling Stone magazine, will run an ad for the Holy Bible next month — the same ad it rejected two weeks ago for its “spiritual message.”

“We have addressed the internal miscommunications that led to the previous misstatement of company policy and apologize for any confusion it may have caused,” Lisa Dallos, spokeswoman for Wenner Media, Rolling Stone’s parent company, said Monday. She declined to elaborate.

The magazine was drummed by critics last week for turning down a low-key ad for a new translation of Scripture, Today’s New International Version (TNIV).

The nation’s largest Bible publisher, Zondervan, had inquired about rates for the ad in March and booked the space in July for the ad to run in February.

The ad, which will run unchanged in mid-February, doesn’t mention God. But it describes the Bible as “real truth” and carries the new translation’s slogan: “Timeless truth: Today’s language.”

Zondervan is launching a $1 million marketing campaign for the TNIV in publications for young adults who rarely, if ever, read the Bible. TNIV is designed to be accessible to modern readers.

“We’re frankly thrilled that Rolling Stone has decided to accept our ad,” said Paul Caminiti, Zondervan’s president of Bible publishing.

“We believe that the Bible is relevant for Rolling Stone readers,” Caminiti said. “We’ve always believed they were a cornerstone in our campaign to squarely market to spiritually intrigued 18- to 34-year-old young people, many of whom live outside the embrace of the church.”

Other media outlets that will carry TNIV advertising include Modern Bride, the satirical weekly The Onion and MTV.com.

The trouble with Rolling Stone came when the magazine’s executives saw the actual advertisement two weeks ago.

It was ruled unacceptable because of a “spiritual message in the text,” said Kent Brownridge, general manager for Wenner Media. He told USA TODAY that the magazine “was not in the business of advertising for religious messages.”

Zondervan officials were shocked. They said offers to change the advertisement were rebuffed. Christian and conservative media commentators savaged the magazine, which once carried classified advertising for mail-order divinity degrees.

Meanwhile, the controversy has driven such demand for TNIV, Caminiti said, that Zondervan will be moving it into stores ahead of schedule.

All 10 variations of TNIV, including a version with commentary for women called True Identity and a men’s version called Strive, will be in stores Feb. 1 ($15 to $60, depending on binding and features).

Then a new batch of critics might be heard from: theologians who disagree over the actual translation.

When Zondervan released the TNIV New Testament in 2002, some scholars and clergy complained that it went beyond updating language, to revising God’s word as well.

Zondervan says it welcomes the debate and will be mailing the full Bible to 118 critics next month.

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