Survey: 1 in 2 Americans Familiar with Rick Warren

Christian Post ^ | Feb. 01 2009 | Eric Young

[Between the Lines]

Despite his role in President Obama’s inauguration and the attention he received in the weeks leading into it, megachurch pastor Rick Warren is known to only about half of Americans, according to a recent survey.

World renowned evangelist Billy Graham, meanwhile, remains the most well known among the nation’s high profile televangelists and megachurch leaders, with 88 percent claiming that they were familiar with him, according to HCD Research.

The results of the survey, conducted Jan. 27-28, were released a little more than a week after Warren, senior pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forrest, Calif., delivered the invocation at the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20, and weeks after Obama’s tapping of Warren spurred highly-publicized protests from the gay community.

Despite all the media attention, only 49 percent of Americans surveyed by HCD said they were familiar with Warren, placing him between controversial preachers Jeremiah Wright (56 percent) and Benny Hinn (48 percent). Notably, however, the latest statistic is a big improvement from the 28 percent of Americans who said they had heard of Warren in 2006, when the faith-based Barna Group surveyed American adults regarding the nation's leading Christian ministers.

For the latest survey, HCD presented 803 participants with a list of 32 televangelists and megachurch leaders and asked them to rate each figure based on six attributes, including familiarity, likeability, believability, authenticity/sincerity, personal impact and level of controversy.

The list extended somewhat beyond televangelists and megachurch leaders as it included Graham, an ordained Baptist minister and on-stage evangelist, as well as United Methodist minister Joseph Lowery, the civil rights leader who delivered the benediction at Obama’s inauguration last month.

Others on the list included charismatic moguls Pat Robertson and Oral Roberts, prosperity preachers Joel Osteen and T.D. Jakes, and megachurch pastors Bill Hybels and Craig Groeschel.

According to the results of HCD’s survey, rated highest in level of controversy was Jeremiah Wright, the former pastor of the Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago who placed former church member Obama in hot water after past sermons were splashed across the internet, including one in which he said “God damn America.”

Rated lowest in authenticity/sincerity, meanwhile, was Ted Haggard, the former pastor of the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colo., who was ousted by the church he founded over a highly publicized drug and sex scandal.

Coincidentally, or perhaps intentionally, the results of HCD’s survey were released on the same day that HBO was scheduled to air "The Trials of Ted Haggard," a 41-minute documentary that paints a sympathetic portrait of Haggard after the scandal in 2006 brought down the charismatic leader and forced him out of Colorado.

Since Jan. 9, Haggard has given dozens of media interviews after years out of the public eye and appeared on "Larry King Live" this past Thursday.

[Between the Lines]

Below is the list of rated televangelists and mega church leaders in order from most well-known, to least well-known:

	Total (n=803)
Billy Graham	88%
Pat Robertson	80%
Jimmy Swaggart	73%
Oral Roberts	69%
Joel Osteen	67%
Jeremiah Wright	56%
Rick Warren	49%
Benny Hinn	48%
T.D. Jakes	40%
Robert A. Schuller	38%
Ted Haggard	36%
Robert Tilton	29%
Creflo Dollar	25%
Rod Parsley	23%
Joseph Lowery	23%
Eddie Long	13%
Frederick Eikerenkoetter ("Rev Ike")	13%
Charles Blake	11%
H. Edwin Young	10%
Bill Hybels	10%
Andy Stanley	8%
William Sheals	8%
Chuck Smith	8%
Tommy J. Barnett	8%
Zachery Tims	7%
Craig Groeschel	6%
Billy James Hargis	6%
Bob Russell	6%
Kerry Shook	5%
Brad Powell	5%
Dave Stone	5%
Bob Coy	4%

http://hcdi.net/News/MediacurvesRelease.cfm?M=254

[sinanju]

If I understand correctly, Billy Graham gradually came under considerable criticism over the decades as there did not seem to be a single president whom “the pastor to the presidents” ever saw fit to publicly criticize or break with.

Rick Warren seems to be outdoing Graham in that regard.

[trumandogz]

Well at least Warren edges out Benny Hinn and Ted Haggart.

[padre35]

Graham made his agenda clear, preaching the Cross and Salvation, he did it year after year, decade after decade.

[Darkwolf377]

I doubt it.

[MrEdd]

looks like a seriously BS list, which probably ommitted many better known pastors.

The glaring omissions (Where is Charles Colson, of prison fellowship ministries? Angel tree ring a bell?) make this highly suspect survey suitable only for the round file.

[Dave W]

Charles Colson is not a televangelist or the head of a megachurch. That is why he is not on the list.

[demshateGod]

I don’t know who a few of those are but of the ones I do know I wouldn’t give a wooden nickle for. Here are the ones I don’t know.
Creflo Dollar
Eddie Long
Frederick Eikerenkoetter
Charles Blake
H. Edwin Young
Andy Stanley (Is he related to Charles Stanley?)
William Sheals
Chuck Smith
Tommy J. Barnett
Zachery Tims
Craig Groeschel
Billy James Hargis
Bob Russell
Kerry Shook
Brad Powell
Dave Stone
Bob Coy

Here are some the (living) preachers I like in no particular order.

Paul Chapel
R.B. Oulette
Sam Davison
Troy Dorrell
Dave Hardy
Wayne Hardy
Dean Herring
David Gibbs
Kenny Baldwin
Clifton Mizer
Greg Locke

There are many more if anyone cares.

[Lee N. Field]

Well at least Warren edges out Benny Hinn and Ted Haggart.

Neck and neck with Tofik Benedictus Hinn.

[Between the Lines]

Here are the ones I don’t know.

I am not familiar with many of the names on the list. And though Tims, Smith and Stanley all fall below the 8% mark on this list, they scored highest in good atributes

Respondents were asked to rate 32 televangelists and mega church leaders based on the following attributes: familiarity, likeability, believability, authenticity/sincerity, personal impact and level of controversy.

Attribute	Highest Rated	Lowest Rated
Familiarity	Billy Graham	William Sheals
Likeability	Zachery Tims Chuck Smith Andy Stanley	Jeremiah Wright
Believability	Zachery Tims Andy Stanley Chuck Smith	Jeremiah Wright
Authenticity/Sincerity	Zachery Tims Billy Graham Andy Stanley Chuck Smith	Ted Haggard
Personal Impact	Joel Olsteen	Ted Haggard
Level of Controversy	Jeremiah Wright	Robert A.Schuller Zachery Tims Andy Stanley Chuck Smith

Guess I will have to check them out to see what is going on here.

[Between the Lines]

looks like a seriously BS list, which probably ommitted many better known pastors.

No methodology is mentioned at the website, but I would guess this lists originated with the pollsters and not those being polled.

[Augustinian monk]

I DON"T LIKE THE WAY YOU SAID MY NAME, SON

[raynearhood]

Notably, however, the latest statistic is a big improvement from the 28 percent of Americans who said they had heard of Warren in 2006, when the faith-based Barna Group surveyed American adults regarding the nation's leading Christian ministers.

Well, at least we can be assured that PR works, still.

[Neoliberalnot]

John Hagee, my favorite and far above Warren, didn’t make the list?

[Between the Lines]

Notably, however, the latest statistic is a big improvement from the 28 percent of Americans who said they had heard of Warren in 2006,

I actually laughed the first time I read this. Judging from recent headlines those who have first learned of Warren recently vehemently disapprove of him. The author's "big improvement" comment seems to confuse fame with popularity.

Similarly Jeremiah Wright would probably not have made this list in 2006. Now he is very well know and quite possibly the most hated pastor in America.

[Lee N. Field]

John Hagee, my favorite

Smile when you say that. Hagee has "issues".

[Neoliberalnot]

Lee,

Everybody has issues. I like most of his messages and he is not afraid to take a stand.