The ministry’s former spokesman had appeared in national media explaining why he as a Christian trusts the COVID-19 vaccine.
Daniel Darling, an evangelical author and the spokesman for NRB (National Religious Broadcasters), spoke out this month about his decision to get the COVID-19 vaccine in an op-ed in USA Today and a segment on MSNBC.
As of Friday, his remarks cost him his job with the ministry.
Darling was fired from NRB this week when he refused to sign a statement saying his pro-vaccine messaging amounted to insubordination, a source told CT on his behalf.
In a statement, Darling said he was “sad and disappointed that [his] time at NRB has come to a close.”
Darling joined NRB as its senior vice president of communications in April 2020, after a six-year stint as the vice president for communications at the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC).
NRB, which calls itself the largest association of Christian communicators, has more than 1,100 members working in Christian radio, TV, and other media. Part of the group’s purpose, it says, is to advocate for the “free speech rights of our members.”
In the aftermath of Darling’s firing, some evangelicals raised concerns that NRB was defying its own stances around free speech and anti-censorship, or that it was aligning with conservative radio pundits at the expense of a leader like Darling.
NRB CEO Troy Miller confirmed Darling’s departure in an email to Religion News Service, which first reported the story, but did not elaborate on the reason. “Dan is an excellent communicator and a great friend,” Miller said. “I wish him God’s best in all his future endeavors.”
This summer, the spread of the delta variant has officials and community leaders once again urging vaccination. White evangelicals ...
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