The media’s papal template

The headline says Generation gap shaping American church as it awaits first visit from Pope “XXX”. Without clicking through was this headline from Pope John Paul’s first visit to the US in 1979 or Pope Benedict’s upcoming first trip to the US this month?

The fact that it was probably used for both events says more about the preconceptions and prejudices of mainstream media than it does about the state of the Catholic Church in the US.