Michele Norris, host of NPR's All Things Considered, told a panel of guests on Meet the Press that the tone used by Obama's former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, is not uncommon in many churches.

Norris noted that many Americans find some agreement with Rev. Wright's sermons. She said, "When Jeremiah Wright makes these statements the Amen chorus in that church was very loud. His words resonate with a large number of African Americans and the blunt language that he used makes people uncomfortable. You know, when he talks about America's inglorious record on race. And yet, many people find something that they relate to in those words."

Another panelist, David Broder of The Washington Post, said "[Rev. Wright's] tone seems so far removed from the tone that Obama has tried to strike, not just in this campaign, but throughout his political career, that it raises the question in my mind, what was it about Reverend Wright that attracted Obama when he had as a newcomer to Chicago he had any number of churches or pastors to go to?"

These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. If you have accounts on these bookmarking sites, you can post this story to share it with others.