Whenever the media says something negative about Christians, comments and blogs and forums immediately fill up with claims that the media loves picking on Christians and that no one would ever publish a similar story about Muslims for fear of being “offensive” (eg 1, 2, 3, 4, 5). And whenever the media says something negative about Muslims, comments and blogs and forums immediately fill up with claims that the media is Islamophobic and attacks Muslims any chance it gets and they would never dare pick on a large powerful group like Christians in such a way (eg 1, 2, 3, 4, 5).
Which isn’t to say that there aren’t any double-standards at all. But the real media double-standards, insofar as they exist, are nuanced, not simple “we never criticize A but we always criticize B” filters; and they are probably applied inconsistently.
The media likes whatever brings eyeballs to TV/Internet screens and ears to airwaves. And what they like is any kind of conflict/controversy, even if they have to make it so. Double standards exist for sure, but it seems like how those double standards play out has to do with where the money is coming from at that moment.
I generally am more disturbed by the double standards expressed by individuals; the blinders worn are humongous.