C.B. Hanif holds the Qur'an as he speaks to an audience at Palm Beach State College on the topic of "Muslims in the Media: Separating Fact from Fiction" in Palm Beach Gardens Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 5, 2010.

PALM BEACH GARDENS — An interfaith activist and former newspaper man on Tuesday criticized media outlets' "lazy" approach to covering Muslims - and then fielded questions from audience members at Palm Beach State College who seemed by turns eager to learn about Islam and mistrustful of its teachings.

In a talk that touched on the 9/11 attacks, the run-up to the Iraq war, plans to build an Islamic community center in Lower Manhattan and a Florida pastor's threats to burn copies of the Quran, C.B. Hanif argued that news providers' failure to cover everyday Muslim life contributes to rancor and a lack of understanding.

"It's been my experience that our editors are afraid of religion," said Hanif, former ombudsman and editorial writer for The Palm Beach Post. "Our editors tend to go for the lazy, easy stories."

The result, he said, can be a fundamental misunderstanding of a religion, which breeds prejudice and intolerance.

During a question-and-answer session that veered off topic, students, professors and others questioned Hanif - who recently became the first Muslim chaplain at the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office - about his religion, Sharia law and the contents of the Quran.

Answering one questioner who voiced opposition to the New York Islamic center, Hanif said he thought the project would promote understanding.

"As I hear some of these questions, I hear some people who are not informed - or, even worse, who think they're informed," Hanif said, returning the conversation to the role of the media.

"The responses that I get, overwhelmingly I'm just joyful about it," Hanif said after the presentation, and added: "What we just have to do is share good information."