In 2004, Peter Jennings assigned Harris to the religion beat for ABC News. Harris and his producer, Wonbo Woo, travelled the United States covering stories about the surge in Christian movements, the arguments over gay marriage, abortion, and whether faith should have a place in public life. While Woo tired of these mostly superficial stories, Harris resisted going deeper and confessed his “attitude about faith […] was one of disinterest bordering on disdain” (30). However, after getting to know Evangelist Ted Haggard, his view shifted.

Harris felt Haggard was an intelligent individual who was honest about the interior squabbles between factions in the Evangelical movement. Haggard was accessible and answered many of Harris's questions both on record and off, sometimes acting as an inside source. Haggard’s affability allowed Harris to become more comfortable around people of faith, which was a crucial step in Harris's personal journey; he realized he had been making broad assumptions about those who regarded faith seriously and that had led to bias. Thereafter, he changed his reporting technique to accommodate greater depth and inquiry in faith-based stories. With a new view to educate and inform, he began to cover the type of more complex stories Woo had originally encouraged.