 Although a writer with some liberal leanings, being a regular contributor to the "National Catholic Reporter", John Allen, Jr. was praised for his work by both members and ex-members, by conservatives and liberals.His harshest critic was Damian Thompson of "The Catholic Herald", who, after saying that his "column is a byword for objectivity", said that Allen "applied a daub of whitewash", because Allen did not interview the senior critic of Opus Dei in Britain, Vladimir Felzmann.Allen later said that he did spend much space in the book analyzing Felzmann's statements versus the testimonies of other people.