I’m giving you the links
to two articles about the “Mormon Moment”—a term that was coined a few years
back during Romney’s run for the presidency. Here are the links:
Please read these two
articles and reflect upon the recent media attention that has focused on the
Church. Do you think there has been a specific, identifiable “Mormon Moment?” How
would you respond to Mansfield, who wrote: “What most commentators did not
understand was that their “Mormon Moment” was more than a moment, more than an
accident, and more than a matter of pop culture and fame alone.” Given the
representations of Mormons in film (as per out last discussion), how would you
characterize current media representations? What, if any thing, has changed, or
not changed?
I would have to say that things have stayed the same. On the one hand there's the people who talk about how good the church is. On the other there are those who make fun or tear down the church. My current job allows me to handle a lot of early church documents and newspapers. I can tell you right now, technology may have changed but people don't.
ReplyDeleteEven with all the modern publicity about the Mormons many people still have weird views or perceptions of us. How come with millions of Mormons and the internet available do people still get the wrong information? People still believe we're all polygamists and that we have horns. I had someone in Australia straight up tell me I was there to kidnap women and TAKE THEM TO UTAH IN AN UNDERGROUND TUNNEL UNDER THE OCEAN. I really don't see how anyone could honestly believe that. But they do. And it's been that way since the beginning. I've seen hundred year old news articles that have said the same thing.
So honestly, even though we have more technology and knowledge I would say that things really haven't changed.
I have loved watching the progress of the church just during my lifetime. I lived in Utah in my early life, so I was not very aware of any national attention the church got, but I had the opportunity to move to Connecticut when I was 13 and I lived there ever since. It was interesting to see how few people knew about Mormons and what we believed when I moved in, but they knew that since I was from Utah, I was Mormon and that's about it. As national media covered things like Mitt Romney's candidacy, Glenn Beck, and even "Sister Wives," more and more people seemed to know something about my religion. I got to clear up a couple misconceptions of course, but it was noticeable in just the 7 years from when I moved there to when I left for college how much had changed that put the Church in the spotlight. Just as I was leaving for college was when "The Book of Mormon" the musical came out.
ReplyDeleteI know my evidence is anecdotal, but I really agree with Mansfield when he said that the Mormons aren't having a fleeting moment, but they have actually reached a "critical mass." We have just enough attention, just enough advocates, and just enough "famous" members, that the nation now knows about the members. Even if things stop happening to bring us up in the news, I don't think we'll be going anywhere as a discussion topic any more than a small political party, like the Tea Party or the Green Party. We don't often think of these parties, but when a political discussion arises, we know enough about them to be familiar. Similarly, when a conversation is relevant, a majority of Americans will have information to share on the topic of Mormons, so I would say a lot has changed simply because of us having reached "critical mass." There will always be rumors and ridiculous stories or superstitions, but the fact is that a huge portion of Americans know at least one Mormon, and the majority of the times we've been in the spotlight, it's made us largely look like normal people instead of a cult.
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ReplyDeleteI think that Mansfield has really educated himself on the topic of Mormonism and makes some very valid point as to our continued popularity as a discussion point in media. I agree with him in his statement that our “Mormon moment was more than a moment”, that it will continue to be talked about in all forms of media. As Mormons we have often referred to ourselves as a peculiar people, something that the rest of the world is very aware of. I think that it would be safe to say that we as Mormons are pretty self-aware of our peculiarity and deviation from the norm. I think that is what makes us such an interesting topic for the rest of society, they find us odd and our divergent behavior from the norm causes an interest in us. The fact that there are so many famous and even powerful and influential Mormons just perpetuates this fascination even more, and so we are continuously discussed more and more in the media. Just as Mansfield put it, we have reached “critical mass”, there are so many members known for other accomplishments, that it highlights the peculiar nature of our religion.
ReplyDeleteHowever, despite the increasing coverage of Mormonism across media, there is still a lack of understanding. I think that as the church has grown phenomenally fast in the past decade, awareness of Mormons has matched that growth, but an equal understanding of the church and Mormons has not grown a much. I feel that there are still some quite ridiculous myths and misconceptions about the church still run rampant. I think that this is due in part that the average consumer takes things at face value and doesn’t bother to really fact check the things media tells them, whether that’s through news specials or movies and T.V. or whatever else. Although I do feel, for the most part that the media in which Mormons or Mormon culture appear in (T.V., movies, plays, etc.) typically the writers do their research and play up these myths about Mormons or grossly simplify a particular practice of our religion, for a joke. The problem is, most people aren’t going to go look up to see how true these statements are, and so the ridiculous myths and misunderstandings are perpetuated.
While I strongly believe hat Mitt Romney being the presidential nominee for the republican party for the 2012 presidential election was the tipping point for the concept of a “Mormon Moment”, I know that there are many smaller occurrences that happened that lead up to this masses knowing about mormonism. I agree with what Mansfield wrote when he said that the “Mormon Moment” was more than a moment, an accident, and more than pop culture and fame.
ReplyDeleteOne of those occurrences is the amount of media about mormons. With the influx of media both created by mormons and about mormons, people are better able to be acquainted with our faith however there is quite a mix of positive and negative portrayals of mormonism. The positive portrayals share our values of family, hard-work and love for others. With these positive portrayals, people usually become attracted to mormonism however some may become concerned when they see the negative or irreverent portrayals of mormonism. These negative portrayals often make light of sacred occurrences in our church, things that need to be deeply and prayerfully thought about rather than blatantly shared with the masses. Even though these portrayals often are regarded as detrimental to our church, they still create awareness, which isn’t so often a bad thing. I had a friend who served a mission in the NY, NY mission when The Book of Mormon musical came out. He said that he stood outside the theater and spoke with attendants after the musical was ever. He said he had he met with and converted more people who inquired about mormons after seeing The Book of Mormon musical than he did with any other reference.
As mentioned in the Huffington Post article, Mormonism is becoming more widely known, where regular people in the media are Mormon. This “phenomenon” has never happened before and I think it’s quite spectacular. These well known and well regarded people are becoming representatives of our faith, making mormonism more relatable and understandable.
I loved the article written by Mansfield because I felt like it shed such a positive light on Mormonism, particularly in the United States. I think overall the media’s representation of Mormons has changed and become better in recent years. I agree that “their “Mormon Moment” was more than just a moment, more than an accident, and more than a matter or pop culture.”
ReplyDeleteI wasn’t alive before the 90’s so I have no idea how Mormons were portrayed, but I think for the most part we were seen as weird, cult-like, polygamists, etc. When Mitt Romney turned around the Olympics, and more and more Mormons started to become “celebrities,” reporters had to start digging deep and find out what we are really all about. They could no longer just rely on what they had been told, but they really had to go out and figure out what we believe and practice.
Even in the two articles we read for class, there were drastic differences in how the authors reported Mormonism. In the Newsweek article written in 2001, I thought that the author made a lot of over-exaggerations, but for the most part he gave a lot of true facts about our church. In the Huffington Post article, the author did a great job of saying that although we are still a smaller church, our members are making a big difference in not only the business world, but in humanitarian world, and missionary world. I love that the author said “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had risen to unexpected heights in American society because the Mormon religion creates what can benevolently be called a Mormon Machine— a system of individual empowerment, family investment, local church (ward and stake level) leadership, priesthood government, prophetic enduement, Temple sacraments, and sacrificial financial endowment of the holy Mormon cause.”
The more we grow as a church, the more recognition we will get in the media. There are so many successful Mormons in the world that have great standards. We live in a time where most people are searching for truth, and for God. I really do think that we stand as a light to the rest of the world because of our good morals and family-centered values, and I think the media is starting to capture that more and more.
Assuming that the writer of the Huffington Post article isn’t LDS, I thought that seeing an “outsider’s” perspective on LDS people was fascinating. Watching LDS celebrities and presidential candidates take the world stage at the dawn of the 21st century must have seemed like the Mormons were finally making their mark on history. However, since the days of Joseph Smith (when he ran for president himself), Mormons have found themselves on a national and even international stage. I do agree with Mansfield and his comment that the “Mormon Moment” was more than just a moment; I believe that it was the beginning of the world seeing the LDS faith in a more positive light.
ReplyDeleteBefore the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, Mormons were still thought of as weird and characterized as polygamists or members of a cult. Representations of Mormons in film only furthered these stereotypes. I think that after the Games, perceptions were changed. People saw that Mormons live like normal Christians with admirable values and principles. They care about families. They find success in corporations and government and in all areas of society. Mormons are viewed as polite, respectful, contributing members of society. These are attributes that people of any Christian faith can relate to. Reading Mansfield’s descriptions of LDS people and society almost made me think that he was considering joining the church.
While many still don’t understand members of the LDS church, and some still believe that Mormons practice polygamy, I think that people around the world think better of Mormons than ever before.
Like others have said, I don't think that there has been or will be one specific "Mormon Moment". I agree with Mansfield that there already have been so many smaller yet still important Mormon moments where there has been attention drawn to us and our beliefs because of the success of one or more of our members. We have been given some great opportunities like with Mitt Romney running for president and the Olympics being held in Utah, to let our voices be heard and to improve the false image that many people across the globe have of us.
ReplyDeleteAt the same time, this gives those in opposition to the Church more opportunity as well to tell the world what they think about us and our beliefs and history. As we see in the Newsweek article, they do not always get things right, and they often leave people with an even more inaccurate and damaging idea of who we are. I do, however, think that us being in the spotlight is beneficial despite the negative articles that are written because we at least have a chance to be heard instead of letting false rumors do the only talking.
As long as we continue to have moments in the spotlight, I think both opposition and understanding of who we really are will progress and the world will become more and more divided on whether Mormonism is good or evil. I think that many people view us as relatively normal with a few quirky beliefs, but plenty of others see us as evil and unjust (especially towards gays).
Mormonism has gained the spotlight in the minds of Americans at several times. From our readings alone we are reminded of two of the biggest instances where the LDS church found themselves with the publics attention and curiosity, but over all each instance has faded as quick as it came. Now I am not saying because each of these moments have “come to pass” it means that the Mormons never sieged their moment, or their moments were never successful, but possibly the definition of moment in this case is different.
ReplyDeleteIncreased attention will always bring an increase of prying and and increase of judgment. I really enjoyed the Huffington Post article tone and coverage on the LDS faith, however as a member of said faith the Newsweek article did not sit well with me. I did not think that either article was completely inaccurate, biased, or wrong in what they presented, but it made more sense when I juxtaposed the years of publication. It was interesting to read an article from 2001 vs 2014. In a matter of 13 years, the publics view of Mormons changed in a dramatic way. President Hinckley’s 60 Minutes interview in 1996 was one of the first major encounters many Americans had with the Mormons, and the past 20 years’ technology advancements have made education on accurate LDS religion much more accessible. Not only is information available online, but has helped that the LDS Church is the one publishing it. I feel that it has greatly reduced views of Mormons keeping cult like secrets, and has heightened the potential for Mormon moments. No longer can articles publish inaccurate statements that were in Newsweek’s article about the church’s policy on Polygamy.
Overall, I look at this issue in a few ways. First, heightened spotlights of Mormon moments come and go quickly, but they make great impact in their time frame. Second, if there is such thing as a Mormon Moment—we are living in it. Media and technology spread the gospel with great ease, and more people are finding the Mormons and finding answers. Lastly, I tend to believe that the Mormon Moment is better defined as the Mormon progression. Every time period that has known the Mormons—by proximity or proxy—has had an odd obsession over them. Our day is simply different in access to this information, making falsities harder to believe and the truth more accessible.
During the time that Mitt Romney was running for president, a news network from Europe (I am not sure which one it was), came to the United States and did a documentary on Mormons. I just happened to be visiting my uncles's ward where they filmed all of sacrament meeting. It was a unique experience to be a part of that and sit in the congregation while our meeting was being filmed for others to see. The documentary highlighted an LDS family,and went through their everyday life of being a Mormon. I really liked how they showed different aspects of this family's life and showed how being Mormon influenced a lot of what they did. It showed Mormons pretty accurately.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting that since Romney was running for president in the US, other countries around the world became curious as to who Mormons were. It gave the Church a unique opportunity to share who we are, literally to the world.
The "Mormon Moment" has been a collection of occurrences that have caused the LDS church to become more known. For instance, "Mormon Messages" and "I'm a Mormon" campaigns have been around for quite some time; Mitt Romeny was then able to bring more awareness to who Mormons were through his campaign; and the movie "Meet the Mormons" was also able to push for more Mormon awareness. All of these were able to work together to create the "Mormon Moment."
From my perspective, there’s just a Mormon movement when something notable happens that has to do with the members of the church. However, as the church grows and its members become more involved with the world, it will become easier to have “Mormon moments.” I defiantly think a positive trend has occurred over the past years. While the Mormon church used to be framed as an exclusive cult (maybe some still view it the same), it’s become more normalized and extroverted. As the article mentioned, President McKay motived the members to take part in the world. He was said to be “more savvy, more media aware.”
ReplyDeleteI think many members of the church have found opportunities to surprise the world. That’s where we also get the attention. The world basically expects as all to be a more progressive version of the Amish, but we’ve changed that. Take James the Mormon or the Al Fox for example. These people are not your average “Mormon mold,” so they get more attention from the media. I think people and the media have recognized that we can be normal/ unique and still be active members of the church. With this trend, I think there is most definitely a Mormon movement developing because of our members.
I do not think there has been an identifiable "Mormon Moment". I think that ever since the church was founded there has been a steady increase of members and awareness. Of course throughout history there have been many individual events where Mormons had the opportunity to catch the eye of larger audiences, but I do not think there has been a specific moment or spike in Mormon awareness. The LDS church is spreading like wildfire because that's in its nature; growing and expanding is what this church thrives on. I agree with Mansfield when he said, "Mormons have grown so rapidly and reached such stellar heights in American culture. And there is much more to come."
ReplyDeleteThe LDS church will continue to increase in size at an exponential rate, and it's not because we are out to take over the world. It's because once people realize what this religion is and what it promotes, they can't help but want to be a part of it. With the rise of media and social media, it has been a lot easier to promote the values of the LDS church. I think one of the most recent events that increased awareness were the "I Am a Mormon" ads that helped Mormons tell their story and let everyone know that we are just normal people. "Meet the Mormons" also had a big influence on Mormon astigmatism that other people had about Mormons. It helped clarify questions and get rid of the uncertainty that many people had about the LDS church. Mormons are appearing everywhere and making big impressions; impressions that the rest of the world cannot ignore. Which, I mean what can I say, we are pretty awesome.
I would say that my experience growing up in the Mormon Church has been an opportunity to watch the “Mormon Moment” unfold. Throughout my childhood, I’ve lived in a number of places, but never one wherein I felt that I, as a Mormon, was part of a large group. At my high school in Maryland, there were seven other Mormons. Still, despite these things, I felt that as I grew older, the people around me seemed to be more aware of Mormonism, and more willing to except it from a positive view. Perhaps it was a simple coincidence of my growing to share my faith with more people, but I have felt that as I’ve grown older, I’ve interacted with more people that have a reasonable positive view of Mormonism.
ReplyDeleteBy the mid 2000s, I feel that my interactions with people discussing Mormons came in the form of my friends asking me outlandish questions: What’s so special about your underwear? Are you people rich, because you keep building Castles (temples)? Will you get married to a multiple people? These were all questions that I felt very uncomfortable discussing at 10 years old. By the 2012 election, people seemed more interested in asking about the substance of my faith, how our culture is, and what we believe in. These were questions that I could get a little more comfortable discussing. I think we have had a Mormon moment in our culture. The article from 2001 mentioned our numbers being at around 10-11 million. By the time of the 2012 article, we had roughly 14 million members. We are currently at 15.6 million members. While I think the development of our church, in numbers, likely doesn’t reflect an abnormal growth rate, what we may find is that this last decade will have seen roughly a third of the growth of our membership. If we are looking at things in a compressed view, we might even say that this was the era where our numbers did meet a critical mass, and where we had gained enough publicity to actually be able to discuss our faith in a more substantial way than dispelling ridiculous rumors. I would largely agree with Masfield that our moment isn’t defined to one exact pop culture phenomenon, or the Olympics or anything so easy to pinpoint. Looking back, it’s been a subtle thing. It’s been a significant decade, but it’s still been a decade of time.
Judging by the differences in articles alone, our public image has changed a bit. Newsweek mentioned perceptions of us as mysterious and clannish, while the newer article really does try to treat us with careful hands, even if we are noticeably quirky to the outside world. The change in the media coverage is much like the change in overall interactions; we are less the butt of jokes about cultish behavior, and more the topic of trendy intrigue. I don’t think our moment is over either. Perhaps it will end when the media and the people we see day to day are just as bored with us as they are with your standard Catholic or Baptist, but where we stand now is a point in that direction and a few points away from the idea of us as polygamists herding our large number of wives and children onto a train bound for Salt Lake City.
ReplyDeleteI don’t think there is such thing as a “Mormon moment.” Since the church was reorganized we’ve seen it spotlighted in the media many times for different occasions, it didn’t just show up once Mitt Romney ran for president. As discussed in the Newsweek article, celebrities, business owners, and political figures were known for their religion along with their prominence in the world. The article mentions the 2002 Olympics, South Park jokes and Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign as significant “Mormon moments.” Although I can see how these are very significant moments, Mormons have always been talked about. Most of the world has a typical idea of what Mormons are. Usually when they hear the word ‘Mormon’ they think of Mitt Romney, BYU, people who don’t drink coffee or tea, people who dress modestly and wear special underwear.
Throughout history I think people have had a general idea of Mormons as being good people but have weird/interesting traditions and practices. Church members serve a lot, show acceptance for lots of people and tend to be more frugal with money and you can tell that people outside the church noticed that. However, recently that view has changed, especially with the church’s statement about homosexuals and gender issues. I personally know people who were members of the church and are now anti-Mormon because of the church’s position on this subject. Now, I think when people hear the word ‘Mormon,’ they associate us with hating gays, even though that isn’t true. Even though the Church’s stance has not changed, media and the way Mormons are portrayed is now sometimes negative.
I think it’s interesting that the author describes a “Mormon Moment” as “the surprising and unrelated appearance of dozens of Mormons on the national stage—for a moment” because for me, it goes much deeper than just seeing Mormon’s on a national stage. I think it’s more about the daily interactions Americans have had with Mormons, which I believe has shaped their view on them just as much as national attention. I feel like many people growing up in America knew of a Mormon, or heard of the Mormons. My dad grew up in a small town in Illinois and his first experience with the Mormon church was through the family that lived next door. If he had that opportunity in such a small town, I imagine many others had similar experiences that were not necessarily a “moment” but rather many small moments that led to gaining a perspective into Mormon culture and beliefs. The media has done a small part in making Mormons more recognizable and accepted, but for the most part the heavy lifting has been accomplished through daily interactions in communities, at work, and at schools. Perhaps I’m underselling the effect of media coverage on Mormons and Mormonism (I think in class we discussed how Donny and Marie Osmond did more for the Church than all missionary efforts combined), so if I am please let me know.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I don’t think too much has changed as far as media representation on Mormons. To the public, we will always be the good-natured, industrious, and religious neighbor who doesn’t drink or smoke. The media has generally portrayed us as such for many years, and will continue to do so. That being said, I think that the media has done more to confuse the public than inform them, because they have the ability to spin articles in whatever way they want. Google searches also tend to bring up the most controversial topics like polygamy, Blacks and the priesthood, and other topics. The media has played off of this, especially with shows like “Big Love”, but nonetheless our image as a good and hard-working people is already implanted in most American’s minds.
I honestly feel like the media's perception of a "Mormon Moment" is important, but really only highlights a gradual change. I did appreciate the Huffington post article because it recognized the presence of Mormons on a national stage. However, Mitt Romney running for president only highlighted the presence of LDS people in America because of the rapid growth that has been taking place within the church for a long time. What these publications highlight is the fact that growth within the church has a great effect on society as a whole, in a positive way. Lifestyles formed while adhering to the LDS religion produce leaders, and functioning members of society. I think Romney and the Olympics simply highlighted one fact: that we are here and here to stay.
ReplyDeleteOf course, the media sees our presence as either astonishing because of the good we do, or scary because of what they don't understand about us. However, I think any coverage is good coverage. I honestly feel that "Mormon moments" are part of God's plan to help educate the world about what we do. The more we can humanize ourselves on a large scale in the media, the more effective our missionary efforts will be. Growth within the church will be highlighted from time to time, and we would be wise to capitalize on this growth.
I feel like there has been a pretty slow and gradual growth with how Mormons are viewed in the media. I think Mitt Romney was both a really good and a really hard time for the Church. He had the tough job of trying to show why he would have made a great leader, regardless of his religious affiliation. But, people could not leave it alone because of all the negative perceptions they had because of the older media responses to Mormonism. I really appreciated the introduction in the "Mormon Moment" article, because it started by stating the world's perception of the church based on the media, but then gave a much more accurate idea of what it was really all about.
ReplyDeleteI also really loved how the Huffington Post article gave a really subjective overview of Mormons in pop culture. I thought the tone with which it was written was really respectful- almost kind of enamored. It said "Plant Mormonism in any country on earth and pretty much the same results will occur. If successful, it will produce deeply moral individuals who serve a religious vision centered upon achievement in this life." I think this is a very accurate portrayal of Mormonism in communities, despite what the media may say.
All in all, Mormonism is always going to be fighting a battle with the media. There must be opposition in all things, so it would be far too easy if we only ever got positive PR. Fortunately, God, through his apostles, is equipped to handle any scandal we might face and also handle it graciously. That is something I appreciate about the Church- Regardless of how we have been treated or portrayed we never respond in anger or hate. I think that will, overall, make the biggest difference when people are trying to understand the religion. I think the more positively we respond to the media, the less negative attention we will get back.
I don't think things have change. I was reading comments and Ben W made some really great points. It amazes me as well that even with all the different resources people have, they still think we are these awful people who have more than one wife. It doesn't make sense. When the movie, "Meet the Mormons" came into theaters, there was a time when that show was number one on the New York playing list. I believe this is because everyone wanted to know more about us and our "evil ways." Even with that successful movie, people still don't understand our religion or values.
ReplyDeleteI feel that "Mormon Moments" are important and they have raised awareness about what our religion is really about although, I don't think that just because Mitt Romney was a Presidential candidate or the Olympics were held in Salt Lake made a lasting impact. Mormonism was talked about and studied during these "Mormon Moments" but, after these times passed, we weren't given much thought after that.
In order to adequately address the questions in the prompt, I am going to respond to the prompt with both my LDS hat on and my LDS hat off.
ReplyDeleteWith my LDS hat off, the “Mormon Moment” was definitely no coincidence. The Olympics and an increasing number of influential and famous Mormons is fulfilling the prophecy of missionary work and people knowing and hearing the truth. This “moment” will not just end, but I believe will be the beginning of an even greater push for everyone to know about the church. I thought it was interesting in Mansfield’s article how he mentioned church leaders being more “hip” or media friendly. I do think those leaders are also called by the Lord specifically to bring the church out in a positive light. I think as far as overall media representations: some are very negative still, but most are very positive! If people will watch one Mormon message or get to know most successful Mormons, they will see positive examples.
With my LDS hat off, I can definitely see this recent media attention of the church, beginning around the time of the Olympics as a Mormon moment. There is something about the Olympics that intrinsically binds the entire world to a specific location because of the special events which happen there. For me, I know basically nothing about Rio. Yes, my brother served his mission somewhere slightly nearby there, and yes, the cute little bird movie is fun (and slightly obnoxious), but no, I do not have any real tie to the area nor do I know much about it except the Olympics were just held there and it is a location where Zika is a threat. But even with this limited knowledge of the place, I LOVE IT. I’m not sure why..but this year knowing that the Olympics took place there, I feel almost like I was there. I feel an odd sense of ownership for it, and I didn’t even watch the entire Olympics. Maybe its just the idea that there were representatives from my country who went there and changed the world. So I feel close to it. And I automatically associate the little kid bird movie “Rio” with the Olympics.
So for someone who knew nothing about Salt Lake City, except that Mormons lived there that’s probably the association they would make. They might watch the Olympics even searching to see a stereotypical polygamous Mormon or hear a crazy story in the news. Once they saw Mormons to be mostly normal they would associate those Olympic, nostalgic, homey, good feelings with Mormonism. And thus, their perception of Mormons may have changed just because the interesting obsession that is formed with worldwide locations because of the Olympics. And its even stronger if that person loves a sport and watches someone do something record-breaking in that specific location. From a non-Mormon perspective then, this sudden publicity at the time of a growing number of famous Mormons may have sparked the Mormon moment out of sheer luck or coincidence. My belief as a Mormon stands that this was no coincidence, but the ushering in of the second coming of the Lord.
In accordance with everyone else, I don't believe there is one "Mormon Moment." The church has gained media attention through it's members, teachings, and overall success as an organization. Although the majority of the media has contributed to false indications of what we stand for or believe in, we have been able to demonstrate our values and the good the church contributes to the world.
ReplyDeleteTowards the end of Mansfield's article, he describes what most people don't realize about Mormon's. Due to the overwhelming congestion of small unimportant factors associated with Mormon's such as "magic underwear," people miss out on the good that has come from it. He says, "They will aggressively pursue the most advanced education possible, understand their lives in terms of overcoming obstacles, and eagerly serve the surrounding society." I love that whole paragraph. It describes who we are and what we strive for in this life. These are key principles in the LDS culture that go overlooked. I feel like with most religions, people tend to dwell on what they are doing wrong rather than what they are doing that is for the benefit of society. It's interesting that people instead of focus on the good, in most cases focus on what would cause the most drama and tend to complain and criticize to get attention or to spark a conversation.
Recently, I read a scripture associated with the Islam belief that basically explained that no matter what religion you are apart of, one shouldn't regard someone of another faith as their enemy. Rather, they should celebrate their efforts to live moral, religious lives. While the church continues to grows, it will continue to gain the media's attention. Hopefully, we will have the opportunity to show the world who we really are and what we have to offer.
I’ve actually pondered quite a bit on the concept of a “Mormon Moment”. The few mentioned in the article definitely have created very influential times in the growth of the LDS religion. Although I agree that it would be more of a Mormon Movement not a moment however when Mitt Romney declared his presidency I believe that was truly a monumental moment. It brought national attention to the culture and principles of our people and initiated conversations of our true beliefs. I don’t remember any time before the election where our church was so active on social media and did more interviews and statements. It allowed members to have normal conversations in work and social circumstances about the church. I remember how so many of the people I met with on my mission talked about the election and what I thought of Mitt Romney.
ReplyDeleteThere is a very large spectrum on how Mormons are portrayed in the media. Of the many different references in the article on the Huffington Post, my mind goes to mentions of South Park or The Book of Mormon play. Although many have thought they are humorous, they also give a terrible perspective of our religion to viewers. I absolutely support more “humanizing” of the Mormon culture as we discussed in the last blog, but I think there are times where the media goes too far. Since I was in high school there are definitely more stories and news coverage of our religion. I think the accessibility of quick information such as Twitter has allowed the media to bring more exposure to the church without having to write long researched articles. Overall I still see more negative sentiment than positive.
The two articles had very different feels to them. Mansfield was very positive towards Mormons, the other was not really negative, but the way it was read made Mormonism seem kind of alien. They were both fun reads though! I think both the Mitt Romney presidential race and the Salt Lake olympics were huge Mormon Moments! It brought out a side of the media that wouldn't otherwise be seen. There were articles, videos, etc about Mormons. There will always be good coverage and bad coverage, but I'm guessing a lot of people were informed about Mormons in a way that they previously hadn't been. The success of the olympics in Salt Lake was probably huge as well. The article said that Mormons were good hosts.
ReplyDeleteThe media will always get things right and wrong, its up to the consumer to decide how to take the information they are given. Unfortunately, some people assume the media to be right 100 percent of the time and theres nothing anyone can really do about that. Which is why Mormons(and everyone who is in media) are always doing things to protect and promote their image.
I believe that there have been numerous "Mormon Moments". Although Mitt Romney's campaign brought great light to the church around the world, we also see other star figures take the stage as representatives of the church. These examples fill numerous media outlets. In the music industry, famous Mormons include the Osmond family, David Archuletta, Gladys Knight, Alex Boye, Gary Allan, and many others. In sports, we also see Mormons taking the field such as in baseball with Spencer Adams, Danny Ainge, and Bryce Harper. For acting, there is Katherine Heigl, Jon Heder, and Julianne Hough. The lists go on and on. Each of these individuals has caused for interest to be turned toward the church.
ReplyDeleteAs the LDS Church grows, the Mormon moment will gain more momentum. We see the church taking a larger stance in not only religious affairs, but international affairs as well. Elder Holland has met multiple times with British parliament. Elder Eyring has discussed serious religious matters with the Pope. Elder Uchtdorf has worked to meet with the highest of dignitaries to the lowest of slums throughout the world, as noted in his most recent travels in Europe.
Media representations of the church are usually seen in the form of missionaries. I think that our proselyting efforts draws the most notice and attention from individuals. It is an easy way to poke fun at Mormons without taking in serious concepts that could cause someone to become truly offended. Missionary examples are shown in "The Book of Mormon: The Musical", "South Park", and "The Simpson". It brings a light hearted nature to the concept of complete strangers knocking on your door.
I believe that the church will continue to gain attention and grow. Members are smart, attractive, and hardworking; which will allow them to gain greater public attention.
I honestly don't think there has been a specific "Mormon Moment" -- even though there has been many mormon moments through the media. Through history, Mormons have popped up in the media - mainly for unfavorable reasons. As Mormonism continues to spread and becomes a part of normal american life, It is becoming more normalized. With the presidential run of Mitt Romney, the 60 minutes segment with President Hinkley and the Olympics in Utah -- Mormonism has become a little bit less mystified. Although Mormonism is becoming more normalized in the eyes of the everyday American, the LDS faith is still villainized.
ReplyDeleteWhile before Mormonism was villainized for their differences and strange practices like polygamy, now the religion is villainized for its social stances as they relate to same-gender relationships. While members of the church will still be seen as accomplished and successful, I sense that the media portrays the religion as behind the times, ignorant and insensitive to current social issues relating to same gender attraction.
It seems to me, that there is no really such thing as a "mormon moment." While one article referred to it as an event (the olympics), the other article referred to the "moment" as famous people (romney, steph meyer, glenn beck, etc). I believe the church is made up of several mini mormon moments. It is a steady and exponential growth, with these moments simply spreading the word.
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