I'm a Mormon

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I'm a Mormon was an educational, advertising and outreach campaign by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2010 [1] to 2018 that aimed to address stereotypes and misconceptions, attempting to educate non-members about the church, by featuring short profiles from church members (also known by the nickname Mormons).

Contents

Campaign

Short video clips began airing on American television in January 2011, expanding by October to a television, bus and billboard campaign in 12 US cities and Brisbane, Australia. [2] [3] [4] [5] The executive director of the campaign was Stephen B. Allen. [2] In 2013, the campaign was extended to Ireland and the UK with ads on double-decker buses and the internet, [6] said to be in response to the opening of The Book of Mormon musical in London. [7] In Melbourne during the 2017 run, the church advertised at Southern Cross railway station and elsewhere in the city, as well as on television. [8]

The campaign emphasized facts about LDS Church membership through cultural and racial diversity of individuals profiled, representing (in 2011) more than a million claimed church members in Mexico and Brazil each, and nearly as many in Asia. [2] The campaign included cooperation from lay members who were encouraged to create a profile on the church website to tell about their faith and answer common questions.[ citation needed ] The campaign has been subject of scholarly articles concerning its relationship with Mormonism and women. [9]

The campaign did not air in Iowa, South Carolina or Florida during the 2011 Republican presidential primary season to avoid causing controversy around Latter-day Saint candidates Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman. [2]

In October 2018, church president Russell M. Nelson said that the use of nicknames such as Mormon was "a major victory for Satan." [10] [11] [12] As a result, the campaign was discontinued and the mormon.org website was shut down, removing the user generated content and stories. [13]

Notable participants

The following people have appeared as spokespeople in the campaign.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints</span> Largest church in Mormonism

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is the largest Latter Day Saint denomination. Founded by Joseph Smith during the Second Great Awakening, the church is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has established congregations and built temples worldwide. According to the church, as of 2023, it has over 17.2 million members of which over 6.8 million live in the U.S. The church also reports over 99,000 volunteer missionaries and 350 temples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mormons</span> Religious group; part of the Latter Day Saint movement

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<i>Mormon</i> (word) Word used for concepts relating to Latter-Day Saints

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Symbolism in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Mexico</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Wyoming</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Democratic Republic of the Congo</span>

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ComeUntoChrist.org, formerly known as Mormon.org, is a religious website maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that serves as a visitor site for people not of the faith. Mormon.org was changed to ComeUntoChrist.org in 2019.

References

  1. ↑ "'I'm a Mormon' Campaign Provide Glimpse into Lives of Latter-day Saints".
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Eric Marrapodi (November 2, 2011), With 'I'm a Mormon' campaign, church counters lily-white image, CNN, archived from the original on November 4, 2011
  3. ↑ Keith Coffman (October 2, 2011), Latter-day Saints launch "I'm a Mormon" ad campaign, Reuters
  4. ↑ "I'm a Mormon" campaign expands in U.S., Australia, Salt Lake City: KSL-TV, October 7, 2011
  5. ↑ Katherine Feeney (November 22, 2011), "Mormons come knocking loudest in Brisbane", Brisbane Times , [T]he southeast Queensland campaign, set to run on television, billboards and online until the New Year, stood as a national test case...
  6. ↑ Lindsay Maxfield (April 10, 2013), LDS Church launches 'I'm a Mormon' campaign in UK, Ireland, Salt Lake City: KSL-TV
  7. ↑ "'I am a Mormon' campaign launches in London, in response to play's debut", The World , Minneapolis: Public Radio International, April 29, 2013
  8. 1 2 3 "The Book of Mormon: An Opportunity to Set the Record Straight". www.abc.net.au. 2017-01-24. Retrieved 2017-05-22.
  9. ↑ Chen, Chiung Hwang (20 Feb 2014), "Diverse Yet Hegemonic: Expressions of Motherhood in "I'm a Mormon" Ads", Journal of Media and Religion, 13, Taylor & Francis: 31–47, doi:10.1080/15348423.2014.871973, S2CID   143774315
  10. ↑ Peggy Fletcher Stack; Scott D. Pierce; David Noyce (7 October 2018). "Members 'offend' Jesus and please the devil when they use the term 'Mormon,' President Nelson says". SLTrib.com. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  11. ↑ "General Conference, October 2018, Russell M. Nelson". churchofjesuschrist.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  12. ↑ Nelson, President Russell M. "The Correct Name of the Church". www.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
  13. ↑ "What happened to Mormon.org?". wasmormon.org. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Trent Toone (October 31, 2012), "23 interesting Latter-day Saints who have profiles on Mormon.org", Deseret News , Salt Lake City, archived from the original on February 4, 2013
  15. ↑ Brian Passey (May 1, 2014), "Neon Trees shine on their best album yet", The Desert Sun , Palm Springs, California
  16. ↑ Schmuhl, Emily. "LDS artist surprised at huge response to ad campaign", Deseret News , 16 September 2010. Retrieved on 15 March 2020.
  17. ↑ Space Religion: Mormonism and the Final Frontier – Former NASA administrator James C. Fletcher played a crucial role in the first three decades of human space exploration. To what extent did his Mormon faith fuel his enthusiasm?, Seeker, May 10, 2011
  18. ↑ Haglund, David (October 17, 2011), "Brow Beat: Slates Culture Blog", Slate , I'm a Father, a Husband, and a Rock Star. And I'm a Mormon.
  19. ↑ Goodstein, Laurie (2011-11-18). "Mormon Ad Campaign Seeks to Improve Perceptions". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-25.
  20. ↑ Jason Smyth— a Mormon, Husband, and a Paralympic Champion
  21. ↑ Michael Deeds (May 16, 2015), "Lindsey Stirling is a dancing, violin-shredding Mormon sensation", Idaho Statesman , Boise, Idaho

Further reading

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