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.

Notable participants

The following people have appeared as spokespeople in the campaign.

Further reading

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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
  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, Taylor & Francis, 13: 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. 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
  14. ↑ Brian Passey (May 1, 2014), "Neon Trees shine on their best album yet", The Desert Sun , Palm Springs, California
  15. ↑ Schmuhl, Emily. "LDS artist surprised at huge response to ad campaign", Deseret News , 16 September 2010. Retrieved on 15 March 2020.
  16. ↑ 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
  17. ↑ 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.
  18. ↑ Goodstein, Laurie (2011-11-18). "Mormon Ad Campaign Seeks to Improve Perceptions". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-25.
  19. ↑ Michael Deeds (May 16, 2015), "Lindsey Stirling is a dancing, violin-shredding Mormon sensation", Idaho Statesman , Boise, Idaho
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