A recent poll by the Pew Forum shows that the Internet is now the third-highest platform for receiving news coverage. So, what can members of the Church do to help shape public perceptions, conversations, and media-talk news about the LDS Church online? Here are some suggestions adapted from a blog by the More Good Foundation:
- Bookmark your local and national online news media outlets. Search religion content, and comment on articles about the Church in positive ways.
- Share with your friends links to stories about Mormons in the news in your area. You can also send links to the More Good Foundation for them to share with others.
- Check the Church’s Newsroom and LDS Church News for the Church’s position on key news issues before responding to articles on sensitive issues and link to their content.
- Subscribe to the More Good Foundation’s blog to stay updated on ways to contribute to the conversation.
- Join the More Good Foundation’s page on Facebook for additional updates as well.
- Create your own news blog, or adopt-a-site from The More Good Foundation, where you can comment on the news.
- Place links to positive news stories on Facebook and tweet about them.
Excellent post. One of the purposes of my Mormonism-Unveiled blog is to publicize news stories about the Church and its members, and also to exploit any teaching opportunities created by these stories.
For example, in my recent post about the suicide of Marie Osmond’s son, I also presented the official LDS position on suicide, which served to rebut negative biases and stereotypes about the Church’s position on this sensitive issue.
The Internet gives us the opportunity to flood the earth with the Gospel. We need to maximize this opportunity while it remains available.