From the Backlist: Bloggers Discuss the LDS Church Compensating Social Media Influencers
An inactive instagram influencer was reached out to by a third party marketing team representing the LDS church. They offered her compensation to make content that met specific criteria. Here is an image of what was requested:
She leaked the information through her instagram account. The church reached out to her and said that she shouldn’t have received this invitation. The marketing team made a mistake; they were supposed to confirm that she was an active member first. She said the conversation was cordial and went well. Regardless, the campaign does exist and it has been creating some buzz on social media.
Members and non members alike are concerned about the authenticity of such testimonies if they are being paid for. Some are worried about the criteria, like the request to avoid the terms “Mormon” and “LDS,” while others question the lack of transparency coming from the church.
LDS influencers defend the campaign, suggesting that content creators have specific skill sets and talents that deserve to be compensated. They also argue that there is a difference between the church paying influencers to post on their personal account, versus compensating them for contributing to church owned content that will be displayed on the church’s own accounts.
Some Exponent II bloggers weighed in with their thoughts:
Kara Stevenson
I find it odd that the church is requesting that the terms “mormon,” “lds,” and “latter-day saint” be avoided. They only want “the church of christ” to be used. Are we ashamed or embarrassed of who we are? Or do they know that some won’t give the church a chance if they know it is Mormon? If the latter is true, why are they choosing deception over honesty? It reminds me of the missionary ads that pop up on my facebook feed. They’ll use the terms “come unto christ” and invite people to church, yet nowhere is it clearly stated which church they are affiliated with. What is the strategy, exactly? To get people in the pews and hope they don’t notice? Last I checked, I thought satan was supposed to be the great deceiver, not the church that is claiming to be the one and only true church of christ.
I don’t find it inherently wrong to pay influencers for their talents. But I do find it odd how much these influencers are insisting that the church is not paying them, simply because the church is using a third party. It feels disingenuous; like desperate apologetics. You can defend the campaign and argue that you deserve compensation. There is nothing wrong with having that opinion. But please, be honest about what is going on here.
Candice Wendt
A big red flag here is the insistence on the use of “Church of Jesus Christ,” disallowing even the full name and other traditional references.
In recent years I’ve noticed the Church dropping “of Latter-day Saints” and focusing on the claim that we’re literally Jesus’s ancient Church restored, the one legit. org. that rightfully bears his name. Patrick Mason says this wasn’t the original framing or intent when it was founded by Joseph Smith, and that this assertion has largely arisen just in the past couple decades. Smith actually saw “restoration” as the work of gathering God’s people together, not restoring one small fragment of that from the past such as Jesus’s original church.
To me, it feels like a real bait and switch to use the highly generic term “Church of Jesus Christ,” and invite people to attend Church without using the full name. We should be open, direct and honest about who we are. Is the Church ashamed of its own history, of things like plural marriage? If so, it should actually deal with these things instead of avoiding them.
The LDS Church hasn’t yet grown out of an old fashioned Protestant-type mindset of seeking to compete with other churches for legitimacy. The same kind of competitive context that motivated Joseph Smith to seek divine guidance in selecting a Church. That was two hundred years ago. In the 21st century, it’s time to move on from this. Claiming a monopoly on God isn’t so inspiring to people today. Other churches are moving on and seeking to rebuild community life.
It grates on me that the influencers are invited to share about how rich and supportive the LDS community is. In my ward, the annual ward bbq last summer was replaced with a “Covenant Path” activity to motivate new members to go to the temple. We’re not doing great with community life at all. It used to be good, but it has really gone downhill. New converts join my ward almost every week, but almost none stick around because there are so few activities and so few opportunities to make friends or feel seen.
I also wonder why missionaries can’t receive a stipend for their full time jobs if the Church is willing to pay young influencers to bear testimony and bring people to Church. This is inconsistent and unfair. At the very least, serving a mission should be free. We donate free labor, the Church provides room, boarding, and necessities. The labor should be treated as something of immense worth rather than an expectation that is taken for granted.
Amy
It’s also very interesting and unsurprising that this whole proposal is from a hired marketing team so that if anything suspect happens (like this inactive influencer’s example…), the church can have plausible deniability.
Melissa
My dad grew up with a record that had the lyrics, “I’m a Mormon, yes I am! And if you want to see a Mormon, I’m a living specimen!” Then not too long ago the church hit the “I’m a Mormon” campaign pretty hard. Point being, we have always pushed what it is to be “Mormon” so much so, that inside and outside of the United States, that is how people know The Church.
I have a Peruvian friend that is teaching here in the U.S. She was happily waiting in line for a famous Bear Lake shake and heard a guy talking. She asked, “Oh, are you Mormon?” He responded in anger that it was rude and impolite to call him and other members “Mormon” and should only be referred to as LDS or members of “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.” She was confused and embarrassed. She told me that in Peru, that is how everyone knows the church and was under the impression that it was not bad.
The church has paid thousands? Millions? To push what it means to be “Mormon”. Now they are willing to pay thousands? Millions? To make sure people don’t call us “Mormon” and get a good impression of the church.
Where is the list someone made of the MANY other resources the church should be funneling money towards?
This doesn’t come across as “missionary work”, it is all about image…image…image…no wonder Mormons…ahem members of the LDS faith get a bad wrap for caring so much about appearances.
Mindy
I have a friend who converted in the last ten years. She confessed to me that the “I’m a Mormon” campaign touched her deeply and the “Mormon” identity is very meaningful to her for that reason. She’s felt hurt and confusion over the switch, and perceived shame over it. It’s like whiplash and makes it all feel like marketing, instead of the religious experience she so valued.
What do you think? Join us in the conversation by leaving a comment below!
