Contextual Analysis: Final Draft
I have chosen to do my contextual analysis on how social media affects religion. Specifically the LDS religion, and the publicity it is receiving due to the new film, “Meet The Mormons.” This film interested me because it not only caught the eye of current members of the LDS church, but it also sparked an interest for non-members as well.
This film follows the lives of six individuals whose choices in life are grounded in Christian belief, strong families and service. In an article by Andrea-Radke Moss it states, “to both groups, it signaled the arrival of a Mormon public relations campaign packaged for broad, public consumption”(The Conversation). This film is more than just an outreach to members of the church. It was done in an effort to put themselves on the social networking map.
Social Context: The social context of this movie is seen through the many members who have taken it upon themselves to promote this movie. The Facebook page is just one way to for them to be heard. They have an instagram, twitter feed, and a You Tube Channel all urging people to see this movie. The youtube channel is full of testimonials from leaders of the LDS church asking members of the church to share this film through their own social media,and for those who haven't, to go and see it. It also has the thoughts of people who have just viewed the film. The Meet The Mormons Face book page, instagram, and twitter feed are full of positive comments and videos about the film.
Physical Context: The physical context is in the articles and reviews about the film. As I mentioned before their social media sites are filled with pictures, videos and links to articles about the film. These are just two examples of influential people commenting on the film. Along with pictures and videos they follow every post with #meetthemormons. Even though the hash tag may only be being used by members of the church, it has gained interest in what the movie is and why it is being made.
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Physiological context: The church has made it clear what their intentions with this film are and they are using social media to give them an edge. For example many church leaders and LDS members have said that the Mormon Church is not striving to convert people through this film, it simply wants to find a way to portray the church in a positive way. Moss explains, “the church has aimed to balance two competing impulses: how to display a picture of Mormonism that is both mainstream and non-threatening, but also exceptional and peculiar in its beliefs”(The conversation). “Meet The Mormons” aims to aid in areas where the church has been persecuted or seen as prejudice, and hopes to move toward peaceful solution and positive portrayal.
The church's longtime campaign of defending their religion, without offending, is being revamped with the use of today's social media. The "Meet The Mormons" campaign along with the "I am a Mormon" campaign go hand in hand in my opinion. Both follow existing trends in social media and I think that by doing this they are making the LDS church seem more relate-able to the rest of the world.
With the showing of this film there has been an out pour of positive comments from the LDS community, but what has to be said about those not of this faith? It has not generated much of an interest for non-Mormons and is seen simply as an infomercial. Many believe that the church has produced this film purely as propaganda, hoping to salvage the churches reputations as racists and anti-gays. The Post- Gazette states in an article written by Roger Moore, "But from the cherry-picked "stereotypes to the sins of omission that follow, "Meet the Mormons" is nothing but propaganda. The film addresses the church's reputation for "racism" without mentioning the long history in which that was true. The same gloss-it-over approach is used on the church's sexist, patriarchal heritage"(Moore). This article was followed by many readers comments agreeing and disagreeing with the author. Many think that the LDS Church is only attempting to save their reputation and gain new members, while others who are mostly of the Mormon faith defend the church with comments involving scripture and statistics. All in an effort to prove the church's intentions to be good.
I think that all of the reviews, good or bad are all aimed towards peoples emotions and opinions. Reading an article about Meet the Mormons will have a negative or positive affect of you depending on your faith. Growing up in the LDS faith, I will admit that reading negative comments about the church has a saddening affect on me and it makes me want to post positive comments on my own social media page. It strikes emotion out of readers and you can see that in the comments people leave. Both sides are affected by this type of context.
The church's longtime campaign of defending their religion, without offending, is being revamped with the use of today's social media. The "Meet The Mormons" campaign along with the "I am a Mormon" campaign go hand in hand in my opinion. Both follow existing trends in social media and I think that by doing this they are making the LDS church seem more relate-able to the rest of the world.
With the showing of this film there has been an out pour of positive comments from the LDS community, but what has to be said about those not of this faith? It has not generated much of an interest for non-Mormons and is seen simply as an infomercial. Many believe that the church has produced this film purely as propaganda, hoping to salvage the churches reputations as racists and anti-gays. The Post- Gazette states in an article written by Roger Moore, "But from the cherry-picked "stereotypes to the sins of omission that follow, "Meet the Mormons" is nothing but propaganda. The film addresses the church's reputation for "racism" without mentioning the long history in which that was true. The same gloss-it-over approach is used on the church's sexist, patriarchal heritage"(Moore). This article was followed by many readers comments agreeing and disagreeing with the author. Many think that the LDS Church is only attempting to save their reputation and gain new members, while others who are mostly of the Mormon faith defend the church with comments involving scripture and statistics. All in an effort to prove the church's intentions to be good.
I think that all of the reviews, good or bad are all aimed towards peoples emotions and opinions. Reading an article about Meet the Mormons will have a negative or positive affect of you depending on your faith. Growing up in the LDS faith, I will admit that reading negative comments about the church has a saddening affect on me and it makes me want to post positive comments on my own social media page. It strikes emotion out of readers and you can see that in the comments people leave. Both sides are affected by this type of context.
Social media has promoted this movie well, and has also shed some light on the LDS faith. I do believe that the Church's campaign involving social media is in their best interests. It allows them to defend their faith in the same way they always have, but this gives them a more relevant angle. However, this only rings true for members of the LDS faith. Their are few others who are interested now because of the Church's social media campaigns. Many articles reviewing the movie have said that their is a general lack of interest for everybody except Mormons when it comes to going to the theater to see Meet The Mormons.
So what does this mean for the Mormon church? Has this film had no effect on those who aren't aware or don't care about the LDS faith? By putting themselves and their religion on social media the church is now open to more criticisms than before. It has a positive and negative affect. It allows them to explain what the church is all about, but it also forces them to deal with difficult questions that non-members don't agree with or understand. Social media mixed in with the world of religion is a double-edged sword.
References
Moore Roger. "Meet the Mormons' Bursts with Optimism, Propaganda. "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 11 Oct. 2014. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Web. 13. Nov.2014. <http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/movie- reviews/2014/10/11/Movies-review-Meet-the-Mormons-bursts-with-optimism- propaganda/stories/201410110010#>.
Radke-Moss, Andrea. "Why Are We Meeting the Mormons?" The Conversation.com. The Conversation Trust, 5 Nov. 2014. Web. 13 Nov. 2014.
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