LDS Media Talk

I just subscribed to the daily newsletter at mequoda.com. It has some good information about online strategies.

Today’s post has a good explanation of a strategy for online and print magazines.

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You may be interested in the following two recent news items about the redesigned LDS.org:

• World Report, Section 14: In the News (about 2/3 through this section).
• Article in the Daily Herald newspaper.

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Some people have asked if they can use on their personal Web sites or blogs any of the images used on Church Web sites or in Church magazines.

Church policy doesn’t allow for Church-owned materials to be reproduced on other Web sites or blogs. Not all the images used on Church Web sites and in Church magazines is owned by the Church, but is licensed for use in these ways. In those cases, you could contact the owner of those images for permission to use them.

The Church does allow links to Church Web sites from personal Web sites or blogs for reference purposes.

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I hope you subscribe to the More Good Foundation blogs. In the recent past, they have provided many great ideas on how to share your testimony online.

Here’s a quick summary:

12 Ways to Share the Gospel on the Internet
1. Answer a question at Yahoo! Answers
2. Blog your testimony in your mission language
3. Blog what you learned in Sunday School
4. Edit Mormonwiki.com or Wikipedia.org
———————————————————————
Mormon Testimonies Online!
I encourage anyone and everyone to go to mormontestimonies.org and
post a testimony. What better answer is there to the question “what do
Mormons really believe?” than a collection of writings of actual
Mormons telling what they actually believe?
———————————————————————-
Sharing Video testimonies
Why not sit down, in front of a video camera, and record your
testimony. It need not be long–in fact, anywhere from ninety seconds
to three minutes would be ideal. Then, upload your testimony to one of
the video services, such as YouTube, so that others can share your
feelings.
———————————————————————-
Harvard Business Professor Clayton Christensen explains why he
believes
Clayton Christensen is a professor at Harvard Business School and
author of the popular business book The Innovator’s Dilemma. He’s also
a Mormon and has recently posted an article on his website about why
he belongs to the Mormon church and why he believes its doctrines.
This is a great example of sharing your testimony online.
———————————————————————-
President Kimball: Sharing the Gospel
“There is a spiritual adventure in doing missionary work… It is
exciting and rewarding. The hours, the effort, the wondering, all are
worth it when even one soul expresses repentance and faith and a
desire to be baptized…
———————————————————————-
Blogging as a Lightning Rod
There is an interesting side effect to blogs: They attract lightning.
When a high-profile individual thoughtfully shares his or her ideas
and feelings on a blog, it is only a matter of time before people
comment and a sort of “organized chaos” takes place.
———————————————————————-
Mormon or LDS?
If the King Lamonis of today are typing “Great Spirit” into Google, we
need to create websites and blog posts that mention the “Great
Spirit”. Later we can explain that “this is God.”
———————————————————————-
Join the online community at AllAboutMormons.com
Jacob at AllAboutMormons.com recently added several new features to
his site for engaging the online Mormon community.
———————————————————————-
Gramps is now podcasting
Clay Gorton is “Gramps”, a former mission president and temple worker
who answers questions on a variety of topics at www.askgramps.org.
Thanks to Mikel and Clay’s hard work, Ask Gramps content is now
available by podcast.
———————————————————————-
Convince me
The second problem with “collective intelligence” is that it may leave
out God and his authorized servants. That is, we (even all of us
collectively) “[don't] comprehend all the things which the Lord can
comprehend” and no one has a better grasp on “moral and societal
issues” than God’s prophets.
———————————————————————-
The Web needs your participation
In this current “age of participation,” we (you and I) are forging the
Web. Anyone can write a blog, create a video, post a photo, ask or
answer a question, or vote on a story. What you contribute shapes what
others find on the Internet.
———————————————————————-
What is Second Life and why should it matter to Mormons
Second Life is a virtual world where you can connect with thousands of
people. For members of the Church, Second Life may be among the next
frontiers for sharing the Gospel. At any time, thousands of people –
each avatar representing a real person — roam the worlds of Second
Life. Church members with disabilities could serve proselytizing
missions in Second Life, and we can all be member missionaries.

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Richard just posted on the More Good Foundation blog 12 Ways to Share the Gospel on the Internet:

1. Answer a Question at Yahoo! Answers
2. Blog your testimony in your mission language
3. Blog what you learned in Sunday School
4. Edit Mormonwiki.com or Wikipedia.org
5. Link to good websites (not just lds.org)
6. Podcast your parents and grandparents
7. Post mission and wedding photos on Flickr
8. Post your testimony on mormontestimonies.org
9. Post your video testimony on YouTube
10. Share your beliefs in a Facebook Note
11. Tell someone in Second Life about the Church
12. Volunteer with the More Good Foundation

There’s also a PDF version for printing. Also read the Comments for more great ideas!

Read More Good’s post about Second Life and how you can use it to share the gospel.

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The More Good Foundation has just put up a Mormon Testimonies Wiki where members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (commonly called the “Mormon Church”) can post their testimonies. This is an exciting way to share informative and positive testimonies. Nothing compares to the spirit that comes through true testimonies. These testimonies will be available for view by anyone and can be searched by region or by the number of generations a person has been in the Church.

I encourage everyone to go to mormontestimonies.org and post a testimony. What better answer is there to the question “what do Mormons really believe?” than a collection of writings of actual Mormons telling what they actually believe? The wiki is a safe place (no criticism allowed) where members can share their strength and faith.

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The Old Testament Stories for Children DVD  is now available to order (item number 00350, $4.50) through Church Distribution centers by phone (800-537-5971) or online at www.ldscatalog.com/old_testament_stories_DVD

This DVD contains the still pictures and narration of the text from the Old Testament Stories book.  The 48 stories on this DVD can help children and adults who are just starting to read the Old Testament enjoy and understand it better.

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The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd is now available in DVD format (item number 01607 090, $4.50/each or $45.00 for a case of 30) through Church Distribution centers by phone (800-537-5971) or online at www.ldscatalog.com/TestamentsDVD.

This 65-minute epic film depicts events from the life and ministry of Jesus Christ as recorded in the New Testament and the Book of Mormon. The story culminates with a portrayal of the resurrected Savior’s visit to the ancient Americas as seen through the eyes of a fictional family.

This is the movie that has been shown for years in the Legacy Theatre in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. The multilingual DVD contains the film in the following 18 languages: American Sign Language (ASL), Cantonese, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Norwegian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Ukrainian.

For a complete listing of all the available DVDs sold through Church distribution centers in the United States, see www.ldscatalog.com.

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In a previous post, I noted that a subcommittee of the Utah State Legislature unanimously passed a Resolution (H.C.R. 3) Urging Congress to Stop Interent Pornography to Children and Employees. You may be interested to note that this resolution passed the House of Representatives and the Senate with a 100% vote on both floors. (When was the last time anything passed both the House and the Senate with a 100% favorable vote?) On Friday, February 23, Governor Huntsman signed the resolution. There will be a future ceremonial signing and then an official state delegation will deliver the resolution to members of the federal government.

“We are excited about this first step. It shows that people are ready to take action,” said Ralph Yarro, Chairman of The CP80 Foundation. 

This sends a strong message to Washington that the people of the State of Utah want legislation to protect children and employees from Internet pornography. As I mentioned in comments to my previous post, this doesn’t accomplish anything in itself, but it lays a groundwork for bills ready to enter on Capitol Hill.

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The following additional materials from the February 10^th worldwide leadership training meeting on teaching and learning are now available online:

• English text and audio files (with each talk divided into sections)
• Non-English language audio of each talk and the complete broadcast

See previous post.

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Chapter numbers have been added to the tables of contents for all the manuals and support materials in the Gospel Library. This should assist in identifying the correct chapter for weekly lessons.

This change happened because of user feedback. (See, we do listen and act on feedback.)

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