Tell the story fairly. Ask better questions. Avoid the shortcut of caricature.

Why this page matters.

Many people encounter Latter-day Saints through media before they ever meet a real member. That means coverage does more than describe. It frames. It teaches audiences what to notice, what to assume, what to laugh at, and what to distrust. When the framing is careful, the public gains understanding. When it is lazy, sensational, or distorted, the public inherits caricature instead.

This page is here to help serious communicators do better. It is not a demand for praise. It is a practical guide for fairer reporting and more responsible storytelling.

Common mistakes in coverage.

The most common mistakes in coverage are usually not dramatic factual inventions. They are shortcuts.

They include reducing a global faith to one controversy, treating isolated people as proof of what all Latter-day Saints are like, using outdated or imprecise terminology, mistaking social media narratives for institutional reality, collapsing members, families, influencers, public figures, and the Church itself into one undifferentiated subject, or writing as though suspicion itself were evidence.

Frequent coverage errors

• Using “Mormon” or “LDS” as the default name for members when better terms are available
• Assuming doctrinal, political, and cultural uniformity among members
• Treating criticism, satire, and scandal as the whole story rather than one part of a larger reality
• Failing to distinguish official Church teaching from local culture, internet discourse, or individual opinion
• Overusing the strange, controversial, or marketable angle while underreporting ordinary belief and practice

Source quality.

Strong coverage starts with strong sourcing. Distinguish between the Church’s official statements and individual members. Distinguish between mainstream Church teachings and groups that are sometimes confused with the Church but are not part of it. Distinguish between historical practices and current ones.

If you are covering a national story about Latter-day Saints, talk to multiple Latter-day Saints across regions, generations, and viewpoints. Do not let one viral voice or one critic become the whole frame.

Framing checklist.

Before publishing or broadcasting, consider:

• Have I used preferred terminology?
• Have I distinguished individual conduct from institutional teaching?
• Have I included perspectives from members themselves?
• Have I checked claims against primary sources where possible?
• Have I avoided collapsing a global faith into one controversy?
• Have I asked what the story is, not only what is sensational about it?
• Am I willing to issue a correction if a meaningful error is later identified?

Press contact.

SAFE welcomes inquiries from journalists, producers, researchers, and creators who want background, context, sourcing, or commentary on questions related to Latter-day Saint experience, history, public misrepresentation, or the legal frameworks discussed elsewhere on this site.

For media inquiries, please use the SAFE contact page. We aim to respond promptly and seriously to good-faith reporting requests.

Contact SAFE Media

Why this matters.

Coverage shapes public expectation. When millions of people meet Latter-day Saints first through media, the quality of that coverage becomes part of the lived experience of being Latter-day Saint in public. Fair coverage strengthens public trust in journalism. Lazy coverage does the opposite, and it does so at the expense of real people.

This page exists to make it easier to do the harder, better work.