By The Prowler on 12.18.06 @ 12:09AM
Mitt Romney's candidacy creates concerns and opportunities.
The Salt Lake City-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints is growing increasingly concerned about the
public-perception hit the presidential candidacy of Massachusetts
Gov. Mitt Romney may have on the Mormon
Church.
That's one reason the church is looking at what is being called
a "public education" campaign that could reach a budget in the tens
of millions in media buys for TV, radio and print.
"There is an expectation that some of the church's more archaic
traditions and obscure points of history will become more widely
publicized by Governor Romney's opponents in an effort to embarrass
him and raise doubts about his faith in the minds of the public,"
says a New York-based media consultant who has heard buzz of the
potential campaign.
Already, the Mormon Church runs a series of radio ads about
family issues that are branded as messages from the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints. There is also a small TV campaign that
runs occasionally highlighting the church and some of its
faith-based publications.
But the current campaign is of a different sort, one that would
be high profile in as much as the church would be openly discussing
and clarifying points of the Mormon faith that have long been
either misunderstood or misreported.
One individual said to be concerned about the Romney effect on
the church is Sen. Harry Reid, who although a
Mormon is so socially liberal in his positions that few people
outside of Washington beyond his Nevada constituents are aware of
that he even belongs to an organized church.
"Reid doesn't want to have to explain his faith in any greater
detail than he already has," says a political consultant in
Washington who works with Democrats in the Senate. "If someone
could do it for him, I think he'd be relieved."
But this campaign may not be simply about educating the American
people about what many people consider an odd faith. Sources say
that initial spending on the campaign would most likely be focused
on media outlets in six geographic areas: Washington, D.C., New
York, Los Angeles, Iowa, South Carolina, and Michigan.
"Remember, this isn't just about the church's image. This about
Governor Romney's image, too," says the political consultant. "I
think increasingly the two are becoming bound together."
Any advertising campaign targeted in that way would almost
assuredly come under review by the Federal Election Commission and
perhaps by the Internal Revenue Service, due to the church's tax
exempt status.
topics:
Education, Harry Reid
