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<p>This article analyzes the contemporary and emerging identity of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) as the Church delicately navigates between digital media representation, public fascination, and global spread. The popular representation of Mormons has been significantly altered by recent representations in reality-television and in digital media spaces– often highlighting taboo lifestyles that are rather antithetical to traditional LDS doctrine and behavior. The sex scandals and infidelity covered in <i>The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives</i> as well as the questionable choices of absurd characters in <i>The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City</i> directly contrast other popular images of Mormon women, like ‘TradWife’ influencer Hannah Neeleman, more popularly known as Ballerina Farms on social media platforms. This article aims to question whether any of these public caricatures accurately represent authentic Mormonism, or perhaps, whether there even exists any singular model of Mormonism in the modern age. By examining the Church’s demographic shifts— most notably that the majority of the 17.5&#xa0;million members reside outside of the United States, many in African and Central/South American nations— it highlights the complex cultural negotiations faced by both international members, and the Church itself. By revisiting former concessions at the attempt of cultural assimilation, a hypothesis is constructed regarding the long-term negotiation between eternal doctrine and cultural survival.</p>

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The Modern-Day Saints and the Battle of Doctrine and Domesticity: The Visibility of the Modern Mormon Woman

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月25日

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  • Maggie Eliza McNeil

摘要

This article analyzes the contemporary and emerging identity of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) as the Church delicately navigates between digital media representation, public fascination, and global spread. The popular representation of Mormons has been significantly altered by recent representations in reality-television and in digital media spaces– often highlighting taboo lifestyles that are rather antithetical to traditional LDS doctrine and behavior. The sex scandals and infidelity covered in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives as well as the questionable choices of absurd characters in The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City directly contrast other popular images of Mormon women, like ‘TradWife’ influencer Hannah Neeleman, more popularly known as Ballerina Farms on social media platforms. This article aims to question whether any of these public caricatures accurately represent authentic Mormonism, or perhaps, whether there even exists any singular model of Mormonism in the modern age. By examining the Church’s demographic shifts— most notably that the majority of the 17.5 million members reside outside of the United States, many in African and Central/South American nations— it highlights the complex cultural negotiations faced by both international members, and the Church itself. By revisiting former concessions at the attempt of cultural assimilation, a hypothesis is constructed regarding the long-term negotiation between eternal doctrine and cultural survival.