I'm a Mormon

I've been seeing several of the new "I'm a Mormon" profile pictures showing up on Facebook. Last year I wrote a brief post about how I never change my profile picture to anything beyond a photo of me. Heck, I won't even use group shots as my profile picture, and I have never used a logo or other graphic. It's not to 'hate' on those who decided to (both my sisters have decided to) or look down; no, it's just a preference. I figure, at this point, if you don't already know I'm a Mormon (i.e. a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also referred to as Latter-day Saints or LDS), you probably don't know me very well at all or haven't been paying attention. Seeing as my Facebook profile is restricted mostly to people I know outside the cyber world (and the few on there I haven't met in person I have interacted with to some degree beyond Facebook), using it on Facebook for me isn't necessary.  That said, I thought it would be a good idea to to a "Yes and No" blog post about being Mormon using some common questions I get, not only for those of who who may not know me as well, but even those of you I know a little better! (See my Mormon.org profile too!)

Were you raised Mormon?

As early Latter-day Saint
Parley Pratt in 2012

Yes. My parents both joined the Church about a year apart before getting married. I was baptized the day after my 8th birthday.

Do you have a problem being called "Mormon"?
No. It's a very common nickname and I find nothing derogatory about it. I usually use the terms (Mormon and LDS/Latter-day Saint) interchangeably. What's surprising is that a lot of people still don't know that Mormon and Latter-day Saint are synonymous or even that the term "Mormon Church" is a nickname for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Is your family originally from Utah?
No. I actually get that as much from members of the church as I do from those not in the church. I've always said I'm never quite sure who is more surprised that I was raised LDS in Ohio: Latter-day Saints from out west or non-LDS from Ohio. I do have extended family in Utah, but my family history is in Ohio and the eastern US. My aunt moved to Utah around 1980 and subsequently started her family there. My sister lived in Utah from 2008-12 with her husband and first two kids, but she grew up and went to college here in Ohio and has since relocated to Indiana.

Did you serve a mission?

As a full-time missionary in
Safford, Arizona, June 2002

Yes. I served in the Arizona Tucson Mission from December 2001-November 2003. While there I served in the cities of Oro Valley, Safford, and Sierra Vista in Arizona and the cities of Animas, Las Cruces, Alamogordo, and Ruidoso in New Mexico.

Isn't that a mission trip?
No, though there are some obvious similarities. A mission trip tends to be shorter and as much for sightseeing as it is for missionary work and service. A mission is pretty much putting your life on hold for two years while you focus on teaching people about the Gospel and doing service. We have limited contact with home life (call home on Christmas and Mother's Day) and while we do sight-see sometimes, it's not very often. I'd say it's much more intense than a typical mission trip.

Did you feel pressured to serve a mission?
No, but I did feel like I would've disappointed many people if I hadn't gone.

Was it the best two years of your life?
No. I actually dislike that phrase. If the best two years are around age 19, what do I have to look forward to? My mission, up to this point, was one of the hardest things I have ever done, but also one of the best decisions I made. I consider it a huge accomplishment, something I am proud of, and am glad I did. While I can't say I'd do it all over again, I have never regretted going on a mission and it still affects me in many ways both directly and indirectly!

Do you drink alcohol and/or smoke?
No for both. Never really wanted to either. Guess I'm in the right church!

Do you drink caffeine?

Oh blessed Vanilla Coke!!

Yes, but not on a regular basis. I really don't drink pop/soda very much out of habit. If I have a caffeinated beverage, it's in the form of Dr. Pepper, Coke, Vanilla Coke, Cherry Coke, Pepsi, or Cherry Pepsi. The Word of Wisdom (the health code most Mormons follow) actually doesn't prohibit caffeine, though many LDS either believe it does or interpret it to mean that.

Did you go to BYU?
No, but I did attend sister school (not a branch or satellite campus) BYU-Idaho for three academic years. I had no desire to attend BYU. Not the environment I was looking for. My bachelor's and master's degrees are both from Kent State University.

Did you like BYU-Idaho?

After taking my last final ever at BYU-Idaho in 2007!

Yes and No. I liked the teachers I had there and I am still in touch with many of the friends I made while there. I learned so much about myself, the church, the culture, and music (my field of study). I strongly disliked the overall culture there, however, particularly in relation to marriage. I could go on forever, but suffice it to say, I was glad when my time there was done. I don't miss the school at all and I really don't associate with it all that much, but I do miss the many people I got to know there (which is true pretty much everywhere I go). I don't consider going there a mistake, though.

Are you a BYU fan?
NO. Absolutely not! The only time I pull for BYU is when they play Notre Dame or Michigan. BYU-Idaho doesn't have intercollegiate sports, but I mainly follow my hometown and alma mater Kent State as well as the Ohio State Buckeyes. I almost attended the University of Utah twice, so I have a soft spot for the Utes too.

Have you ever felt like you didn't want to be Mormon anymore?

Temple Square in 2010

Yes. That's a normal part of figuring it all out and dealing not only with the doctrinal issues, but the cultural issues too. In the end, I am LDS because I want to be, not simply because I was raised that way.

Have you ever been offended at church?
Yes. As the old saying goes, "if you haven't been offended in church, be patient." The members of the church are imperfect human beings just like anyone else. You'll inevitably run into insensitive, rude, and sometimes downright mean people, but at the same time, you'll also run into some incredibly awesome, wonderful, and Christ-like people. I think a lot of people assume because I'm active in the church and really always have been that I've never really had a bad experience or even doubt or questions. That, of course, is nonsense as I've had plenty, many of which I would've been perfectly justified to most in just not going to church anymore. The difference is how I have chosen to deal with bad experiences and separating the Gospel from the people.

Do you ever question authority and/or doctrine?
YES. Sustaining a church authority doesn't mean blindly following them. In turn, questioning doesn't mean openly rebelling or being overly critical either. Good leaders always have logical rationales behind every decision and will be happy to explain them. If a leader doesn't, I'm going to be looking for one if something they said doesn't sound right to me. In matters of doctrine, I'm always striving to learn it better. Being open minded doesn't mean never coming to a conclusion, but recognizing that there may be additional information that could alter or enhance my opinion and being ready to do so if needed. I've also been learning what doctrine actually is. I've come to find that many things both members and outsiders think are doctrines of the church actually aren't (the use of caffeine is a very obvious one). Instead, many are simply cultural traditions.

Is being Mormon hard?

Cleaning the chapel can be hard, but being
LDS? Naaaaaah! 

No, at least not for me. For me it's something that I've always been, so I have never viewed it as hard, even living in an area where we are a very small minority (I think that makes it more fun!). That said, for people who convert to the church, I have total respect for them because I think many of our customs and norms might be hard for people who aren't used to them to adjust to (particularly the prohibition of alcohol and coffee).

Have you seen the Book of Mormon musical?
No. To be honest, it's not that I don't want to see it for any religious reasons, but more economic. If I see a Broadway-level musical (usually at Playhouse Square in Cleveland), it's because someone invites me. I'd go if invited, but I'not going to drop a bunch of money on a ticket (I want to see Wicked before I see anything else anyway!). I went on an actual mission and have read the real book...both are far more entertaining and meaningful than any musical could ever hope to be! I do think, overall, the publicity it's generating is good and the church has done well taking advantage of that publicity.

I'm sure I could go on for some time about all sorts of things I am asked on a fairly regular basis. I'm not claiming that my views and opinions represent "mainstream" LDS by any stretch; these are my opinions and mine only. And hey, if you have some questions of your own, feel free to ask in the comments or on Facebook if we're connected there, provided they're genuine and not seeking some kind of doctrinal debate or other kind of argument. Been there, done that!

Markets

For those of you who don't keep up with college sports, this past week saw three big changes in the world of college athletics with three teams changing their league affiliations: the University of Colorado announced they will move from the Big 12 to the Pac-10 conference effective in 2012, Boise State University announced they will move from the Western Athletic Conference to the Mountain West Conference also in 2012, and the biggest so far was the University of Nebraska-Lincoln announcing they will move from the Big 12 to the Big Ten effective 2011. Rumors are still flying about possible other Big 12 schools leaving for the Pac-10 or Southeastern Conference (SEC) and even more for the Big Ten. For the Big Ten and the Pac-10, the main reasons cited for adding the respective schools to their conferences was the additional markets each school brings to the conference. For the Big Ten, which owns and operates its own television network (Big Ten Network) adding more markets adds additional subscribers which of course adds additional revenues to the conference members. The Pac-10 is hoping to start its own network, so adding Colorado and the Denver market will help boost revenue for that as well. The University of Texas has been discussed for several conferences including the Pac-10, Big Ten, and SEC because it would likely "deliver" several large markets in the state of Texas and boost revenues considerably for whichever conference (including the Big 12 if it survives) takes it.

But that begs the question: what is a market? There are several markets, but here we're talking about media markets. Nielsen Research came up with Designated Market Areas (DMAs) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) follows the Nielsen DMAs in their own market designators (known as Television Market Areas or TMAs). Within the DMA/TMAs are smaller radio markets. In northeastern Ohio, for instance, Kent is part of the Cleveland-Akron (Canton) DMA/TMA. It includes 17 counties in the region. The only part of northeastern Ohio it doesn't include is the Youngstown-Warren area, which is its own DMA. You can usually tell markets by which cities have their own TV stations. The Cleveland-Akron market currently ranks 18th nationally, so it is considered a "mid-sized" market. The size is determined by households within a DMA, so naturally the largest cities in the country are also the largest markets. Within the Cleveland-Akron DMA are three radio markets, which are defined by a research company called Arbitron: Cleveland, Akron, and Canton. For Kent, even though we're officially in the Akron radio market, radio signals don't stop off at borders, so we can easily get stations from the Cleveland, Canton, and Youngstown markets with little problem. On top of that, many of the major and mid-sized radio markets have a high-powered AM station that can be heard well outside its market area. In Cleveland, WTAM 1100 AM can be heard at times in 38 US states and much of Canada. WLW 700 AM in Cincinnati and KSL 1160 AM are other examples I can think of off the top of my head that are also high-powered.

As I've followed the discussions mostly by fans of the various colleges and their respective conferences, the phrase that comes up about a potential school is its ability to "deliver" a particular market. For instance, many believe that if the Big Ten added Rutgers and/or Syracuse then it could potentially "deliver" the New York market (the nation's largest) to the Big Ten Network. By "deliver" it means there is significant interest from the population, enough so that cable companies want to add the Big Ten Network to their basic lineups. The more people who have access to BTN, the more money it gets since cable TV gets their revenue largely from subscription fees instead of advertising like "free" TV does. When it's on a more basic lineup, people get it whether they want it or not, translating into a lot more subscribers. Such is the case in the markets presently served by the Big Ten Network in the states that have member schools: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Within those states are several large and mid-sized DMAs including #3 Chicago, #4 Philadelphia, #11 Detroit, #18 Cleveland-Akron, and #23 Pittsburgh among others. Indeed, one of the biggest arguments against the Big Ten inviting the University of Pittsburgh to join is because while the school has excellent academics and athletics, it does little to add to the Big Ten Network as Penn State already "delivers" the Pittsburgh market to the Big Ten, much like Ohio State already "delivers" the Cincinnati market (University of Cincinnati was also discussed lightly as a possibility by some fans). Because many of the Big Ten schools are large state schools, they have the ability to not only deliver specific markets, but entire states with multiple large markets. Not only does Penn State deliver both of Pennsylvania's largest markets, but Ohio State delivers the Cleveland-Akron DMA and also Columbus (#34), Cincinnati (#33), Dayton (#65), Toledo (#73), and Youngstown (#110). The same holds true for basically every school and state in the Big Ten because they have large alumni bases throughout their respective state and region, plus they have large followings inside their respective states.

With Nebraska joining the Big Ten, though, people have wondered how adding the main school in Nebraska, which has a population of less than 1.8 million people, will add much to the Big Ten Network. Indeed, the largest DMA in Nebraska is Omaha, which is ranked #76 with the Lincoln, Nebraska market down at #105. First, Nebraska generates interest well outside of the state of Nebraska. Their fans travel anywhere for games and their alumni are not restricted to the state of Nebraska. Indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if the Big Ten Network were picked up in the Kansas City market (#32) because I would imagine there are quite a few Nebraska alumni there. Still not the huge market many were hoping, but the potential for marquee matchups with fellow Big Ten schools and out-of-conference schools could generate additional subscribers outside the conference "footprint". One need not be an alum of a school to be a fan! Whichever conference lands the University of Texas will likely have the Dallas-Ft. Worth (#5), Houston (#10), Austin (#48), San Antonio (#37) and several smaller markets delivered because like many of the Big Ten schools, Texas has significant interest throughout the entire state.

Really this post was triggered by some comments I read from a well-meaning BYU fan who was talking up why a major conference like the Big 12 (assuming it doesn't implode soon) would want to add a school like BYU. One of the things he cited was the Salt Lake City market, which he correctly stated is ranked 31st in size. Yeah, I know, I pick on Utah a lot on this blog, but in this case I wasn't really looking for it but it just presented itself. Indeed, SLC is the nation's 31st largest DMA. What most people don't seem to understand is that in land area, the Salt Lake DMA coveres the entire state of Utah and includes large chunks of Nevada and Wyoming as well as a few southern Idaho counties, so comparing it with other markets isn't totally accurate. True, the vast majority of the population actually lives in the Wasatch Front (Ogden, Salt Lake, and Provo metro areas), but still if many of the other markets covered the same area Salt Lake does, things would look a lot different. Nielsen estimates approximately 944,060 households in the SLC market. Let's use Ohio as an example. If the Columbus market (which ranks a few notches behind Salt Lake) covered all the markets based in the state (several parts of Ohio are in other markets, plus some markets like Cincinnati extend into other states), it would include 4,136,840 households. So yes, Salt Lake is somewhat of a valuable asset for building revenue and expanding presence, but it isn't nearly as high as some seem to think. BYU could definitely deliever the SLC market, but I think it could also deliver the Las Vegas market because of the large number of Latter-day Saints in metro Las Vegas. Like Notre Dame is America's Catholic university, BYU is the "Mormon" university and thus can draw fairly decently (though not nearly as well as some seem to believe) in many places in the country as many members of the Church will come support the school (I am definitely NOT counted among those!).

Also see:

• Nielsen Media Market ranks - this ranks all of the DMAs in the US and is the most recent as far as I know
• Arbitron Media Market map - this map shows the radio and overall media (or TV) markets for the entire country.  The radio markets are colored by size rank and the media markets are outlined in heavy black lines.