Washington Post reporter Felicia Sonmez wrote yesterday about how Mormons view the recent news coverage of Glenn Beck and what it means to Mormonism. The Post quoted Church spokesman Michael Otterson, who said opinion on Beck is just as divided among Mormons as it is elsewhere:
"Views on Glenn Beck would be right across the spectrum," Otterson said. "It depends on where individual Latter-day Saints are. Some would embrace him completely and others would, no doubt, be at odds."
Otterson also noted that there are more than 6 million Mormons in the United States and that prominent Mormons in the political arena run the ideological gamut from Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D) to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R).
"It really underscores that members of the Church are free to have their separate political views and express them whatever way they like," Otterson said, adding that Beck "would be the very first person to say that he does not speak for the Church."
In a separate, but related posting on the Washington Post's On Faith blog, Michael Otterson discussed Glenn Beck in a post titled "Mormon voices in the public square and what to make of them."