An updated and revamped Newsroom Web site goes live today after several weeks of testing.
The new site is a key tool for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to use in communicating with the news media, academics, other opinion leaders and members of the public interested in the Church’s doctrines, policies and activities.
The site had been in a beta (test) format since 20 December 2006. Since then, the Church had kept two Newsroom sites functioning as the new site was fine tuned. With today’s change, the old Newsroom site has been completely removed.
Information is presented in a more easily digestible format to suit not only journalists but also other researchers and members of the public who are looking to find factual material on the Church quickly and easily. Materials are written in non-Church language that can be readily understood, and the site addresses topics that are commonly raised by these audiences.
Sections of the site include “Commentary,” where the Church will sometimes respond to issues of the day or comment on news reports.
The site includes a much more powerful search engine as well as updated multimedia components. Included on the site is The World Report, a biannual audiovisual news report on what is happening in the Church around the world.
One of the enhancements to the site is an updated RSS feed, allowing subscribers to be notified whenever key parts of the site change. All users who previously signed up for RSS on the old Newsroom Web site will need to set up new RSS feeds.
For a short time, a feedback survey is available. Users are encouraged to submit suggestions, concerns or problem links. This will help in providing a Newsroom that is helpful to the public.