I’ve been working on this package since February and it’s finally on newsstand. Newsweek’s cover story – written by author Walter Kirn, myself, Andrew Romano, and David Graham – explores how the unique culture and theology of Mormonism produces so many successful people. In other words, we’re trying to explain WHY America is currently experiencing a “Mormon moment” (i.e. Romney, Huntsman, Reid, Beck, The BOM Musical, etc.) 
As a practicing Latter-day Saint, I was able to contribute ideas and insights, as well as a good deal of the reporting and writing. But I’m happy to say that everyone who worked on the package, including our terrific editor Damon Linker, was very respectful of the LDS Church and its teachings. I know some Mormons believe there is a media bias against their faith – and maybe to some extent that’s true. But here at Newsweek/The Daily Beast, it’s been my experience that the journalists are sensitive, professional, and eager to explain Mormonism to our large global readership.
I appeared on MSNBC this morning, and will be doing a few radio hits today discussing the cover story. I’ll also be hosting a live chat on The Daily Beast on Wednesday at 1:00 pm EST, so please stop in if you have a minute.
The cover was done in poor taste. It is reminiscent of the caricatures of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and its members of the 1800′s. I would have hoped that your industry would have evolved above that over the last 150 years. A picture can be worth 1000 words, but 1000 good words will not undo the caricature made by your employer. It would torment me to associate my name with such a caricature.
I will refrain from judging this magazine by its cover until I have read the the article. However, the very cover appears to be an attempt at tweetbaiting—a desperate, deliberate attempt to generate tweets, likes, and page visits.
I was happy to hear your perspective on this article, McKay, because I agree with the others…the cover is in poor taste and was enough to make me very leery of reading the article.
The article was well done, but I think the cover was awful. The Book of Mormon musical is offensive to the core.
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I felt the article was very well-done. It showed a respectful balance that is not easy to achieve.
The cover didn’t bother me at all. I presume it was a symbolic combining of two extremes–one the upright and very Mormon Romney and the other a distasteful musical. I’m pretty stuffy and formal myself, and if someone had put my head on that picture (making it a female missionary, of course), it would be on my desk right now. That’s my standard for deciding how to feel about something–if it were me, would I like it? SInce I’d never pose that way, being unable to carry it off, I’d get a kick out of having something so silly done of me. Of course, I’m not running for president. Maybe that makes a difference, but the truth, is he would be getting no publicity from the picture if it were the normal perfect-hair photo. For a candidate, it’s all about the publicity and he is getting a lot of it from this…and didn’t even have to create a scandal to do it.