Interview with Dr. Miller

    This post will be a recap of the interview I conducted, and I will share some interesting and noteworthy pieces of information that I gathered.  I will also evaluate the credibility of the source.
    For this assignment, I interviewed Dr. Timothy Miller, who is a religious studies professor here at the University of Kansas.  I am currently pursuing a minor in religious studies, but I did not know Dr. Miller before this interview, and found him simply by looking at the list of faculty.  His contact information can be found here: http://religiousstudies.ku.edu/timothy-miller.
    In the interview, Dr. Miller said was that he wasn't sure whether Fundamentalist Mormons would live so communally if it were't for the relatively hostile government they are avoiding, which I thought was an interesting point.  He also said Mormons are the quintassential Americans and are upholding ideals that most of the US has moved on from.
    Dr. Miller has not focused any of his research specifically on Fundamentalist Mormons.  He has, however, spent about 50 years researching intentional communities in the United States, and has a Ph. D. in American studies.  He also mentioned that he worked as a reporter for about 15 years, which would allow him insight into how the world of news works and better understand my questions about media coverage.  Although he may not be as qualified as someone who has focused specifically on Mormonism and polygamy, he has an incredible wealth of knowledge on religious studies.
    Miller said that because of their communal nature, he needed to be knowledgable and aware about Mormons in regards to his own research.  When I brought up the topic of media coverage of the Fundamentalist Mormons, Miller admitted to having a limited scope because he relies mostly on newspapers, but was aware of the television shows.  In response, I asked him if he thought the media coverage, and specifically the television shows, accurately portrayed the beliefs of the Fundamentalist Mormons, to which he expressed his doubt.

Fundamentalist Mormons Continue to Appear In Media

• Kristen Cook takes an unusual viewpoint in this article, where she writes "bring on the sister wives".  She laments that even though husbands are nice, having multiple wives or sisters to help with the mom load of driving, cooking, cleaning, and all things relating to children, would be quite nice.
• This article talks about the T.V. show "My Five Wives", and how the showcased family of 30 calls themselves 'progressive polygamists'.  Husband to five wives, Brady Williams says that he's a feminist, and doesn't see himself as head of the family.  The T.V. show has been causing waves with viewers. 
• This article explains how polygamist Winston Blackmore, who was in line to become the next Prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is being prosecuted for his admittance of 10 out of 26 brides being underaged.  The author believes that he admitted to the accusation because martyrdom is highly valued in the Fundamentalist Mormon community

Survey Results Unsurprising- American's Aren't In Favor of Polygamy

  This post will be interpreting the results of a survey that National Geographic Channel conducted to see how American's felt about polygamy.  It was was released on May 14, 2013, a week after the premiere of their show, "Polygamy, USA".  I will also be evaluating the credibility of the survey and the results, which can be found in this article: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-geographic-channel-releases-marriage-survey-results-that-explore-peoples-attitudes-toward-plural-and-traditional-marriage-207427121.html.

  The survey results show that Americans are more accepting of gay marriage than of plural marriage, and that their standpoint stems from the negative connotation polygamy tends to have, especially through the media.

  The only information that is given about the survey is that 1,153 people, ages 18 and older, took the survey online on April 30, 2013.  There is nothing provided about race or ethnicity, religion, geography, economic standing, or level of education.

  The results of this survey are far from shocking; it just puts numbers to the assumptions most people think society has.  Without further information on the respondents, it is hard to determine just how insightful the results truly are to American's minds.

  Despite my best searching efforts, I could not find the actual survey that National Geographic Channel  issued, so I cannot give an example of questions and exact responses.  The responses were released in a sentence format with percentages .

  Again, I do not believe the actual survey was released, just the results, and so I cannot determine the usefulness of the survey based on the questions.

  Because the questions are not available, it is impossible for me to fully determine the credibility and accuracy of this survey.  However, National Geographic is a credible source, and the results of the survey really can't be misconstrued in favor for the channel because it was simply to gage the American people's feelings on polygamy, not their actual show.