# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2004_S68 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 68 SYNODICAL REPORTS magazine. Placements in other newspapers, large and small, ran into the hundreds. e Electronic placements occurred, among other places, on National Public Radio, CBS Radio, ABC Radio, USA Radio Network, Salem Radio Network, United News & Information, Bloomberg News, and certain local TV stations. ¢ Assisted the President’s Office in issuing statements and com- mentaries on such topics as human cloning, stem-cell research, partial-birth abortion, the sanctity of life, same-sex marriage, the traditional family, the Federal Marriage Amendment, Episcopal Bishop V. Gene Robinson, the Iraq War, and church-state issues. Quotes from, or material attributable to, the statement on defend- ing the traditional family appeared in some 43 newspapers (con- firmed placements); quotes or attributions from the statement on Bishop Robinson, 24. Assisted the President’s Office and other senior LCMS officials in the preparation of speeches, presentations, reports, and letters. President Kieschnick’s 2002 commencement address at Concor- dia University, Austin, Tex., “Taking the Cross to the Market- place,” was selected by David C. Cook Publishers for inclusion in the book Graduation Moments: A Compendium of the Year’s Best Commencement Speeches. Served (and continue to serve) on the newly formed LCMS Crisis Communications Team. Made presentations on crisis prepared- ness in the parish to fourth-year students at both LCMS seminar- ies. Assisted several Districts in handling crises of various sorts. Continued the cultivation of relationships with religion editors and reporters by visiting them in their offices or going to confer- ences they attend. Personal meetings in the past triennium in- cluded visits with, among others, USA Today, Washington Post, Dallas Morning News, Houston Chronicle, Miami Herald, and the Associated Press. Enforced the trademark protections on the Synod’s tripartite logo cross. This is an ongoing concern in the church, with a number of webmasters and so-called ringmasters (many of them LCMS pas- tors) using the cross on their unofficial, and thus unauthorized, Web sites. Failure to police these infringements puts our intellec- tual-property protections at risk. Future Goals and Challenges Owing to events and circumstances, a good deal of the media’s attention to the LCMS in the past triennium called for reactive, even defensive, responses. A large number of those responses cen- tered on matters involving the Yankee Stadium affair and its long, complicated aftermath. Other distracting issues included clergy sexual abuse (spawned by the Roman Catholic scandals), a contro- versial 9-! 1 memorial service at Valparaiso University (LCMS Public Affairs was quoted in dozens of newspapers on that sub- ject), and the Synod’s reaction to the decisions of other church bod- ies to liberalize their practices on issues involving homosexuality. One hopes that, in the next triennium, LCMS Public Affairs will be able to focus more of its energy on making positive, proactive statements and placements on the “normal” work of the Synod and its ministries. To that end, the goals of Public Affairs will include the following: ¢ Effectively publicizing the major ministries and efforts of the Synod in leading print and electronic media. © Voicing the Synod’s positions on cultural issues affecting our be- liefs and values. e Working with others in seeking to achieve a greater public visi- bility of the Synod’s name and what it stands for. * Training District leaders in crisis management and communica- tion. e Seeking a more useful and productive partnership with commu- nicators at the Synod’s District offices, seminaries, colleges and universities, auxiliaries, and recognized service organizations. 2004 Convention Workbook Executive Director There have been some administrative changes that have oc- curred over the last triennium. Rev. Dean W. Nadasdy resigned from our board on July 14, 2003, to take a position as First Vice-President of the Minnesota South District. Succeeding Rev. Nadasdy in this appointment is Rev. Steven Siegel. Rev. Siegel was appointed to our board in late November 2003 and attended his first BCS meeting in January 2004. Since the 2001 convention, several changes have been made in our departmental structure as well. LCMS Teleproductions was closed as their revenue dropped, unrestricted budget dollars de- creased, and it became unprofitable to maintain this service in- house. Video and other multimedia projects for IC departments and Synod congregations are now provided through an outside LCMS vendor, Parabolic Productions. Parabolic is owned and operated by Philip Hohle, and is located in St. Louis. Decreases in unrestricted budget dollars allocated to our board also caused us to eliminate some staff positions in the department. The internship program was abandoned due to IC overhead costs. Although our staff is more taxed due to these cutbacks, they are working very diligently to maintain the same level of service to our LCMS publics. However, this cannot realistically continue into the future. We do expect future curtailments of some services. Where possible we are making use of volunteers to perform some jobs and take advantage of opportunities that we would otherwise not be in the position to do. Probably one of our best opportunities to further the mission and work of the Synod is through Public Relations, which is an ex- tremely cost effective way to open doors for the church to get its message to its publics. This effort is ongoing and has enjoyed some limited success. We are hampered in this area, however, by a per- ceived lack of interest and corresponding limited funding. Finally, we note that the Board of Directors assumed control of the operation of KFUO-AM and FM radio due to its concern over the station’s ongoing financial challenges. In this section of our report we will briefly detail some of the events that could not be categorized into the previous sections: Accomplishments Dr. Ardon Albrecht, former executive producer of This Is the Life, was instrumental in creating a new LCMS television min- istry entitled Point of Truth. This one-half hour show features worship services of LCMS congregations and airs five times per week on DIRECTV’s The Church Channel, available to some 14 million television households. Pilgrim Lutheran Church in Santa Monica, Calif., serves as the umbrella organization for the pro- gram by providing its tax-exempt status, banking abilities, and volunteers. e In cooperation with David Berner, Director of General Services Electronic Media and Church Information Center, assisted with the redesign of the look and feel of the Synod’s official Web site, www.lIcms.org. ¢ In cooperation with former LCMS Chief Administrative Officer Brad Hewitt, conducted a communications audit for the Interna- tional Center. e Created a crisis communications plan for the International Center and conducted crisis communications training in select Districts. e Continued relationships and presence in Washington, D.C., through personal contacts and visits with select White House, Of- fice of Housing and Urban Development, and Department of Vet- eran Affairs officials. ¢ Continued LCMS presence with outside religious and Lutheran entities through membership on the board of the National Inter- faith Cable Coalition and others.