The correct [domain] name of the church: Technology, naming, and legitimacy in the Latter-day Saint tradition

In this article, I… examine how changes to (Anglophone-aimed) domain names of the official websites of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints extend, continue, and complicate the existing relationship between naming and legitimacy in the Latter-day Saint tradition. In doing so, I will illustrate two key points concerning the relationship between Mormonism and technology. First, as Latter-day Saint institutions use digital technologies to make claims to authority and legitimacy, they are also subject to independent processes of legitimation that exist within complex sociotechnical systems. Second, other parties that successfully navigate these same complex sociotechnical systems have an increased ability to challenge Latter-day Saint legitimacy.

Greenhalgh, S. P. (2023). The correct [domain] name of the Church: Technology, naming, and legitimacy in the Latter-day Saint tradition. Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, 56(1), 1-26. https://doi.org/10.5406/15549399.56.1.01