The following are excerpts from some of the media reports that have been published or broadcast this week, along with links to the full stories.
New York Times (New York, USA)
“With his buoyant personality and affinity for public relations, Mr. Hinckley made Mormonism more familiar to the public and more accepted in the Christian fold. He gave news conferences and was the first church president to sit for interviews on ‘60 Minutes’ and ‘Larry King Live.’ When the Winter Olympics went to Salt Lake City in 2002, the church’s home base, he guided the church outreach campaign.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/28/us/28hinckley.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
Los Angeles Times (California, USA)
“Though he became the Mormons' 15th president and prophet at age 84, Hinckley's energy, style and longevity, which drew comparisons to Pope John Paul II, allowed him to engage millions throughout the world and provided the church a media-friendly face.”
http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-hinckley28jan28,0,1888134.story
Houston Chronicle (Texas, USA)
“As a leader of the fastest-growing faith founded in the United States, Hinckley guided the church as it more than doubled its number of temples and expanded membership well beyond the boundaries of its center in Salt Lake City.”
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/life/religion/5490149.html
The Estado of Sao Paulo (Brazil)
“During his 13 years as the head of the Mormon Church, he made countless trips to meet with members of the Mormon Church which now has 13 million members in 171 countries.”
http://www.estadao.com.br/vidae/not_vid116153,0.htm
Chicago Tribune (Illinois, USA)
“The church presidency is a lifetime position. Before Hinckley, the oldest church president was David O. McKay who was 96 when he died in 1970.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-080228-hinckley,1,2722823.story
National Public Radio (Washington, D.C., USA)
“Most Americans know it as ‘The Mormon Church.’ Hinckley launched an effort to stamp out that phrase. He asked news media to use the formal name, ‘The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.’ And, in case anyone missed the point, he changed the official Mormon logo so that the name ‘Jesus Christ’ appeared in oversized letters.”
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7017514
USA Today (Virginia, USA)
“As a top church leader for nearly 50 years, Hinckley met with many U.S. presidents and foreign dignitaries.”
http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-01-27-obit-hinckley_N.htm
Reuters (Great Britain)
“In the year 2000, in spite of his advanced age, Mr. Hinckley completed an 11-day tour of the Pacific Rim where he traveled more than 35,400km and spoke to more than 26,000 people.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/1423a42c-cd60-11dc-a3da-000077b07658.html
China View (China)
“His grandfather knew church founder Joseph Smith and followed Brigham Young west to the Great Salt Lake Basin.”
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-01/28/content_7511648.htm
Baltimore Sun (Maryland, USA)
“In a statement, President Bush praised Hinckley as a ‘deeply patriotic man. While serving for over seven decades in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gordon demonstrated the heart of a servant and the wisdom of a leader. He was a tireless worker and a talented communicator who was respected in his community and beloved by his congregation.’”
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-hinckley0128,0,2527193.story
Herald Sun (Australia)
“He was the first church president to travel to Spain, where in 1996 he broke ground for a temple in Madrid, and to Africa, where he met thousands of Mormons in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.”
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23123145-663,00.html
Argus Observer (Ontario, Canada)
“In 2004 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civil award, by President George W. Bush. He also received the Silver Buffalo Award of the Boy Scouts of America and has been honored by the National Conference (formerly the National Conference of Christians and Jews) for his contributions to tolerance and understanding in the world.”
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23123145-663,00.html
BBC (Great Britain)
“The post is held for life, and Hinckley lived to become the oldest ever president, seeing church membership expand to 13 million people.”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7212488.stm
Diario Buenos Aires(Argentina)
“President Gordon B. Hinckley was known as a tireless leader, even at the age of 97, who always dedicated his life to a full-day’s work at the office and traveled the world extensively.”
http://www.diariobuenosaires.com.ar/nota2.asp?IDNoticia=22585
Turkish Press (Turkey)
“As a member of the First Presidency, the highest governing body of the church, he has had a major role in administering both the ecclesiastical and temporal affairs of the Church, whose members are spread over some 171 nations and territories.”
http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=212693
Austria National Radio (Austria)
http://mbl.is/mm/frettir/erlent/2008/01/28/forseti_mormonasafnadarins_latinn/
The passing of President Hinckley was discussed extensively on the “blogosphere.” The day following his death, a new blog post was published about him every couple of minutes. According to Blogpulse, a service that tracks trends in blogs, President Gordon B. Hinckley was the third most mentioned person in the blogosphere on Monday, 28 January.
Radio coverage of the funeral on Saturday, 2 February, starting at 11 a.m. MST, will be available on WFED 1050 AM in Washington, D.C., on KTTH 770 AM in Seattle and on KTAR 92.3 FM in Phoenix.
