Second-year PhD student Madison Picard studies how the Mormon Church relies heavily on media and the digital skills of its members to spread its message and grow its membership.

It was through social media that Madison Picard’s interest in religious beliefs and messaging was first piqued—an interest that led to her current PhD research.

As a second-year PhD student in Media Studies in the Faculty of Information & Media Studies (FIMS) at Western University, Madison is exploring the digital communication strategies of the Mormon Church (also known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints).

Madison’s path to this research was a result of her following her own curiosity about the world around her and realizing not everyone gets the chance to look closer at their interests. “It’s funny to be able to go to school to study, essentially, what you want,” she says. “I feel like that’s a privilege that a lot of people might not get to have.”

Growing up in a family that deeply valued education, Madison's parents encouraged her to excel in her studies. She completed her undergraduate degree in Professional Communication at Toronto Metropolitan University. Initially, she was drawn to the program because of its diverse pathways and practical focus.

But while she was working on her undergraduate capstone project her interest in researching and interrogating systems of power, particularly as they apply to religious organizations, started to crystallize. Around that time, a surge in Mormon-related content on social media led her to ask questions about how religious beliefs and messages are communicated.

“I had been seeing a lot of specifically Mormon content on TikTok and Instagram. The community really fascinated me. I just felt like something was going on here that I really wanted to learn more about.” - Madison Picard

To investigate further, she pursued a master’s degree in Communications, Media and Digital Culture at the University of Windsor, where she began examining religious systems of power more closely. Her major research paper focused on the Mormon law of tithing, an expectation that members donate 10 per cent of their income to the church.

Now as a doctoral student at FIMS, Madison is examining the way the Mormon Church itself functions as a media object. She explains that the modern Church relies heavily on its media efforts to advance their overall mission of bringing new people into their religion, and so they have a very rich digital history.

“I will be interrogating some examples of this history, namely their missionary efforts, social media ventures, and their blogging community in particular. Messaging from the Mormon Church headquarters has often encouraged the use of the Internet in particular to further their mission, and so there is a lot of content online on various platforms that comes from their members, and these digital literacy skills are particularly fascinating to me.”

Madison chose to conduct this research at FIMS as the faculty is at the intersection of media studies, communications and information sciences, and understanding how those things relate to systems of power is a core component of being a FIMS student.

“I am very grateful to be able to have the experience of being in higher education, pursuing graduate studies and being among faculty who have so many different and valuable interests,” she says.

During her time at FIMS, her love for learning evolved into mentoring through her role as a teaching assistant in the undergraduate Media and Communications Studies (MACS) program. She leads tutorials and fosters a community of learning, which has become one of the highlights of her time at Western. Although the workload can be busy at times, Madison says feels supported through the shared experiences of her cohort.

One of her favourite experiences at FIMS is being surrounded by her peers during the busiest times, when everyone shares their stories of navigating the demands of graduate study.

“While it can feel stressful, it is also very gratifying to know that you have a group of people that you can lean on for support,” she says.

Looking ahead, Madison plans to continue her doctoral research, to travel, and to eventually teach. Ultimately, Madison hopes to contribute something new to the field through her research, and to continue exploration of their evolving influence in religious communities.

---

Profiles are written by students in the Master of Media in Journalism & Communication (MMJC) program, who are enrolled in MMJC 9604 - Corporate Communications