President Hinckley on TV Program

On 7 April CBS’s 60 Minutes featured a presentation about the Church that had been previously recorded from interviews by TV journalist Mike Wallace with President Gordon B. Hinckley.

President Hinckley “felt the program was done with balance and integrity,” reported Bruce Olsen, managing director of the Church Public Affairs Department, relative to the 14 1/2-minute segment of the one-hour news show.

During the program, Mr. Wallace spoke with President Hinckley about the First Vision, the priesthood, the Word of Wisdom, and other gospel principles. Mr. Wallace also interviewed businessman Bill Marriott, Utah senator Orrin Hatch, and Steve Young, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers football team.

The purpose behind the segment was to inform viewers about Church members. “Surveys show that 70 percent or more of Americans don’t know much at all about Mormons—even if they’re Christian or not,” explained Robert Anderson Jr., a producer of the show. “We felt it would serve our viewers to know a little of what the Mormons are all about.”