The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Reputation Manager Derek Westra Speaks Candidly With Communications Students About Faith and Media
Derek Westra, Director of Reputation Management for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, met with Brigham Young University communications students this December to offer an inside look at the realities of public relations work.
Westra graduated from BYU in 2006 with a degree in communications, with an emphasis in public relations. He later completed an MBA in marketing at the University of Hawaii and feels his two degrees work hand-in-hand in his career. Outside of the office, he is a husband, a father to three girls and a music fan.
Westra spoke candidly to students about what they should expect as future PR professionals. “You are going to have a bit of a target on your back if people do not like the organization that you are associated with. You are going to be on the record, talking to journalists and representing that organization,” said Westra. “Fortunately, the organization that I represent, I have no qualms about representing. I stand by it. I love it. So as you choose your career, I encourage you to choose an organization that you really believe in.”
Westra continued describing his job in more detail, providing the day-to-day task he has of keeping up with the flood of new media surrounding the Church. “I never would have imagined that part of my job responsibility would be watching so much television. I have seen 28 different television shows within about four years that have all had a Latter-day Saint portrayal in them, either about the Church or a minor reference or subplot.”
The gap between public perception and reality is a major aspect of Westra’s work. “In PR, we have to ask ourselves, ‘Who do people think we are, and how do we help them understand who we really are and what we really believe?’” Westra said. “It becomes our job in reputation management to say, ‘What are the themes associated with what people are seeing, and are those things accurate?’ If they are not, then it becomes our job to correct those inaccuracies.”
To demonstrate what this aspect of his job looks like, Westra discussed a recent New York Times article about the uprising of Latter-day Saint women on our screens. Westra recommended that students read the article to understand the various ways Latter-day Saint women have been portrayed in recent media.
He addressed part of the article that discusses why these women are achieving such success. “If you're a young woman in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you probably learned to speak at a really young age,” said Westra. “You might have served a mission in which you learned to be fearless. You probably learned a musical instrument, because the Church is big on that. You probably learned personal development that made you into an entrepreneur and someone who has a very strong personality.”
Despite the growing presence of Latter-day Saints in media, one ongoing challenge Westra explained is inspiring members to confidently and authentically share their faith in an age where being a member of the Church is difficult. “Being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2025 is not easy,” said Westra. “You have to have strong roots, because there are winds that are going to try to blow you down. In reputation management we have to ask: ‘How do we as a church empower our members to become ambassadors for the Church?’”
Westra points to the 29th season of the Bachelor as an example of maintaining strong roots and being a brand ambassador for the Church. “Without hesitation, I will say the best portrayal was a girl named Litia from the Bachelor,” said Westra. “They did a hometown visit and she said that her faith means everything to her and that it is the most important thing in her life.”
Westra explained why her answer was so important to him and for members around the globe. “As a viewer and as the reputation management director for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I was happy to hear her answer,” said Westra. “And that is what I hope for you — I hope you feel that being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has actually made you a better person. I would hope that we can lean into those attributes and be proud to be part of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."