Book About Mormonism and Gay Rights Leads Amazon Sales List

Phoenix, AZ, July 29, 2012 --(PR.com)-- Michelle Beaver, a journalist and faculty associate at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, released an e-book in July that debuted at No. 1 on Amazon’s list of gay-and-lesbian nonfiction. The book is called, "Romney's Gay America: Mormon Leaders, Same-Sex Rights--Bridging the Gap."

"Romney's Gay America" predicts what a Mitt Romney presidency would mean for gay rights, offers solutions for how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints could better deal with homosexuality and advises that non-Mormons should accept Mormons.

The book is based on a two-day series Michelle Beaver wrote last year for 12 San Francisco Bay Area newspapers, including The Oakland Tribune and The San Jose Mercury News. Bay Area News Group, which ran the series, is America’s fifth-largest market. The newspaper series covered Proposition 8, gay Mormons in the San Francisco Bay Area and the LDS Church's relationship with homosexuality.

Beaver started covering the Mormon church’s relationship with homosexuality in 2002 through an in-depth article that won a first-place national award for in-depth reporting in 2003 from the Scripps Howard Foundation. Gwen Ifill, senior correspondent for the PBS NewsHour, and moderator of Washington Week, called the article “impressive,” and said Michelle Beaver has the best traits of a great journalist including “curiosity, tenacity, and a desire to shed light on under-covered issues.”

In that 2002 article, Michelle Beaver broke a story about how torturous experiments were conducted on gay Mormons at Brigham Young University in the 1970s. She covers this topic in depth in her book and offers solutions for how Mormons can heal this dark past.

“Romney’s Gay America” has garnered 4.75 stars (out of a possible five) and several endorsements including:

Gary Watts, MD, founder of Family Fellowship, a support group for gay Mormons:
“Michelle is a talented, well-informed writer and her book is a timely, terrific project as the church’s gay members attempt to navigate unfriendly waters. This critical issue needs the type of insight Michelle has been fostering for 10 years.”

Laura Compton, Mormons for Marriage spokesperson:
“I appreciate the care Michelle took to understand the nuances of Mormon thought, theology and culture … It's nice to see a sensitive subject covered without sensationalism and hyperbole. I know it wasn't easy to find people willing to share their stories, yet Michelle was able to get them to trust her enough to open up. That takes skill, patience and determination.”

Romney's Gay America is available at http://www.amazon.com/Romneys-Gay-America-Rights-Bridging-ebook/dp/B008KW68VU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343371685&sr=8-1&keywords=romney%27s+gay+america

For questions regarding “Romney’s Gay America,” and associated topics, contact the author at michelle.beaver@asu.edu.

Contact:
Michelle Beaver
michelle.beaver@asu.edu
(602) 575-1986
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Michelle Beaver
(602) 575-1986
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