How You Can Help Me Change Mormonism/Post-Mormonism - Youtube Shorts

John Dehlin wants to transform how millions consume Mormon history, one 60-second clip at a time. After fifteen years of marathon podcast episodes, the founder of Mormon Stories Podcast is pivoting to YouTube Shorts, recruiting an army of researchers, writers, and video editors to distill complex controversies into bite-sized content. The project represents a significant tactical shift for the post-Mormon movement, trading depth for reach in an attempt to flood social media feeds with historical problems the LDS Church would prefer to keep buried in academic journals and archives.

Background: From Long-Form Archives to Vertical Video

Since 2005, Dehlin's interviews have served as a repository for faith transitions, providing a platform for scholars, doubters, and former leaders to examine everything from Book of Mormon historicity to ecclesiastical abuse. The podcast's extended format allowed for exhaustive treatment of topics like Joseph Smith's polyandry or the 2015 LGBT exclusion policy. But the landscape of information consumption has changed. Younger audiences raised on TikTok and Instagram Reels rarely commit to three-hour discussions about 19th-century treasure digging or Egyptian papyri translation methods.

Dehlin's new strategy acknowledges this reality. He explicitly states his goal is to "flood" Mormonism and post-Mormonism with short-form video, meeting believers where they already scroll rather than asking them to download another podcast app or attend a conference.