A national spotlight on LDS beliefs

The article questions whether Romney can "convince voters there is indeed a core somewhere in the middle of all those contortions," saying that factor "could determine whether he's in the race for the long haul or just an early, forgettable flash."

The accompanying piece on religion, however, zeros in on Mormonism and whether it's fair to vote against political candidates because of their private beliefs.

Romney, the magazine states, "can hardly suggest to the devout voters of the GOP base that religious views don't matter," and he must decide how much to tell them about a church that is to many, "newer and less familiar, its rituals more private."

But the more people learn, "the greater Romney's problem may become," according to the article, which offers readers a brief history of the LDS Church. The article also mentions that when Romney and his wife Ann, a convert, were married in the Salt Lake Temple, her non-Mormon family could not attend.

Romney is quoted as saying, "There are caricatures that pick some obscure aspect of your faith that you never even think about and assume that it was the central element of the church." He notes that not everything LDS leaders have said is church doctrine.

The head of the Southern Baptist Convention's public-policy arm, Richard Land, said Romney "has to close the deal. Only Romney can make voters comfortable with his Mormonism. Others cannot do it for him."

There is no reference in the story to the latest controversy about Romney and Mormonism, involving a comment made by the Rev. Al Sharpton during a debate on religion Monday, in which Sharpton suggested that Mormons don't believe in God.

It is not clear whether the "60 Minutes" interview will include the issue raised when Sharpton said, "As for the one Mormon running for office, those that really believe in God will defeat him anyway, so don't worry about that, that's a temporary situation."

According to details of the interview released by the network Thursday, Romney acknowledged that voters may have a problem with the LDS Church's past practice of polygamy and said he does, too. The church prohibited plural marriage in 1890.

"That's part of the history of the church's past that I understand is troubling to people," Romney reportedly said in the segment. "I have a great-great-grandfather. They were trying to build a generation out there in the desert, and so he took additional wives, as he was told to do. And I must admit, I can't imagine anything more awful than polygamy."