Description: From the AIDS crisis to mainstream visibility, Queering the Media reveals the untold story of how GLAAD activists reshaped LGBTQ representation in the media. By challenging harmful portrayals, launching the GLAAD Media Awards, and elevating more authentic stories of gay men and lesbians, they drove a cultural shift that transformed public opinion.
Brief description:
Jehan F. Agrama is a cofounder of GLAAD/LA, as well as the president and CEO of Harmony Gold, an international television production and distribution company. Born in Cairo, Egypt, she now lives in Los Angeles with her wife, Dwora Fried, and their three daughters.
Review Quotes:
"As a longtime supporter of GLAAD, I knew a little of this story, but this book reveals so much more about the drama and massive effort it took to get LGBT people more accurately represented in all media. As diversity and inclusion face a backlash these days, the lessons of how GLAAD did its early work are more important than ever." --Lily Tomlin, Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor and comedian
"Reading this book today, as we face renewed waves of disinformation and attacks on LGBTQ images in entertainment, I am struck by how much of the authors' early wisdom remains true: Stories have the power to change hearts and minds, but only if we have the courage to demand they be told accurately. Agrama and Jennings's work is a love letter to the volunteers who built this movement and an inspiring call to action for today's media activists and storytellers. This is required reading for anyone who believes in the power of the media to create a more accepting world." --Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD
"Agrama and Jennings recreate the decades-long heroic struggle of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation to transform the media image of gays and lesbians from sickos and monsters to human beings. These days, as the bad old times threaten to recur, Queering the Media can serve as an inspiration and virtual blueprint for how to advance the LGBTQ cause for social justice through courage, determination, and a healthy dose of good sense and common sense." --Lillian Faderman, author of Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers and The Gay Revolution
"A clear-eyed account of a moment when the industry was compelled to stand up for its own, often in the absence of broader support. The origins of Hollywood Supports and the greater movement it helped advance were driven not by virtue, but by necessity. While I'm proud to have played a role, it was the many more individuals who chose to act, at real reputational or greater risk, who made the difference. Jennings and Agrama capture that period of urgency and friction with true conviction. This work stands as a stark record of a dark time that, while difficult to revisit, is crucial to remember." --Barry Diller, chairman and senior executive of IAC and of Expedia
"Queering the Media is essential and inspirational history. It charts the path of GLAAD, a radical organization that, through storytelling and acceptance, drove LGBTQ visibility and accelerated social change. In this repressive fascist era where we can feel powerless and lost, this book is critical, reminding us that when a small group of committed people takes control of the narrative, they can create lasting change everywhere." --V (formerly Eve Ensler), author of The Vagina Monologues and Reckoning
"Making the decision to publicly come out is the thing I'm most proud of because it would've been easier for me to stay quiet. Coming out can be very scary. But as the authors of Queering the Media remind us, every voice makes a difference." --Ellen DeGeneres, award-winning comedian, writer, and producer
"GLAAD taught us to have a critical eye when viewing depictions of ourselves in the media. It also celebrated our achievements and showcased and nurtured new talents that would go on to redefine the entertainment landscape. This is the story in Queering the Media, and GLAAD is the reason so many of us thrive creatively today. We are nowhere without GLAAD telling us where we are and who we are." --Margaret Cho, comedian and actress