Archive for August, 2007

Bravo Tim

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I realize this will be the second day in the row I have linked to AfterElton.com in my post.

This time it is an interview with fashion guru and one of my favorite TV stars Tim Gunn. He is of course the adviser and mentor on the hit show Project Runway and his own show will shortly be airing on Bravo.

I’ve talked a lot about “coming out” and the importance of gay role models in the media and popular culture. This is often negative and I often discuss, as I did yesterday, the difficulties and challenges celebrities face on this issue.

But the interview with Tim Gunn on AfterElton.com left me full of admiration and it proved the value of those celebrities who are willing to be open about their lives. Here is someone who is an exemplary role model for gay man, and someone who takes this responsibility seriously and who is unashamed of his sexuality. He admits himself that he works in the fashion industry where his orientation is accepted and embraced. As he says in the interview,

“…I’m in the fashion industry, where I assume every man is gay unless proven otherwise.”

However his honesty and candor about his life as a gay man is refreshing and moving. He talks about his experience of suddenly being thrust into the limelight, his personal relationships, the impact of AIDS on the fashion industry and his own life, and of course his specialist subject, style! Even if you’re not into fashion I think you’ll find it interesting, and definitely worth taking 5 or 10 minutes out of your day to have a read.

It would be great if more gay celebrities were as willing to not only be open about who they are but also have the courage to speak out about their lives and what it means to be an ‘out’ celebrity.

| August 31st, 2007 No Comments »
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Rocking Out

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I have discussed the issue of “coming out” many times on this blog including Should the PR industry be helping celebrities overcome the fear of “coming out” rather than keeping them “in the closet”? and “The Glass Closet” and talked about the PR issues surrounding celebrities who come out, those who decide not to publicly disclose whether they are gay or not, and those who actively deny it.

I recently read on AfterElton.com entitled Rocking Out – Male Musicians Straddle the Closet looking at the impact on the careers and perceptions of musicians who have “come out” such as Michael Stipe, Elton John, Will Young, George Michael, and those who prefer to maintain ambiguity including Morrissey, Ricky Martin and most recently British star Mika.

I think it sums up the difficulties faced by musicians, and other celebrities, who may be willing to be open about their sexuality but struggle with the prospect of being labeled a “gay musician” or a “gay artist” or “gay actor”. It is a genuine and understandable concern for those who do not want their sexual orientation to always be at the forefront in the minds of fans, the media, and critics.

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| August 30th, 2007 No Comments »
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Coming Out at 88

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The Sept. 3 edition of Newsweek has a stirring “My Turn” column  written by a woman who says the death of her life partner of 44 years gave her the courage to come out.

As Lorraine Barr writes in her column: “Out and Proud:  Why am I now able to speak the unspoken?  For heaven’s sake, I’m 88 years old.  No one can fire me.”

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| August 29th, 2007 No Comments »
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Rallying for a Cause – The New Frontier of Gay and Lesbian Auto Marketing

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Saab93aero_homepageWe’ve written a fair amount about cars and a lot about what corporations and other marketers should do to engage our community. Our friends at gaywheels.com have now given us an example that combines both of these issues: the first openly gay car rally team to participate in a transcontinental road race.   

Gaywheels.com is teaming up with Saab and social networking site Glee.com to sponsor Team G.L.A.M. in the 2007 Insurance Office of America Fireball Run. Gaywheels.com founder and CEO Joe LaMuraglia will run the race along with Evan Darling, a 14-year racing veteran.  The contest is called “The Race to Recover America’s Missing” and will involve assigning a missing child to each racing team. In the race, the team will be driving a Saab 9-3 convertible from Orlando, Florida to Los Angeles, California. The team is then assigned to distribute as much information as possible during the race about a missing child case assigned to them.

To me, this is an excellent, and new, example of the future of gay and lesbian marketing. While the “news” is the fact that this event marks the first time an openly gay team will participate in a transcontinental road race, the more important fact for me is the involvement of a gay team sponsored by a major corporate partner in a charitable event that is not gay-focused. This integration of gay and lesbian marketing into a “mainstream” event will reinforce Saab’s commitment to our community and demonstrate the importance of our community to their wider national audience. This kind of targeted engagement with multiple audiences sounds really interesting and I hope it will be successful in both raising awareness and doing good.

As consumers, gays and lesbians are increasingly skeptical of marketers and we demand more than just advertising or kind words from companies that want our business. Active engagement in our community – in any number of ways – is really the key to longer term success in gay and lesbian marketing. Partnerships that make history while also doing good are one example of new ways to conduct that kind of engagement.

What do you think? Does news of this contest make you more interested in Saab as a company? Would you consider buying a Saab now that you know about this race? What other ideas do you have for engaging our community? Let us know your thoughts.

| August 28th, 2007 1 Comment »
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Reaching Latino Gays and Lesbians Through Chicano Movement Leaders

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J0401036

This weekend I attended the tribute to Latino poet

Raul Salinas at the new Austin location of the Mexican American Cultural Center. This poet’s popularity rose during the Chicano Movement in the United States. The event this weekend was attended by a very mixed group of people and it got me thinking on Chicano organizations as potential partners for Hispanic and minority LGBT outreach.

For a bit of background, the Chicano movement took began in the 60s and is more or less the Chicano Civil Rights. Chicano is a term that describes Mexican-Americans, think field worker Cesar Chavez who pushed for labor equality and protection. The movement also addressed the prohibition of bilingual education in public schools. Personally, I have never related to the Chicano movement. I was yet unborn, and my family was not affected by it. But now, it hits a bit closer to home as it has been one of the Hispanic crowds where gays and lesbians have been at ease to be themselves.

One of the speakers at this event mentioned a time when she and a group of college students were on a mission to recruit more Hispanics to attend their university. In her tribute, she spoke of diversity and their goal to rid their campus of racism and homophobia, extending their purpose beyond that of racial equality. In their fight for justice and equality for all, supporters of the Chicano movement have included gays and lesbians in their efforts and they are an important group to familiarize with when planning to reach out to diverse gay and lesbian communities.

Often times, minority gay and lesbian groups come together as ‘people of color.’  Tapping into Latino art or Chicano groups will also open the way to reach other ethnic gay and lesbian groups. There is an extra layer of similarity between Latino, Black and Asian gays and lesbians in America. I am referring to the challenges of being a

minority within a minority; the focus on equality for all based on the overarching theme of racial equality and not just sexual orientation.

| August 27th, 2007 No Comments »
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