Media Queered

In this state-of-the-art collection, Kevin G. Barnhurst has gathered some of the most exciting scholars in the field of queer media studies. With intelligence and verve, they travel to the many corners of mediated queer life - from pre-Stonewall radio to sitcoms to cyberspace, from niche marketing to personal ads to queer media activism, from weddings to lesbian melodrama to sex work - teasing out the many paradoxes and pleasures of contemporary visibility. (Joshua Gamson, Professor of Sociology, University of San Francisco; Author of 'Freaks Talk Back', among other studies, as well as magazine articles for 'The Nation' and 'The American Prospect') This volume contains valuable historical information about how queer original thinkers, who did not have institutional status or support, were able to influence media representation. And even more interesting is how their bravery made it possible for gays who could not think out of the box to advance in the media/representation business. This book explores how these phenomena resulted in problematic television and marketing representations that may not advance our best interests. An interesting snapshot of what queer academics are thinking about community based rebellion and its subsequent containment. (Sarah Schulman, New York historian, playwright, and author of 'After Delores') In this 'all gay, all the time' era when queers are too often the hip accessories for a still-dominant hetero paradigm, this anthology couldn't be more welcome. A smart, accessible, broad-ranging take on how queers both use and are used by the ever-expanding media machine. From flashy gay TV stations to homos in cyberspace, these chapters provoke needed debate on the vexing problem of visibility in an unremittingly consumerist culture. (Suzanna Walters, Chair of Gender Studies, Indiana University, Author of 'All the Rage: The Story of Gay Visibility in America') I've reported news for some 350 gay publications since 1985. I lost the ability to keep up with the flow of gay news in 1992 when Bill Clinton tried to lift the ban on gays in the military. These days, I could easily sit in front of my computer and read gay news 24/7. 'Media Queered' feels my pain and gives it a context. (Rex Wockner, widely syndicated gay reporter (wockner.com))