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Sprouts
Sprouts Radio from the Grassroots is a 30-minute weekly program featuring radio programs produced at community radio stations or by other independent producers from across the country and sometimes around the world.
Media can be a force, shaping the way we understand the world. The news, movies, and television shows we watch all contribute to societal norms, such as those about the LGBTQ community. This isn’t always a bad thing, but it can be. Portrayals of gay and trans lives, for example, are often difficult to find. When they do exist, they are often littered with stereotypes.
Media doesn’t exist in a vacuum; things that are seen on screen often influence things in the real world. Increased
visibility of LGBTQ people in the media has happened alongside a series of positive changes for the LGBTQ community.
In this episode, Outcaster Callie interviews Larry Gross, professor of communication at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California. He is a pioneer in the field of gay and lesbian studies, having written multiple books on the topic. One of these books is Up From Invisibility, which follows the history of gay men and lesbians in the media.
In this interview, Professor Gross takes us through this history, from the invisibility and negative portrayals of LGBTQ people in the ’50s and ’60s to the impact of reality television today.
Credits:
OutCasting youth participants Alex, Becca, Ari, Samantha, Callie, Andrea, Max, Quinn, Dhruv, Nicia, Lauren, Dante, Lucas, Brianna, Sarah, Jamie, and Steven. Assistant producers Alex Mintz and Josh Valle; Executive Producer Marc Sophos.
