In our increasingly electronic and information-laden world, communication within our respective communities is crucial. One of the ways this has long been accomplished is by various media.

Since the start of the modern queer movement, periodicals such as newsletters and community newspapers and magazines have played a crucial role in disseminating information to members of our communities and serving as forums for discussions about the key issues of the day.

In recent years we have increasingly seen and heard a gay, lesbian, bisexual, and trans presence on television and radio as well as on the Internet.

As a long time freelance writer for a variety of gay, gay/lesbian, and queer periodicals, and as the producer and host of Speak Sebastian, one of the three queer shows currently airing over CJSW FM 90.9, I have long had a special place in my heart and soul for queer media. To me, such media fills a crucial need within our community and plays an important role in the forming, and maintaining, of community.

The idea of "community" doesn’t just emerge full-blown, like Athena from the head of Zeus – it takes time to build, nurture, develop, and mature. It is no surprise to anyone that our community, and the values, ethos, and ideals it represents, is frequently under attack. Our media help us give voice to the fight back and help us maintain some equilibrium in an often too-hostile world.

Within the pages of a magazine like this one, we see ourselves, and our lives, reflected. As we listen to Dykes On Mykes, Speak Sebastian, or Urban Sex, we can hear music that is by us and for us and about us, others of our tribe talking and discussing issues of importance to us, challenging us to think outside of the heterosexual box we were all raised in and start to maybe approach issues and our lives from a perspective more true to who we are. As we watch characters on shows airing over Pride TV or even Showcase, we recognize ourselves, or at least our friends. As we open the pages of a novel written by an openly gay or lesbian author we fall into a world that is more ours, sometimes, than the world that actually surrounds us.

Those involved in queer media took a huge step in creating that media, even still. Certainly the idea of creating a gay and lesbian media culture was revolutionary even just 20 years ago.

It is easy to take this magazine, or any of the other media within our communities, for granted. And perhaps that is a good thing; it is now so ingrained and so prevalent that we no longer need to always remember how special our media are.

Much of our media is volunteer-driven. Certainly locally it is. Independent media rarely has access to the huge amounts of operational monies other media enjoy. Those of us involved in queer media are involved because of a sense of commitment, a sense of dedication to the need to inform and entertain our community. Many of us are information fetishists, anyway. I know I am...

So as you read this, or any other gay, lesbian, bisexual, and/or trans periodical, remember what a treasure you actually hold in your hands and how so many have tried to make sure you never hold it or see it.

As you tune into one of the queer shows on your local campus/community radio station, savor the experience and lose yourself for a half hour or an hour in a world where being a lesbian, gay man, bisexual, or transsexual is just the way things are; our media is about us and deserves our support.

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Contributor Stephen Lock |

Topic Politics |