In February 1991, Partners Task Force distributed surveys, designed by Steve Bryant, to approximately 700 gay-oriented print and broadcast media to determine their policies and practices concerning coverage of relationship unions and anniversaries. We received 101 responses.
Having monitored nearly a hundred publications over several years, Partners has observed increasing coverage of couples issues. However, the gay media appeared to fall short of honoring same-sex relationships in the same way daily newspapers do with regular announcements of weddings and anniversaries. It appeared that obituaries were the only personal landmarks regularly covered in our gay media of record.
This Partners Gay/Lesbian Media Survey was designed to test these impressions, provide reliable statistics, and increase awareness of the issues. Hopefully, these results will help the gay/lesbian media better serve the needs of its audience. Surveys have shown that 60 percent of the gay and lesbian community are in a relationship, so the majority of their audience are coupled.
We also hope the results will encourage couples to share their stories with the gay/lesbian media, which we found generally receptive to news of our relationship landmarks.
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Survey results The 101 media responding to the survey represent 32 states and together reach more than 1 million people. Most do so in a printed medium. Monthly newsletters made up the largest portion of respondents, but major newspapers also were represented. Most of the media reach both men and women.
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Type of media Newsletter 39% Newspaper 25% Magazine 22% Radio/TV 14% Frequency Weekly/biweekly 27% Monthly 43% Bimonthly/quarterly 25% Other 6% Audience Less than 1,000 30% 1,000-5,000 30% 5,001-25,000 21% More than 25,000 20% Gender emphasis Men and women 68% Women 19% Men 12%Views of audience Respondents made wildly varying estimates of the relationship status of their audience. While research shows that roughly half of gay men and lesbians are in relationships, some media believed that no more than 20 percent of their audience were coupled. Only one-fifth of the media based their belief on audience or reader surveys; the majority relied on estimates.
Portion of audience believed to be in a same-sex relationship 0-20% 11% 21-40% 30% 41-60% 19% 61-80% 13% 81-100% 27%Proffering advice Seventy percent of the media said they run advice on committed same-sex relationships; 30 percent did not. Of those offering advice, 71 percent offered it sometimes and 29 percent did so often. Media serving women only were the least likely to run relationship advice, as shown below.
Media offering advice, by audience served Men 83% Men and women 76% Women 37%Coverage trends Respondents confirmed that coverage of same-sex issues has increased significantly in the last two years. In no case did media report having reduced coverage.
Number of news/feature stories on couples compared to two years ago Far greater 10% Greater 33% About the same 57% Smaller 0% Far smaller 0%Formal policies Very few of the respondents reported having formal policies addressing the coverage of personal landmarks.
Formal policies in place Deaths 4% Weddings/ceremonies 3% Relationship anniversaries 2% Children newly adopted by or born to gay/ lesbian parents 2%Announcements of personal landmarks The survey examined coverage patterns for four types of personal landmarks: same-sex weddings or similar ceremonies (holy unions, blessings, celebrations or similar observances), anniversaries of gay or lesbian couples, children adopted by or born to gay or lesbian parents, obituaries of gay and lesbian community members.
In each case, we asked if the media had: In addition to reporting total responses, we single out responses from the 24 newspapers surveyed since the newspaper medium has the strongest tradition of announcing personal landmarks.
Announcements of weddings
or similar ceremonies
All media Newspapers
Have run 37% 63%
Offered/no response 6% 4%
No offer/no request 55% 25%
Refused to run 2% 8%
Earliest reported in 1978. Of media that run such announcements, 67 percent started since 1989. Four respondents averaged more than one announcement a month. Fifty-three announcements were reported in the previous six months.The two media that refused announcements — both newspapers — reported doing so because they have a regional or national scope. Publications with more than 16 pages and media with a readership/audience of more than 25,000 were much more likely to run wedding announcements than shorter, less widely circulated media. Some of the media surveyed have a specialized purpose, such a political organizing or professional networking, where personal announcements may not be especially appropriate. Still, some newsletters mentioned congratulating member couples and one radio programmer responded, “We receive requests to dedicate songs for couples anniversaries, etc., and we usually do so.”
Anniversary announcements
All media Newspapers
Have run 27% 46%
Offered/no response 4% 4%
No offer/no request 68% 46%
Refused to run 1% 4%
Earliest reported in 1980. Of media that run such announcements, 56 percent started since 1989. Two respondents were prolific, running 13 and 20 announcements during the previous six months. In all, 59 anniversary announcements were noted during the previous six months.
Adoption/child birth announcements
All media Newspapers
Have run 18% 44%
Offered/no response 2% 0%
No offer/no request 78% 52%
Refused to run 2% 4%
Earliest reported in 1985. Of media that run such announcements, 78 percent started since 1989. Only 15 such announcement were noted during the previous six months.
Obituaries
All media Newspapers
Have run 47% 67%
Offered/no response 1% 0%
No offer/no request 49% 29%
Refused to run 3% 4%
Earliest reported in 1978. Of media that run such announcements, 60 percent started before 1989. Forty percent of all respondents averaged one or more obituaries per month over the previous six months. In all, 169 obituaries were noted during the previous six months.
Conclusion: Signs of problems, progress Number of announcements in previous six months
However, the survey results show a willingness on the part of respondents to publish relationship announcements. For instance, a sizeable majority of newspapers had run wedding notices at least once — nearly as many as had announced deaths.
Media running at least
one announcement
All media Newspapers
Deaths 47% 67%
Weddings 37% 63%
Anniversaries 27% 46%
Children 18% 44%
Since the media rely on their readers or audience for information, same-sex couples must take responsibility for sharing news of their relationship landmarks. A small number of respondents noted that offers to make announcements went unanswered.However, media can do far more to pave the way for enhanced family coverage by announcing their interest in publishing such news. For instance, more than 25 percent of newspapers had not offered to publish announcements. The survey itself raised awareness among some editors. One editor responded, “Thank you for alerting me of a service we can start offering our readers.” Another summed it up, “Okay, okay … I get the picture. We’ll offer to run wedding announcements, obits, etc.! Never occurred to us!”
Setting an example The Washington (D.C.) Blade joined the vanguard in 1990 with its “Occasions” column, which frequently announces union ceremonies, births and anniversaries in three- to seven-paragraph articles. The paper doesn’t sit back and wait for submissions, it regularly publishes a call for contributions to the column. According to Lisa M. Keen, senior editor, the Blade treats the announcements “much like other news stories in that we will run a report only if we can use the subjects’ full and legal names. And we run a photo as often as we can.” In an emerging category of recognition, Minneapolis-based Equal Times newspaper offered March 1991 to publish notices of couples having registered with the city as domestic partners. Finally, Your Paper is setting a noteworthy tone in California with a masthead proclaiming it “The Gay Family Paper of the Santa Clara Valley.” |
Announcing Your Commitment: Newspapers that Publish Same-Sex Couples’ Nuptial Notices