Outward: Slate's LGBTQ podcast

This month, Christina admits to creating a quarantine bubble, and she talks with Bryan and Rumaan about why she felt comfortable joining her friends in this way and why our community seems better-equipped than others to figure out how to make such micro-communities work. Then they discuss two new documentaries on Netflix, A Secret Love and Circus of Books, and unpack how these films tried and failed to reckon with the depths of their subjects while still stirring some warm feelings along the way.This podcast was produced by Daniel Schroeder.Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina, Bryan, and Rumaan discuss virtual sex parties during self-isolation with former Slate colleague Andrew Kahn, exploring what it’s like to see all these different screens and how distance and self-consciousness play into the experience. Then they talk about the Netflix series Tiger King, all its queer story threads, and whether it’s actually bad for the gays. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina, Bryan, and Rumaan look at comparisons between the COVID-19 pandemic and AIDS with Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign. Then they conduct a post-mortem on Pete Buttigieg with DC lawyer and Pete supporter Brooke Clagett. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A look back at our first episode:On the first episode, hosts Christina Cauterucci, Bryan Lowder, and New America’s Brandon Tensley—along with a smorgasbord of Slate staffers—reveal their queer roots. Does it all come down to crop tops? Then, in the debut Straight Studies segment, Slate features director Laura Bennett helps us decide if straight, cisgender people have roots too. Then Alex Barasch joins the gang to talk about his Washington Post piece, “Biology Is Not Destiny: Seeking a Scientific Explanation for Trans Identity Could Do More Harm Than Good.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special bonus episode, Christina, Bryan, and Rumaan are joined by John Paul Brammer of the Hola Papi column to offer some sex and relationship advice. They answer listener questions about asexuality and navigating intimacy, reconciling fantasies with reality, taking the first steps into queer dating, and reconsidering why you might not identify with a community you’re already a part of. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina, Bryan, and Rumaan break down exclusively gay moments in film and television, exploring why they can feel so craven, and if there’s any way to get it right. Then they interview Richie Jackson about his new book Gay Like Me, a letter to his gay son about the importance of being gay. They discuss the significance of Harvey Fierstein, growing up gay, and why queer identities are so essential. Then we close it out with a usual update to the gay agenda, looking at good versions of exclusively gay moments.We’ve got a Valentine’s Day advice show coming up with JP Brammer of the Hola Papi advice column, so send your questions to outwardpodcast@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at (929) 266-4914. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special bonus episode of Outward, Bryan and a guest panel of multigenerational gay men devote a whole hour to The Inheritance, a seven-hour, two-part play by Matthew Lopez that won many awards for its recent run in London and is currently dominating discussions on Broadway. There will be spoilers!While it’s length, ambition, and engagement with the AIDS crisis have invited comparisons to Tony Kushner’s “gay fantasia on national themes” Angels in America, The Inheritance’s driving concern is a bit more personal: If gay men think of ourselves as a community spanning generations, what happens when a huge swath of that community is lost to plague, the survivors deeply traumatized, and younger cohorts must therefore come of age and figure out what it means to be gay in the wake of a tragedy that shapes everything around us? Borrowing a line from E.M. Forester’s Howard’s End, on which the play is based, The Inheritance desperately wants gay men to “connect” across age and loss — but is that kind of connection really possible? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina, Bryan welcome Rumaan Alam as the official third host of Outward. First, June Thomas joins the team to discuss the new L Word reboot, how it compares to the original, ways it’s stepped past it, and if any of the characters will actually become unlikeable. Then the trio go through an extended segment of prides and provocations of the decade with Andy Bowen, a consultant on queer and economic social justice issues. They tackle marriage equality, PreP, lesbian bars, and the savvy ways the LGBTQ community have navigated governmental bureaucracy. Then we close it out with a usual update to the gay agenda.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina and Bryan are joined again by writer and Slate advice columnist Rumaan Alam to talk about children. First, the team invites Slate executive editor Allison Benedikt to talk about the ways children learn about queerness and sexuality, what we can do to teach and be an example, and how kids often pick up this stuff without us. Then they interview clinical psychologist Dr. Laura Edwards-Leeper about a recent case in Texas involving a trans child, the best routes for handling pre-adolescent trans care, and how affirming a child’s gender identity can really only help. And, of course, we’ve got our usual rounds of gay agenda and prides and provocations.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This month, Christina and Bryan are joined by writer drag performer Pretty Rik E. After talking about Ellen and Big Mouth during Pride and Provocations, they jump into CNN’s LGBTQ town hall where nine different candidates discussed the queer aspects of their platforms. Then they unwrap some toys, giving Mattel’s new Creatable World dolls a spin to see what it’s like to play with a gender-neutral doll, and how it fits into a child’s gender-learning experience.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.