Autostraddle is an independently owned online magazine and social network for

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whic ...

, and

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the l ...

women ( cis and

trans Trans- is a Latin prefix meaning "across", "beyond", or "on the other side of". Used alone, trans may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Trans (festival), a former festival in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom * ''Trans'' (fil ...

), as well as

non-binary Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...

people and trans people of all genders. The website is a "politically progressive queer feminist media source" that features content covering

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

and

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

news, politics, opinion, culture, arts and entertainment as well as lifestyle content such as

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and sem ...

crafting, sex, relationships, fashion, food and technology. Autostraddle was founded in 2009 by

Riese Bernard Marie Lyn Bernard (born 1981), known professionally as Riese Bernard, is an American writer and digital media executive. She is best known as the CEO and co-founder of the lesbian and queer women's interest website Autostraddle. Bernard received a ...

, the current CEO and CFO, and former Design Director Alexandra Vega. In June 2020, Kamala Puligandla succeeded Bernard as editor-in-chief. In June 2021, Carmen Phillips was named the new

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

. The site receives one million unique visitors per month. The website received

GLAAD GLAAD (), an acronym of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayal ...

's Outstanding Blog Award in 2015, and was nominated in 2013, 2014, and 2018.

History

founded Autostraddle in March 2009 with Alexandra Vega, the website's former Design Director. She wanted to create a website for queer women that was unlike other sites that existed at the time. The senior team consists of Riese Bernard, Laneia Jones, Carmen Philips, Kayla Kumari Upadhyaya, Nicole Hall, Heather Hogan, and Viv Le.

Revenue and funding

In an article for ''

Nylon Magazine ''Nylon'' is an American multimedia brand, publishing company, and lifestyle magazine that focuses on pop culture and fashion. Its coverage includes art, beauty, music, design, celebrities, technology and travel. Originally a print publication ...

'', founder Riese Bernard discussed Autostraddle's alternative revenue strategies in the context of the rapid disintegration of queer women-oriented

publications To publish is to make content available to the general public.Berne Conve ...

and online spaces. She has noted that advertisers have largely failed to buy ad space on the website. Autostraddle'
funding model
relies heavily on memberships, merchandise, and community fundraising.

Content

Autostraddle publishes content on relationship dynamics, radical queer politics, economic injustice, among other things. In 2019,

and ''

Buffering the Vampire Slayer ''Buffering the Vampire Slayer'' is a podcast about the TV series, ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer.'' Hosted by fans Jenny Owen Youngs and Kristin Russo. Each podcast episode analyzes one episode of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer,'' and concludes with a ...

Kristin Russo Kristin Russo (born December 17, 1980) is an American speaker, personality, and LGBTQ activist. She is CEO and Editor-in-Chief of ''Everyone Is Gay'' and ''My Kid Is Gay','' organizations that provide advice, guidance, and education to LGBTQIA you ...

started ''To L and Back'', a podcast recapping every single episode of ''

The L Word ''The L Word'' is a television drama that aired on Showtime from January 18, 2004 to March 8, 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated with Ile ...

'' in order, one by one. Filmmaker

Carly Usdin Carly Usdin (born 1982) is an American director, writer, and producer. Usdin is best known for directing the 2016 film ''Suicide Kale'' and co-creating the comic book series ''Heavy Vinyl'' with Nina Vakueva. In 2019, they received the Jury Prize ...

took over for Russo as co-host starting in season 2, and the show began featuring regular special guests.

Queer Girl City Guides

As part of their travel section, Autostraddle began publishing Queer Girl City Guides in 2012. Queer Girl City Guides are user-created, Autostraddle-approved guides to cities in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and abroad for queer women moving to or traveling to a new city. The guides discuss places to dance, eat, drink, be entertained, party, play sports, get an "alternative lifestyle haircut" or tattoo, celebrate pride, purchase LGBTQ books and publications, participate in activism, and more. The guides also provide insight on local colleges, gayborhoods and neighborhoods or places to avoid. Some guides also include sections on trans culture.

Events

Autostraddle hosts in-person events such as "Holigay Meet-Ups" and its Pride Meet-Up Month, which are organized by users with Autostraddle's support and promotion. Autostraddle also offers ideas, tips, and resources for hosting a meet-up.

A-Camp

In April 2012, the first A-Camp was held as a pilot at Alpine Meadows Retreat Center in Angelus Oaks, California, where 163 queer campers and 35 staff members attended. A-Camps include various panels, workshops, discussion groups, classes, entertainment and other activities. Subsequent A-Camps have been larger, with between 300–400 campers in attendance per camp, including staff, and have taken place in the same location in California in September 2012, May 2013, October 2013, May 2014, May 2015 and June 2016. A-Camp took place in Wisconsin in October 2016 and May 2017, and the event moved to Ojai, California in May 2018. Special guests at A-Camp have included Mary Lambert,

Cameron Esposito Cameron Anne Young Anastasia Esposito (born October 17, 1981) is an American actor, comedian, and podcaster known for her show '' Take My Wife'', as well as her stand-up comedy and her podcast, '' Queery''. Esposito substantially focuses on topic ...

River Butcher River Buddy Butcher (born Rhea Harriett Butcher; August 12, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcast host. Butcher is best known for personal, observational comedy focused on his vegetarianism, feminism, love o ...

Julie Goldman Julie Goldman (born in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American comedian, actress, and podcaster. She is best known for her work on Bravo’s ''The People’s Couch'', and HBO’s ''Curb Your Enthusiasm''. In 2016, she started a podcast with her c ...

, Brandy Howard,

Be Steadwell Be Steadwell (sometimes stylized as be steadwell) is a singer-songwriter and filmmaker from Washington, D.C. She is best known for producing a genre of music she calls "queer pop". Steadwell produced the film ''Vow of Silence'' (2014)'','' which ...

Mara Wilson Mara Elizabeth Wilson (born July 24, 1987) is an American actress and writer. She rose to prominence as a child for playing Natalie Hillard in the film ''Mrs. Doubtfire'' (1993) and went on to play Susan Walker in ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (199 ...

Gaby Dunn Gabe Dunn (born June 1, 1988) is an American writer, actor, pop journalist, comedian, LGBTQ activist, and podcaster. They were a writer and director for BuzzFeed Video, before leaving to focus on their YouTube comedy show and podcast ''Just Betwe ...

, DeAnne Smith, Hannah Hart, Somer Bingham, Lex Kennedy, Megan Benton, Mal Blum, Dan Owens-Reid,

Jasika Nicole Jasika Nicole Pruitt (born April 10, 1980), is an American actress and illustrator from Birmingham, Alabama. She is known for her role as Agent Astrid Farnsworth on the Fox series ''Fringe''. She has guest-starred in ''Scandal'' as Kim Munoz. She ...

Jenny Owen Youngs Jenny Owen Youngs (born November 22, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released three albums and a handful of EPs both independently and via Nettwerk Records, and has toured worldwide. Youngs is also a songwriting collaborator whos ...

Julia Nunes Julia Nunes (born January 3, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter from Fairport, New York. Her career has progressed online through her videos of pop songs on YouTube, in which she sings harmony with herself and plays acoustic instruments, pr ...

, Brittani Nichols, Mollie Thomas, Haviland Stillwell, Ashley Reed, and Sarah Croce.

WNYC WNYC is the trademark and a set of call letters shared by WNYC (AM) and WNYC-FM, a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations located in New York City. WNYC is owned by New York Public Radio (NYPR), a nonprofit organization that di ...

's podcast ''Nancy'' featured A-Camp in the episode "Kathy Goes to Camp".

Accolades

In the 2012 Weblog Awards, Autostraddle was awarded Best Weblog of The Year, Best Group/Community Weblog and Best Entertainment Weblog. Autostraddle was nominated for

's Outstanding Blog Award in 2013, 2014, and 2018, and won in 2015. One of their articles,"105 Trans Women On American TV: A History and Analysis" by Riese Bernard, was nominated for a

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their live ...

in the category of Outstanding Digital Journalism in 2017.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Lesbian-related magazines Lesbian-related websites LGBT-related magazines published in the United States LGBT-related mass media in the United States LGBT-related websites Magazines established in 2009 Online magazines published in the United States Queer women's culture