Fifth Freedom, 1981-02-01

              THE FIFTH FREEDOM A PUBLICATION OF THE BUFFALO GAY COMMUNITY FEBRUARY 1981 FREE GAY PRESS ASSOC. In New York City from January 8-11 I attented the formation meetings of the Gay Press Association. The days of meetings were filled with seminars on advertising, auditing, circulation, distribution, all aspects of the publishing industry and management. The second day consisted of editorial contents in great depth, and then the formation of the association itself. We were told that there are many national companies that are going to bee looking for gay markets all across the country. These include liquor, records, books, movies and the entire gamut of ads that you see in 'their' magazines and papers. All the large companies are starting to realize the gold mine that they are sitting on. Gays have more dollars set aside for pleaseure and enjoyment than any other sector of society. This is brought about by the abscence of families, the type of work usually done by gays that puts them in the upper tax brackets and the gay lifestyle as a whole. Only a few gay publications have taken advantage of this opportunity, but they laid the groundwork for the rest of us. We don't have to worry about trying to tell an advertiser what they have to expect from our kind of paper. They have already had the shock value reduced and really don't care what is in it as long as you can deliver the customer to them. MOST OF THE PAPERS represented there has some type of paid circulation. Very few papers are strictly free with the cost paid by the advertisers. This will be a topic of conversation #s far as the Fifth Freedom is concerned in the future, I'm sure. Printing, distribution and mailing costs are all factors that have to be considered to keep the quality of a paper up where it should be. The Freedom is on ot* its way there and will continue to grow. I WAS HAPPIEST with the editorial contents section and all that was discussed in that context. It was most informative and helpful to mc. I was able to hear from the editors of such national publication as The Advocate, The Sentinel, and from the Washington Blade former Fifth Freedom editor Don Michaels. They had many ideas and tips for those at the meetings on how to improve the contents of our papers. You will be seeing many of these changes coming up in the near future. THE STATEMENT OF PURPOSE of the Gay Press Association is: The purpse and objectives of the Gay Press Association are: to ensure and promote ethical journalistic standards among its members; to increase understanding and communication within the Gay and Lesbian community and with the community at-large; to promote a healthy business environment; to foster the growth and development of the Gay Press/Media, and; to protect and defend the rights and integrity of Gay Press. Some of the things that are being considered for types of services offered will be: Guidelines and standards for ethics and style for the various types of gay publications, i.e. Tabloids, newspaper formats, entertainment magazines, guides to what's happening, skin magazines and mail ads, and the entire gamut of literature. Benefits that could be tapped a a group that may not be accessible to smaller numbers of people like health benefits, life insurance and other programs that the independent people that work of these publications wouldn't otherwise have access to. Wire service system to disseminate information quickly to all members. Credit guidelines for advertisers and how to make sure you collect accounts due you. A standard advertising format for the same basic type of publication. Not a sameness, but a uniformity of style. A group for freelance writers to help get their work out to the markets and to help them get their pay once published. A technical assistance and education department that can be called upon for technical advice. CONT. ON PG. 5 IN THIS ISSUE: ARTICLE ' PAGE GAY PRESS ASSOC, ITI, OUR COVER 1 EDITORIAL LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 2 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR CONT 3 MEDIA WATCH, GAY TASK FORCE 1 GAY PRESS ASSOC, CONT 5 ANTI-SODOMY LAW OUT 6 SELECTIONS BY SAM 7 OUR COVER (THEN), CARTOON 8 HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW, CAPTAIN KINK..9 BOOK REVIEW 10 GAY DIRECTORY, WANTED 11 ADVERTISEMENT 12 VOLUME 11 NO. 2 FEBRUARY 1981 sdfdsafsdafsdf OUR COVER HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY! THE GAY WAY! Our cover is another of the new things that I hope to have for the paper. A real photograph. Wow! This is the second original cover in recent menory. We all remember how popular Santa was, don't we? This cover was shot by Ron with the help of some very good friends, Vicki and Debbie, and Dave. I really appreciate their help. I hope that all of you have someone to hold hands with when the big day gets here. The flower arrangement is courtesy Hodge/Buning Florist at 360 Delaware Aye. You can get one there to send to your sweetheart. FOR A LOOK AT OUR COVER FROM 10 YEARS AGO... , SEE PAGE 8.