Let the show go on

NAMBLA Warriors,

Our country continues to drift frighteningly in fascist winds and we must work all the harder to counter this and protect ourselves. I urge members to join and volunteer for the ACLU, People for the American Way and other such organizations. They may not be supportive of us yet, but they fight our worst enemies.

If you guys have someone who is skilled in oratory and debate on our issue, couldn't we get positive exposure on TV talk shows? Are we still too controversial? I would think that if NAMBLA got some sort of guarantee of fair treatment and went on a show it would go a long way to killing misinformation.

Keep advertising in the Washington Blade, that's how I found out about you. Never give up!

Lee


Editor's note: NAMBLA spokespeople have appeared - and continue to appear - on numerous TV and radio talk shows. Last month, Roy Radow was on a nationally syndicated Gay Cable Network talk show, and in the past we've been on "The Sally Jesse Rafael Show," a now defunct ABC program called "The Last Word," and local shows too numerous to mention.

There has been a discussion among NAMBLA activists about the conditions under which we should agree to participate on talk shows. Should we insist that our address be announced? Should we insist on the right to appear without opposition, or to have a say on who opposes us? At the last minute, a few years ago a NAMBLA spokesperson would not go on camera on "The Donahue Show" because conditions to which the producer had agreed were not being met. Other man/boy lovers and a sympathetic psychologist (the Dutch Dr. Frits Bernard) did appear, however, and the program was quite useful.

I think most NAMBLA activists have come to agree that even hostile programs can be useful so long as the program is not so dominated by bigotry and hatred that the man/boy lovers appearing cannot present their arguments and demonstrate their reasonableness and humanity. NAMBLA has not systematically tried to get invites to talk shows, by, say, sending around an info pack to producers - something maybe we should try if we can round up enough good people who will be willing to respond to the expectable rush of invitations.

source: Incoming letter 'Let the show go on' by Lee; NAMBLA Bulletin, Vol. 13, No. 1; January/February 1992