Some of my favorite people are people who are not afraid to have a big vision. Lucky for me, I get the opportunity at times to work with many of them. Last weekend was the annual LGBT Media Convening, sponsored by Walter & Elise Haas Fund. This annual invitation-only gathering of media was conceived of by Matt Foreman, who enlisted Bil Browning, and the two started to plan what would turn out to be one of the most important LGBT media gatherings in the nation. Their plan was to bring about a better understanding of issues and to put a spotlight on topics of importance to LGBT media that they might have overlooked or didn’t realize were issues of importance to our community.
Each year, the event has been themed around a main topic but has also raised other issues. For me, the New York summit made me realize the importance of immigration and the LGBT community. For others, it was the San Francisco summit, where LGBT youth issues were topic number-one. And last year the Houston summit brought in people to enlighten us on issues that would take center stage in the 2012 election.
This year, the summit touched on a wide range of topics, all with the idea that the LGBT community should be working in alliance with a coalition of organizations to bring about equality.
So think about that: Two guys get together and believe they can add valuable information for our media professionals and decide things like how to get media members together, who will pay for it, the invite and speakers list. That’s a tall order. A big vision that I just simplified.
They somehow found the Walter & Elise Haas Foundation of San Francisco, which realized their vision of assisting LGBT media. From the very beginning, they asked others to share the responsibilities and decision-making. That was important since this is an invitation-only summit, which of course makes a point if you are invited, and another point if you are not. Then there was the decision on what topics to put on the agenda — again, not easy and one where there are many different opinions. But here’s the point: Once decisions were made, any disagreements almost disappeared. That’s vision becoming leadership, and why this summit has become so important.
For me, there were two pluses this year. First, I got to showcase the city I love, Philadelphia, which played host, and I also got to discuss the problems facing LGBT seniors. Oh, and there was something else. During the sessions, I sat in the back of the room and just watched in amazement as this group of high-powered bloggers and print journalists absorbed themselves in the topics and literally asked questions that have never been brought up before. For someone like me, who has devoted almost 38 years to LGBT media, it was a delight to behold.
It wasn’t all work. Last Friday night, Comcast, one of the nation’s giants in news, entertainment and communications, hosted the conference’s opening dinner. That event set the tone for the weekend, especially with the fact that legendary Cleve Jones of the AIDS Memorial Quilt project and David Mixner, best known as Bill Clinton’s LGBT fundraiser, were speakers.
On Saturday night, blogger Joe Jervis of “Joe My God,” along with other major bloggers, held a mixer at Tavern at Camac. That outing has become a tradition of the summit. And on Sunday, Greater Philadelphia Tourism and Marketing Corporation gave the attendees a specialized tour of the city, including a stop at the construction site of the LGBT-friendly senior apartments and a brunch at Valanni. Thank you, Philly; they loved you!
If there is one lesson that became apparent, it is that the group understands the power it has and the responsibility that comes with that power. How powerful, during the sessions on Saturday, that at times we trended number-one in the world on Twitter. That’s power. And power comes from vision.
Mark Segal, PGN publisher, is the nation’s most-award-winning commentator in LGBT media. He can be reached at [email protected].