Category: Media

Want to be filmed at a swinging workshop in Los Angeles this Friday?

Sex and relationship educator Reid Mihalko (of ReidAboutSex) has put out a call for participants to be filmed this Friday night, June 15th, in downtown Los Angeles for a major TV show documenting his swinging workshop and play party. He is looking for 10-15 couples, both new to non-monogamy and experienced, who are willing to be filmed for Part2 Pictures. The film crew are also in need of one newbie couple who are interested in swinging but not yet sold on it.

The night will begin at 6:30 p.m. with Reid's two-hour "Plays Well With Others" workshop (which teaches communication and relationship skills for non-monogamous folks), followed by a quick dinner break, and finally, "My First Play Party." Part2 Pictures will document the workshop and the play party, but they won't be filming any explicit nudity. They will also interview willing attendees.

Reid's goal is to showcase ethical non-monogamy in a positive light on national television. He says:

For those of you who know me and know how passionate I am about the media covering sex-positive life in an empowering way with integrity, please know that I used to be a film producer and worked in television years ago, and that I've have several conversations with the producers of this show (you've probably seen or heard of it, btw), and the producers are letting me design the event and influence how they're going to document it. This way, I can ensure that they have footage and soundbites that will showcase The Lifestyle in a positive and informative way.

Read more, including full descriptions of the workshop and play party, at Reid's site. If you wish to RSVP, email Rachael Profiloski at Part2 Pictures at rachael [at] part2pictures [dot] com or call her at 718-797-0581.

My new radio show — Sex Out Loud!

I'm very excited to announce that I will be hosting a new radio show, Sex Out Loud, on the VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network! The show debuts this Friday, June 1 at 5 p.m. Pacific Time, 8 p.m. Eastern Time, and my first guest will be sex advice columnist and author Dan Savage!

Here's more about the show:

Sex Out Loud explores the world of sexuality from every angle. Tristan Taormino will interview leading authors, educators, artists and icons and give listeners an uncensored, inside look at alternative sexual practices and communities. She'll delve into topics from the popular to the taboo, including sex education and sexual health, erotic fantasies, BDSM, non-monogamy, the adult industry, and more. Tristan and her guests will also answer listeners' questions live . . . Upcoming guests include Kate Bornstein, Buck Angel, Jaclyn Friedman, Jessica Valenti, Bobbi Starr, Susie Bright, and her daughter, Aretha Bright.

. . . "Tristan Taormino is known around the world for her honest, down to earth, sex-positive advice, books, and films," says Karen Dana, Executive Producer of Sex Out Loud. "We are so thrilled that she's joining the VoiceAmerica Network, and her show is sure to inform and inspire our listeners."

. . . Sex Out Loud is sponsored by The Smitten Kitten, an award-winning progressive sex toy retailer; Astroglide, one of the leading personal lubricant brands; and We-Vibe, the most popular rechargeable vibrator for couples in the world.

Sex Out Loud will air live on Fridays at 5 p.m. Pacific, 8 p.m. Eastern on The VoiceAmerica Variety Channel. All shows will be available in my content library on The VoiceAmerica Variety Channel for on-demand and podcast download.

I hope you all will tune in!

“Strange arrangements” on 20/20

Despite its ominous title of "The New Sex: Strange Arrangements," last Friday's episode of 20/20 included a pretty reasonable 7-minute segment on a poly network. One of the interviewees was Sierra Black, a woman who has written several wonderful articles about parenting in an open marriage, for sites such as Salon and Babble.

You can watch the episode on ABC's site or on Hulu, and ABC's article about the open relationship segment is a fairly direct reflection of the segment.

The interviewees do a great job of dispelling the myths that are thrown at them, like that they're committing adultery and must have jealousy issues. And although the interviewer, Elizabeth Vargas, calls their open relationship a "marital merry-go-round" that's "a tad kooky," the tone of the segment is not especially judgmental -- and generally allows the folks speak for themselves. Especially touching was the moment when Vargas spoke to one of Sierra's daughters:

You might think Sierra and Martin's daughters think their parents' arrangement is unusual, but when "20/20" anchor Elizabeth Vargas asked their daughter, Rio, if she thought her family was different from other families, she replied, "Not really."

Rio's definition of an open marriage was fairly precise, for a 7-year-old: "Your parent or one of your parents is dating a different person that's not part of your family," she said.

Black was content with the outcome of the interview, writing on her blog:

I did this because I wanted to give mainstream America a peek at a healthy, happy, thriving circle of poly families. It's my hope that we’ve done just that, and that this is a step toward a future where news shows won't want to do segments on how "kooky" polyamory is, because it's just a thing some people do. I am fairly confident positive portrayals on TV can make a difference, and I'm grateful to ABC for their approach in this one.

Alan M. on where polyamory’s headed

Alan M. of Poly in the Media gave the keynote speech at the Poly Living 2012 conference in Philadelphia, and the full text is available on Alan's blog. Entitled "Busting Loose: Polyamory in the Next Five Years," Alan's speech details all the recent wins for the poly community, citing positive news stories as indicative of a shift in the public perception and media portrayal of poly folks.

For instance: Unlike in previous cheating-politician scandals... (laughter)... the Newt Gingrich open-marriage episode two weeks ago became a vehicle for major media attention to good open and poly relationships, contrasting with how Gingrich did it . . . Representatives for poly done well are suddenly in demand to I think an unprecedented degree.

. . . Our own presenters Anita and Tim Illig and Michael Rios and Sarah Taub here this weekend were riding this wave last night on the Channel Seven news in DC, representing us and our values just beautifully.

. . . Other milestones in the last month or so: In the space of one week, we saw poly triad families, each with a kid, profiled positively on ABC's Morning Edition, Nightline, and the National Geographic Channel. More and more of the public is getting acquainted with what multi-partner families actually look like. We are becoming more familiar; on the way to being normalized.

That same week, we also saw a broadcast-TV drama, ABC's "Private Practice," present a fictional polyamorous triad family — explicitly called that by name, so viewers would be sure to get it -- treated so well, and at such length, that it reminded me of the first breakthrough shows treating gay characters with understanding and respect.

. . . we've by and large successfully represented the modern polyamory movement to the public as what we know ourselves to be: ethical people who care deeply about good relationships -- smart, verbal, interesting, friendly people -- nonthreatening and respectful of all well-considered relationship choices, monogamy included — and by and large just kind of adorable. Every year we are better entrenching this public image, firming up our defense against future moral panics.

Alan's keynote goes on to explain how poly culture could influence the direction and survival of Western civilization 150-200 years from now. In all, it's a refreshingly optimistic speech. Read the whole thing here.