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{{Short description|American LGBT magazine}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox magazine
|title = OutWeek
|image_file = Outweek-magazine.jpg
|image_size = 
|image_alt = 
|image_caption = 
|Deputy editor = 
|frequency = Weekly
|category = [[List of LGBT periodicals|Gay news periodical]]
|company = 
|firstdate = June 26, 1989
|lastdate = June 1991
|circulation = 
|language = English
|country = United States
|website = 
|issn = 
}}
'''''OutWeek''''' was a [[gay]] and [[lesbian]] weekly news magazine published in New York City from 1989 to 1991. During its two-year existence, ''OutWeek'' was widely considered the leading voice of [[AIDS]] activism and the initiator of a cool new sensibility in lesbian and gay journalism.

==Founding==

''OutWeek'' was originally conceived by musician and producer [[Gabriel Rotello]]. As a member of the activist group [[ACT UP]], Rotello felt that New York needed a publication that would represent ACT UP's new, more radical approach to activism.{{Citation needed|date=October 2018}}

At the same time, businessman and ACT UP member Kendall Morrison was planning to start a New York magazine that would provide a venue for advertising his popular gay [[phone sex]] businesses.{{Citation needed|date=October 2018}} Although neither Rotello nor Morrison had any experience in journalism, the two decided to team up, with Morrison acting as publisher and Rotello as editor-in-chief.

From its first issue on June 26, 1989, ''OutWeek'' attracted considerable attention and the magazine repeatedly broke major stories both in New York and nationally.

== Major articles ==
In the January 21, 1990, issue, ''Outweek'' covered the [[Covenant House]] sex scandal and had an exclusive interview with Father [[Bruce Ritter|Bruce Ritter's]] main accuser, Kevin Kite.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Rotello|first=Gabriel|date=January 21, 1990|title=Cover-Up House?|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_29.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=30|pages=38–45}}</ref> Ritter was accused of sexual abuse and financial misconduct during his time as the head of Covenant House, a "faith based social service organization".<ref>{{Cite book|title=Covenant House: Journey of a Faith-Based Charity|last=Wosh|first=Peter J.|date=2005|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=978-0812238310|pages=[https://archive.org/details/covenanthousejou0000wosh/page/2 2]|oclc=55518114|url=https://archive.org/details/covenanthousejou0000wosh/page/2}}</ref>

Also in that issue, ''OutWeek'' took part in a major local controversy by revealing that the newly appointed health commissioner of New York City, [[Woody Myers|Woodrow A. Myers]], advocated the "mandatory name reporting, contact tracing and quarantining" of people with AIDS.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=January 21, 1990|title=The Window of Opportunity|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_30.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=30|pages=4}}</ref> As New York's Mayor [[David Dinkins]] appointed Meyers, the subsequent controversy impacted him and pitted his gay supporters against his black supporters, leading ''[[The New York Times]]'' to call the dispute "by far the most bitter" of the Dinkins administration.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/20/nyregion/despite-protests-dinkins-chooses-indiana-official-as-health-chief.html|title=Dinkins Appoints Health Chief Over Objections of Gay Groups|last=Purdum|first=Todd|date=January 20, 1990|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

By repeatedly breaking major stories, and through its intense coverage of the AIDS crisis, ''OutWeek'' became a significant journalistic presence in New York.

==Outing controversy==
[[Image:Outweek-malcolm-forbes-issue.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Cover of the ''OutWeek'' issue outing Malcolm Forbes]]
''OutWeek'' is probably best remembered for sparking the "[[outing]]" controversy. This began in [[Michelangelo Signorile]]'s "GossipWatch" columns, in which the fiery writer railed against then-closeted public figures like [[David Geffen]] and [[Liz Smith (journalist)|Liz Smith]] for what he considered their complicity in a culture of silence around AIDS and gay rights.

Outing in this context refers to the practice of revealing the sexual orientation of another person without permission.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Outing: Shattering the Conspiracy of Silence|last=Warren|first=Johansson|date=1994|publisher=Harrington Park Press|isbn=978-1560230410|pages=[https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/4 4]|oclc=31398373|url=https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/4}}</ref> The new use of this term was popularized in 1990 by ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine<ref name=":0" /> in an article titled "Forcing Gays Out of the Closet" which defined outing as "the intentional exposure of secret gays by other gays".<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,969264,00.html|title=Forcing Gays Out of the Closet|last=Henry III|first=William A|date=January 29, 1990|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]}}</ref> Activists employed the use of outing in response to the silence or lack of support of public figures in regards to the AIDS epidemic with the goal of making the people they outed more supportive of the movement.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Outing: Shattering the Conspiracy of Silence|last=Warren|first=Johansson|date=1994|publisher=Harrington Park Press|isbn=978-1560230410|pages=[https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/175 175]|oclc=31398373|url=https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/175}}</ref>

On the death of [[Malcolm Forbes]], tycoon, multimillionaire, and editor in chief of ''[[Forbes]]'' magazine, in early 1990,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/25/obituaries/malcolm-forbes-publisher-dies-at-70.html|title=Malcolm Forbes, Publisher, Dies at 70|last=James|first=George|date=February 25, 1990|work=The New York Times}}</ref> ''OutWeek'' pushed the issue of outing to the limit by publishing a cover story "The Secret Gay Life of Malcolm Forbes". This March 18, 1990, issue of ''OutWeek'' included articles about Forbes titled "Claiming Forbes for the Gay Nation",<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=March 18, 1990|title=Claiming Forbes for the Gay Nation|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_38.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=38|pages=4}}</ref> "The Other Side of Malcolm",<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Signorile|first=Michelangelo|date=March 18, 1990|title=The Other Side of Malcolm|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_38.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=38|pages=40–45}}</ref> and "Working in the Capitalist Closet".<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Weisel|first=Al|date=March 18, 1990|title=Working in the Capitalist Closet|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_38.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=38|pages=42, 52}}</ref> This story became a media sensation and prompted significant debates over the practice of outing.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tandoc Jr|first1=Edson C|last2=Jenkins|first2=Joy|date=August 26, 2016|title=Out of bounds? How Gawker's outing a married man fits into the boundaries of journalism|journal=New Media & Society|volume=20|issue=2|pages=581–598|doi=10.1177/1461444816665381|s2cid=4995467}}</ref> Major news sources that discussed this controversy included the [[Sun-Sentinel|''Sun Sentinel'']], the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', and ''[[The Washington Post]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1990-06-04/features/9001120031_1_outweek-michelangelo-signorile-gay-journalist|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120818105524/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1990-06-04/features/9001120031_1_outweek-michelangelo-signorile-gay-journalist|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 18, 2012|title=Forced Out|last1=Kasindorf|first=Jeanie|date=June 4, 1990|website=Sun Sentinel}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-03-22-vw-1187-story.html|title=Whose Sex Secret Is It: Do We Have a Right to Know a Public Figure's Sexual Orientation? Recent Disclosures by Gay Activists, Media Fuel a Bitter Debate|last=Krier|first=Beth Ann|date=March 22, 1990|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1990/07/13/the-media-at-odds-over-outing-of-gays/f2fdcea4-9be8-4dff-8377-51488e37cf78/|title=The Media, At Odds Over 'Outing' Of Gays: Deciding Whether to Publish Names of Alleged Homosexuals|last=Randolph|first=Eleanor|date=July 13, 1990|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> In their book ''Outing: Shattering the Conspiracy of Silence'', Warren Johansson and William A. Percy state that the editorial "Claiming Forbes for the Gay Nation" was "the manifesto of outing" and argue that "''OutWeek''{{'s}} bold move marked a new phase in the struggle to tear down the closet door."<ref>{{Cite book|title=Outing: Shattering the Conspiracy of Silence|last1=Warren|first1=Johansson|last2=Percy|first2=William A|date=1994|publisher=Harrington Park Press|isbn=978-1560230410|pages=[https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/179 179]|oclc=31398373|url=https://archive.org/details/outing00warr/page/179}}</ref>

Besides full-fledged exposés, ''OutWeek'' practiced outing through Michelangelo Signorile's "Peek-A-Boo" boxes which simply contained names of individuals and left the rest up to the reader's interpretation.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Contested Closets: The Politics and Ethics of Outing|last=Gross|first=Larry|date=1993|publisher=University of Minnesota Press|isbn=978-0816621798|page=[https://archive.org/details/contestedclosets00gros/page/60 60]|oclc=476222377|url=https://archive.org/details/contestedclosets00gros/page/60}}</ref> The "Peek-A-Boo" box in the August 1, 1989, issue had sixty-six names including Michael Jackson, Robert Downey Jr., Olivia Newton-John, and John Travolta.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Signorile|first=Michaelangelo|author-link=Michelangelo Signorile|date=August 1, 1989|title=Peek-A-Boo|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_7.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=7|page=[http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_7.pdf#page=40 40]}}</ref>

Ironically, ''OutWeek'' outed only a handful of public figures during its existence, mostly in Signorile's column. However, its vigorous defense of the idea that the media should treat the homosexuality of public figures the way it treats any other aspect of their private lives galvanized supporters, outraged opponents and forever stamped the magazine as the place where outing began.

==Closing==
In June 1991 it published its last edition, almost two years after it first appeared. It published 105 issues in all, and ''The New York Times'' reported ''OutWeek''{{'s}} circulation at between 30,000 and 40,000 copies.<ref name="nyt91">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/28/business/the-media-business-outweek-gay-and-lesbian-magazine-ceases-publication.htmll|title=Outweek, Gay and Lesbian Magazine, Ceases Publication|date=June 28, 1991|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> Despite its journalistic awards and avid readership, ''OutWeek'' struggled to make a profit. According to ''The New York Times'', the closing was the result of financial problems and fighting within the leadership.<ref name="nyt91" />

In its article on the demise of ''Outweek'', ''The New York Times'' noted that "Outweek established itself from the start as the most progressive of the gay publications. Its controversial practice of 'outing'—exposing public figures who are gay and lesbian—and its support of ACT UP and Queer Nation, two activist gay organizations, brought it national notoriety."<ref name="nyt91" />"

==Impact==
Despite its brief existence, ''OutWeek'' left a significant legacy in many areas.

The magazine's constant presence in the general media, and its sparking of repeated controversies, helped bring gay and AIDS issues into the mainstream.

Within the gay press, ''OutWeek'' caused a major shakeup. ''[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]'', the nation's oldest gay publication, saw its circulation decline relative to ''OutWeek''.{{Citation needed|date=October 2018}} The result was a major revamp of the magazine. In 1990, ''The Advocate'' became a "gay and lesbian" publication for the first time, instead of just a magazine for gay men, and began to focus far more on politics and AIDS activism. Many other gay and lesbian publications became far feistier, and it is sometimes said that ''OutWeek'' pioneered a "new gay journalism".{{Citation needed|date=October 2018}}

Outing has become relatively mainstream, and the journalistic rules regarding the disclosure of the sexual orientation of public figures is now largely in keeping with ''OutWeek''{{'s}} original goals. For example, when publishing mogul [[Jann Wenner]] left his wife in the late 1990s, ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' reported on its front page - and without Wenner's permission - that he had begun a relationship with a younger man.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Jann Wenner's Rift With Wife Shakes Up His Publishing Empire: She Jointly Owns the Firm And May Be Wild Card In Magazines' Future 'Family Life' Could Go First|last=Reilly|first=Patrick M.|date=March 3, 1995|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]}}</ref>

''OutWeek'' also stirred significant controversy by its use of the term "queer" as an inclusive and radical way to describe gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Fixing English|last=Curzan|first=Anne|date=2014|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781139107327|location=Cambridge|pages=154|doi = 10.1017/cbo9781139107327}}</ref> The term was used several times in the first issue of ''OutWeek'' and in many of the following issues.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Minkowitz|first=Donna|date=June 26, 1989|title=20 Years Later, Cops Maintain Gay Surveillance|url=http://outweek.net/pdfs/ow_01.pdf|magazine=OutWeek|volume=1|pages=25}}</ref> The use of the word queer in this way is now relatively common, appearing in the titles of TV shows like ''[[Queer as Folk (disambiguation)|Queer as Folk]]'' and ''[[Queer Eye for the Straight Guy]]''.

''OutWeek'' also made inroads in the recognition of the LGBTQ community as a powerful consumer base when advertising executive Colleen Mangan convinced [[Michel Roux]], president and CEO of Carillon Importers to commit to a year-long contract for [[Absolut Vodka]] to appear on the back cover of ''OutWeek'' on a biweekly basis. Although Absolut had previously appeared in ''[[The Advocate (LGBT magazine)|The Advocate]]'', the contract with ''OutWeek'' is believed to be the first ongoing and regularly-scheduled contract for a major brand to advertise in gay media.

In regards to its impact, ''Time'' magazine wrote: "The magazine had earned recognition for its reporting on AIDS, homophobic assaults and gay politics, but its greatest success was in shaking up its competitors by challenging their brand of gay activism with a more militant stance."<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,973332,00.html|title=Publications: Open Closets, Closed Doors|date=July 8, 1991|magazine=Time|access-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' had a similar stance, stating that "''OutWeek'' gave voice to a new generation of AIDS activists who had not previously had a public voice and provided a rallying point for the more militant members of the gay community."<ref name="nyt91" />

==Staff==
During ''OutWeek's'' existence, Rotello assembled a staff of young writers and editors. For many it was their first job in journalism, yet a large number went on to significant careers.

[[Michelangelo Signorile]] became a well-known columnist, lecturer and author (''Queer in America, Outing Yourself''), and is now a popular talk-radio host on [[Sirius OutQ]].

Arts editor [[Sarah Pettit]] became the executive editor of ''[[Out (magazine)|Out]]'' magazine, then editor-in-chief, and then the arts editor of ''[[Newsweek]]'', before her death from cancer in 2003.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/23/nyregion/sarah-pettit-36-a-founder-of-out-magazine.html|title=Sarah Pettit, 36, a Founder of Out Magazine|last=Iovine|first=Julie V.|date=January 23, 2003|work=The New York Times}}</ref>

Copy editor Walter Armstrong became the editor-in-chief of ''[[POZ (magazine)|POZ]]'' magazine.

Staffers [[Dale Peck]], [[Karl Soehnlein]] and [[Jim Provenzano]] all became well-known novelists.

Columnist [[Michael Goff]] founded ''[[Out (magazine)|Out]]'' magazine and was its first editor and president. He later became general manager of Microsoft's [[MSN]], and [[Dan Gillmor]]'s partner in early [[citizen journalism]] effort, [[Bayosphere]].

Staffer Victoria Starr became an author and the biographer of [[k.d. lang]].

Production Manager Diana Osterfeld worked in [[desktop publishing]] (both creating magazines and training others at IMAGE Inc.) for many years before returning for a master's degree in architecture at University of Texas at Austin. She is now in the process of becoming a licensed architect.

Reporter [[David Kirby (journalist)|David Kirby]] became a ''New York Times'' reporter and author of a best-selling exposé on the alleged relationship between mercury and autism, ''Evidence of Harm''.

Columnist [[James St. James]] wrote the memoir ''[[Disco Bloodbath]]'', later made into a [[Party Monster (1998 film)|1998 documentary]] and a [[Party Monster (2003 film)|2003 feature film]] starring [[Macaulay Culkin]], both called ''Party Monster''.

Advertising executives Colleen Mangan and Troy Masters founded the highly acclaimed weekly, ''QW Magazine'', which, on the verge of becoming profitable, ceased operations when CEO and chief investor William (Bill) Chafin succumbed to AIDS. Masters went on to found the New York weekly ''[[Gay City News]]'' and became its publisher, and is now publisher of the ''[[Los Angeles Blade]]''. Mangan became an expert in the field of desktop publishing and went on to become a top information architect and usability specialist as the internet took hold.

Columnist [[Maria Maggenti]] is a highly regarded independent film director (''The Incredibly True Adventures of 2 Girls in Love''; ''Puccini for Beginners'').

Rotello himself became the first openly gay columnist for a major newspaper (''[[New York Newsday]]''), later authored the best selling book ''[[Sexual Ecology]]'', and is now a TV documentary producer/director for HBO, Bravo and other networks.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.gabrielrotello.com/OutWeek%20Magazine.htm Gabriel Rotello's ''OutWeek'' page]
* [http://outweek.net/ ''OutWeek'' on the Internet Archive]

[[Category:LGBTQ-related magazines published in New York City]]
[[Category:News magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Weekly magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Defunct LGBTQ-related magazines published in the United States]]
[[Category:Magazines established in 1989]]
[[Category:Magazines disestablished in 1991]]
[[Category:Defunct magazines published in New York City]]