List date(s) this work was published or aired.
Jul-11
Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
I examined the discrimination facing aging members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in both healthcare policies and from the caretakers who are assigned to help them. Afraid of renewed harassment, many LBGT seniors are returning to the closet.
Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
I used a range of data and information, including market research studies, academic articles and materials from advocacy organizations. FOI and public records were not used, mainly because there are next-to-no government data on LGBT people.
Explain types of human sources used.
To add personal stories and context to the data, I interviewed a service provider/advocate about the experiences of the older LGBT people who use her programs.
Results:
My main goal was to raise awareness of a population (LGBT seniors) and the challenges they face to an audience that might not otherwise encounter this information (i.e., Playboy’s readers are likely not the usual policy wonks who receive the materials I release through my job at a think tank).
Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
None.
Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
The biggest piece of advice is to realize that your goal is to provide a very basic (101) level of information about the issue. In this case, I had to step back from the nitty-gritty policy details I know about how to help LGBT older adults, and really focus more on defining the problem and talking about basic, straight-forward solutions.