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Bay Windows is New England’s largest LGBTQ-oriented publication based in Boston, Massachusetts, founded in 1983 by publisher Sasha Alyson. It was later purchased by James Hoover in 1985. In 2003, Hoover sold the publication to Sue O’Connell and Jeff Coakley, who are Bay Windows’ current owners and publishers.

Bay Windows has been existed for 36 years and is known for its coverage ranging from global to regional news regarding the LGBTQ community. Topics include, the AIDS epidemic and the battle for same-sex marriage in Massachusetts.

The newspaper is published weekly and distributed to over 400 locations across the Greater Boston and New England area. The publication can be found at local businesses, news bins, as well as Shaw’s and Stop & Shop grocery stores.

Its distribution has increased from 200 to 20,000 newspaper each week since 1983. Bay Windows’ consumer base is comprised of ninety percent of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender audience.

Early Days
Prior to the launch of Bay Windows in 1983, the only newspapers that were available to the Boston gay and lesbian community (pre-BT) were the Gay Community News (GCN) and the “bar rag”, The Mirror. Sasha Alyson, founder of Bay Windows, who was an avid reader of GCN, felt that the community needed a news outlet with a fresh perspective with more coverage of local news, political events, specifically the AIDS crisis.

In the early days, one of Alyson's main concerns for the publication was money. “...classified and phone sex ads became a major source of income...”, Alyson told Bay Windows, “...but in 1983 it was hard to find advertisers”.

In 1985, due to financial pressure, Alyson sold Bay Windows to Jim Hoover, who was the publisher of South End News at the time. Hoover took over the newspaper in the outbreak of the AIDS epidemic. He saw an opportunity to unite people with the community newspaper in the time of needs. “Jim was this club deejay who took over this little newspaper at this horrible but hopeful time when the mainstream press was doing very little, if any, reporting on issues of importance to our community," former Bay Windows editor, Jeff Epperly, shared in a Boston Globe Globe article.

Hoover brought editor Jeff Epperly on board, who brought Bay Windows awards for multiple articles, namely, his coverage of presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s early support of the gay community. Epperly focused on the journalistic aspect while Hoover was working on the business side of the publication. There was a lot of secrecy involved in the production of the newspaper, as clients, both straight and gay, were afraid of being connected to a gay publication. “I spent most of my time whispering on the phone”, Hoover shared.

Expansion
In the 1990s, as Bay Windows earned more recognition, advertising revenue skyrocketed due to local businesses, national advertisers, real estate, and personal contribution. Editorial content and news coverage have continued to grow and become more established.

In 2003, Jeff Coakley and Sue O’Connell took over the newspaper and raised the revenue of the paper even further, in print and online. Furthermore, Coakley and O'Connel transformed Bay Windows to one of LGBT primary news sources in the mainstream media. Bay Windows is now New England’s largest LGBT publication. This is in part due to the journalistic improvements made by Susan Ryan-Vollmar, editor of Bay Windows, who helps to enhance the breadth and depth of coverage for the Bay Window newspaper. From its success, Bay Windows has expanded to news bins and major supermarket chains like Shaw’s and Stop & Shop.

As technology advanced, Bay Windows adopted the blogging platform to reach a wider range of audience. Marc Solomon spoke to this adoption, in which he shared: "Publishing special editions, live blogging from the state house during crucial votes, all gave a voice to our efforts".

Impact
Bay Windows were engrossed in the coverage of the legal debate by lawmakers to legalize same-sex marriage. Vigorous media coverage helped to inform more people and further the involvement. Consequently, it pushed the battle to end sooner. In 2004, same-sex couples were able to get married in Massachusetts. “The courts, the lawmakers, the advocates, and the community joined to deliver a perfect storm of powerful advocacy. Bay Windows newspaper was a key ingredient in this passionate mix. Without a strong media advocate the battle might still be going on”, Solomon shared with Bay Windows. International media followed to check into this paper for insights and resources regarding the LGBT news.

As Massachusetts became more accepting of the LGBTQ community, residents started to move to the suburbs (what Coakley called ‘gay sprawl’). Bay Window newspaper acted as a liaison for the advocacy confrontation between lawmakers, courts, advocates and the public.

Bay Windows Websites Launched
In 1998, Bay Windows established its website www.baywindows.com, it is the first LGBT website in New England.

Bay Windows Acquires Golden Rainbow Times
In 2011, Bay Windows started to expand its view and acquired Global Rainbow Times, which is a monthly magazine for gay seniors and baby boomers in New England. Global Rainbow Times was established by Roberta Slavin who wanted to bring news and information relative to LGBTQ community to the local elderly. Through selling the newspaper in local libraries, supermarkets and coffee shops, the paper has reached about 12,000 readers in Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire. The officials at Bay Windows said that having the Global Rainbow Times in the newspapers would help them to build “a community within a community” since it helps to reach out to older gay people who are “the perfect audience for the newsprint world.”

Bay Windows' Front Pages Display at The National DC Museum
On March 8, 2019, Bay Windows was invited to be part of a front-page display at the Washington Museum. The display of "Rise Up: Stonewall And The LGBTQ Rights Movement" attracted thousands of members of LGBTQ communities to see the opening of a historic exhibit documenting the 50 years since the Stonewall uprising—the impetus of the gay rights movement.

Interview with Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick
On June 12, 2008, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and his family accepted an interview from the Bay Windows. This is the first time that Katherine Patrick has talked to the media about how her parents, First Lady Diane Patrick and Gov. Deval Patrick support her about being an out lesbian. Katherine Patrick was very proud of being part of this family and this state as her father stood out for the LGBTQ communities.

Gay & Lesbian Wedding Planning Guide
On May 16, 2004, the city of Cambridge hosted a midnight party to celebrate the first day of Same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, the party allowed couples to come and register for the marriage licenses. Media from all over the world were paying close attention to Cambridge at that night. On the same day, Bay WIndows published the world's largest Gay & Lesbian Wedding Planning Guide "It Takes Two ." The guide serves two purposes as Bay Windows Editor, Andrew Rapp said, the first is that "it provides same sex couples who plan to marry a resource book of gay-friendly providers in the wedding industry." The second purpose is "it commemorates this historic event for all gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens of Massachusetts. "

Gov. Deval Patrick signing the Transgender Equal Right Bill
On November 23, 2011, Bay Windows published a cover photo about the Gov. Deval Patrick signing the Transgender Equal Right Bill into law. In the photo, Gov. Deval Patrick was surround by members of Transgender communities. Gunner Scott, the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition (MTPC) told Bay Windows, "We are so grateful for his leadership in getting this bill passed and for his unwavering commitment to ensuring that all residents of the Commonwealth, including transgender people, are treated with dignity and respect under the laws of our state. "