NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists
An American professional association supporting LGBTQ+ journalists and improving media coverage of LGBTQ+ issues.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists is an American professional association focused on LGBTQ+ journalists, journalism students, educators, and communications professionals. Its work combines professional networking, newsroom education, advocacy for equitable employment practices, and efforts to improve the accuracy and breadth of coverage involving LGBTQ+ people and communities. The organization is based in Washington, D.C., and operates primarily in the United States. The association was founded in 1990 by journalist Roy Aarons together with Elaine Herscher, Shannon Hickey, David Tuller, Victor Zonana, and Kathleen Buckley, who formed its first board. Its creation reflected the need for a professional network that could support LGBTQ+ journalists while also addressing the treatment of LGBTQ+ subjects in mainstream newsrooms. Rather than functioning as a conventional commercial brand, NLGJA operates as a membership and professional-service organization whose public identity is closely connected to journalism standards, workplace inclusion, and community representation. A major part of NLGJA's role has been newsroom outreach. Beginning in the 1990s, the association worked with Hollywood Supports to develop seminars on sexual orientation in the workplace. These sessions were conducted at Knight Ridder newspapers and were designed to address stereotypes, workplace acceptance, and the legal and business issues affecting LGBTQ+ employees. The program also encouraged newspapers to consider domestic-partnership benefits and other forms of employment parity. NLGJA's model of parity presented a fourteen-step framework covering workplace climate, fair compensation, consistent standards, benefits, family and medical leave, and balanced editorial coverage. The seminars were offered without charge to news organizations. In 2008, NLGJA partnered with Witeck-Combs Communications to launch OutNewsWire, a press-distribution service intended to make LGBTQ-related news and source material easier for journalists and media organizations to access. The service distributed updates online and was made available on discounted terms to nonprofit organizations seeking to reach LGBTQ media. Reference material describes the service as having more than 400 journalists receiving updates, illustrating NLGJA's role as a connector between subject-matter organizations and the news industry. The association has also served as a model for related professional organizations outside the United States. Its work was cited as an inspiration for the creation of the French Association of LGBTI Journalists in 2013. During the same period, NLGJA revised its own name to better reflect the communities included in its membership and mission. In 2013, it adopted the name NLGJA: The Association of LGBT Journalists. In 2016, it added the letter Q to recognize queer journalists and people. In 2023, it added a plus sign to acknowledge gender-diverse and sex-diverse people whose identities are not fully represented by the acronym, as well as people questioning their identities. NLGJA's present-day positioning is that of a professional association and journalism-standards organization rather than a media publisher. Its principal offerings include membership, professional community-building, newsroom training, media resources, and initiatives designed to encourage fair and inclusive coverage. Its institutional significance comes from linking the employment experience of LGBTQ+ media workers with the quality of reporting about LGBTQ+ communities. The organization has no publicly identified parent company, owner, stock listing, or commercial ticker.
History
NLGJA was established in 1990 by Roy Aarons and fellow journalists Elaine Herscher, Shannon Hickey, David Tuller, Victor Zonana, and Kathleen Buckley. The founders constituted the organization's first board. The association emerged as a professional network for journalists and as an institution concerned with the quality of media coverage of LGBTQ+ issues. Its remit connected two related concerns: supporting LGBTQ+ people within the journalism profession and encouraging news organizations to report about LGBTQ+ communities with accuracy, fairness, and appropriate context. During the 1990s, NLGJA expanded beyond membership networking into newsroom education. Alongside Hollywood Supports, it developed seminars on sexual orientation in the workplace. The sessions were presented at Knight Ridder newspapers and addressed workplace stereotypes, acceptance, legal questions, business considerations, and employment practices affecting LGBTQ+ staff. The program also promoted domestic-partnership benefits, reflecting broader LGBTQ+ equality debates of the period. NLGJA framed the seminars as a practical route toward a more welcoming newsroom environment rather than solely as an advocacy exercise. The association formalized this educational approach through a fourteen-step model of parity. The model addressed both workplace culture and material equality, including the avoidance of double standards, balanced coverage, equivalent insurance treatment, and family and medical leave. The newsroom seminars were offered free to news organizations, allowing NLGJA to work directly with employers and editorial institutions. In 2008, NLGJA and Witeck-Combs Communications launched OutNewsWire. The service was designed to simplify the distribution of news articles and updates concerning LGBTQ+ communities. It provided an online channel through which journalists could receive relevant material, and nonprofit organizations seeking to reach LGBTQ media could use the service at a discounted rate. The initiative reinforced NLGJA's intermediary role between journalists, public-interest organizations, and specialist sources. Leadership continuity became an issue in 2013 after national president Michael Triplett died on January 18, less than six months after his election. Jen Christensen subsequently assumed the national presidency. That year also marked a significant identity change: the organization moved away from its original expanded name and adopted NLGJA: The Association of LGBT Journalists. The change was intended to better represent the diversity of the people and communities connected to the association. NLGJA later revised its name twice more. In 2016, it added Q, becoming NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists, to recognize queer journalists and people. In 2023, it added a plus sign and adopted its present name, NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists. The plus sign communicates that the association includes gender-diverse and sex-diverse people whose identities are not fully captured by the acronym, as well as people questioning their identities. The association's influence has extended beyond the United States. Its example helped inspire the establishment of the French Association of LGBTI Journalists in 2013. NLGJA remains positioned as a professional association rather than a conventional product company. Its activities center on membership, professional support, newsroom education, media resources, and initiatives promoting inclusive employment and reporting practices. Public reference material does not establish a parent company, commercial owner, public listing, or current executive roster beyond the historical leadership information identified above.
- 2023
Plus sign added to organizational name
[1]The organization adopted its current name, NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists.
- 2016
Q added to organizational name
[1]The name was expanded to NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.
- 2013
Organization adopts LGBT-inclusive name
[1]The former National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association became NLGJA: The Association of LGBT Journalists.
- 2013
French association inspired
[1]NLGJA's work helped inspire the founding of the French Association of LGBTI Journalists.
- 2008
OutNewsWire launched
[1]NLGJA and Witeck-Combs Communications introduced OutNewsWire to distribute LGBTQ-related news material to journalists and media users.
- 1996
Newsroom workplace seminars developed
[1]NLGJA and Hollywood Supports developed sexual-orientation-in-the-workplace seminars for news organizations, including Knight Ridder newspapers.
- 1990
Association founded
[1]Roy Aarons and five other journalists founded the organization and formed its first board.
Products and positioning
A professional association that supports LGBTQ+ people working in journalism and promotes accurate, fair, and inclusive coverage of LGBTQ+ issues.
Press service · 2008
OutNewsWire
A news-distribution service launched with Witeck-Combs Communications in 2008. It was intended to simplify access to and distribution of articles and updates concerning LGBTQ+ communities. The service made material available online to journalists and offered discounted access to nonprofit organizations seeking to reach LGBTQ media.
Professional training · 1996
Newsroom Outreach Project
A newsroom education initiative involving seminars on sexual orientation in the workplace. Developed with Hollywood Supports, the program addressed stereotypes, workplace acceptance, legal and business considerations, employment benefits, and balanced coverage. Its parity framework included fourteen recommended steps for creating more equitable and inclusive newsrooms.
Marketing campaigns
- 1996Newsroom Outreach Project
United States
NLGJA and Hollywood Supports delivered free workplace seminars to news organizations, initially including Knight Ridder newspapers. The sessions encouraged acceptance of LGBTQ employees and promoted equal benefits and fair newsroom practices.
Outcome. The project established NLGJA as a provider of practical newsroom inclusion training; no broader quantitative outcome is established in the reference material.
Brand decisions
2023
Addition of the plus sign to the nameStrategyBackground
The association wanted its name to include gender-diverse and sex-diverse people not fully represented by the acronym, along with people questioning their identities.
Action taken
It adopted the current name, NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists.
Aftermath
The plus sign became part of the association's current identity and stated inclusion framework.
2016
Addition of Q to the nameStrategyBackground
The organization sought to recognize queer journalists and people within its public identity.
Action taken
It adopted the name NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.
Aftermath
The revised name expanded the acronym used to describe the association and its represented communities.
2013
Adoption of the LGBT-inclusive nameStrategyBackground
The association determined that its original name did not fully communicate the diversity of the people represented by the organization.
Action taken
It changed its public name to NLGJA: The Association of LGBT Journalists.
Aftermath
The change began a series of later nomenclature updates adding Q in 2016 and a plus sign in 2023.
Sources2 sources
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