DIVA
DIVA magazine
Community & Social
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At the heart of DIVA is a passion for telling queer women's stories, which are not only silenced in mainstream society, but silenced in the LGBTQI community too.
Describe your Lovie Finalist project. What’s the elevator pitch?
DIVA is the leading brand for LGBTQI women worldwide. As well as our magazine, which was first published in 1994, we reach millions of women with our website, creative social media platforms, a radio station, events and the newly launched DIVA Box Office.
What inspired this particular cause as the subject of your work?
At the heart of DIVA is a passion for telling queer women's stories, which are not only silenced in mainstream society, but silenced in the LGBTQI community too. For the past 25 years, we have worked to centre and celebrate the queer female experience, leading the conversation on topics around trans visibility, intersex equality and challenging racism in the LGBQTI community.
What real-world impact were you hoping to make with this project?
We want our readers to feel part of something; to feel less isolated, less other, less alone. And we see the real-world impact of DIVA everyday - letters, emails and tweets from women who say we have helped them come out to their parents or their children, and who tell us we have quite literally saved their life.
Did your team have a specific “breakthrough” moment when conceiving or executing this project that you can share?
There have been many breakthrough moments, but earlier this year, we moved our website to a different platform and this, we believe, is helping us to reach a new audience who might not have previously engaged with DIVA.
Was the tech/medium you chose essential to conveying your message? If so, why?
We employ various different mediums to tell stories - print, online, social, radio and more. We believe it's important to talk to people in a language they understand and on the platform they feel most comfortable with, and this has been really important for us in reaching in a wide range of women.
What was the greatest challenge that arose during your work on this? What about the most rewarding moment?
As a print product first and foremost, it can be a challenge to stay relevant in 2019, but we believe we are finding new and innovative ways to tell stories while maintaining the integrity of the magazine. The most rewarding is the feedback from readers who tell us what a difference we've made to their lives.
What did you learn in the process of creating this work that you didn't know/expect going in?
The last 25 years have been a constant learning curve and that's a journey we're still on. As LGBQTI people continue to be oppressed across Europe and the world, facing violence and vilification, our message and our visibility is more important than ever. That's why it would mean so much to win a Lovie Award.
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About the Community & Social category
Sites creating and facilitating online community, connectedness and/or communication around shared interests. These sites can target either a broad-based or niche audience. They may use friend-of-friend connections to form a social network or use technology to make the connection. Includes dating and matchmaking sites.