Editor's Letter

We as a nation have spent the better part of the past two years debating change -- how much we need, when we need it, and who the arbiter of this change should be. The Advocate has covered every aspect of this race for change -- from our early interviews with then-candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama to November 4, when we dispatched a team of reporters across the country to gather the most thorough online gay-themed Election Night coverage ever recorded.

And now that Barack Obama is finally preparing to make the first of his many promised changes by taking the oath of office, we'd like to unveil a big change of our own: After nearly four decades as a biweekly magazine, we're going monthly. The issue in your hands is the first of the new frequency. This change is intended to reflect how you and I, as readers, consume media today. We no longer rely solely on weekly or biweekly magazines (or even the evening news or daily newspapers) for our news--we get it online. We still read magazines -- lots of them, in fact -- but now we look to them to provide us with context and analysis of the quick-hit news reports we've already read on the Web.

So we at The Advocate have shifted our focus -- toward both providing more comprehensive coverage on Advocate.com and publishing a bigger and better magazine. This issue of the magazine not only feels more substantial than the last one (thanks to our new paper stock), it is more substantial -- thanks, in large part, to our broadening pool of contributors, including columnist Michelangelo Signorile (page 70); Washington, D.C.-based reporter James Kirchick, who wrote our cover story on Obama (page 52); and Dale Hrabi, who profiles Sigourney Weaver (page 81). You'll also notice a new section in the magazine -- what we're calling The Advocates -- where, every month, experts in health, finance, fitness, travel, food and wine, and fashion will bring you the top news and tips in their fields. I like to think of it as expert advice on life -- the way you live it.

As I'm sure we'll soon be hearing from Barack Obama -- change itself often necessitates further change. So I encourage you to write me at editor@advocate.com to let me know which of our tweaks need further tinkering. It's a priority of everyone at The Advocate that this magazine stays in step with your needs. And to that end, we're thrilled to have you be a part of this, our latest change.