"But in the late 1970s, a show named The Emerald City closed that gap for gays all over New York via the power of public access television. This wasn't a retelling of L. Frank Baum's Wizard Of Oz, however. Far from it. Instead, The Emerald City was one of many public access shows developed at a time when creatives could push back against the status quo through freedom of expression."
"Self-proclaimed as the "world's first television show for gay men and women," The Emerald City aired twice weekly on Channel J where presenters would report on queer culture and politics with performance segments interspersed throughout. On-the-ground reporting took viewers into the biggest gay hotspots of the time, filming everywhere from Pride marches and Fire Island to legendary nightclub Reno Sweeney."
"And bear in mind this was long before you could whip out a phone and just start filming. As quoted in Smith's Public Access doc, The Emerald City was "Always determined to bring you the naked truth" (often quite literally in those bathhouse segments). This was a series made by queer people, for queer people, which, while still a rarity today, was entirely unheard of back then."
The Emerald City aired twice weekly on Channel J in late 1970s New York. Self-proclaimed as the world's first television show for gay men and women, presenters reported on queer culture and politics with performance segments. On-the-ground reporting filmed Pride marches, Fire Island, and nightclub Reno Sweeney, and included bathhouse segments. Public access rules forbade editorial input, allowing unfiltered creativity and community-led programming. The series brought unprecedented queer visibility to television and connected viewers to hotspots without modern smartphone filming. The show was made by queer people for queer people and represented a milestone in media representation.
Read at Queerty
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