Southern Voice newspaper collection, 1988-1995

 

Southern Voice newspaper, also known as SOVO, was an alternative news source for lesbians and gay men in the greater Atlanta area and Southeast for over 20 years. The paper was founded in 1988 by Christina Cash and Leigh VanderEls with a bi-weekly circulation of 5,000 copies. The founders identified a need for a communication resource in the wake of the AIDS crisis and the 1987 National March on Washington that provided information on issues affecting LGBT individuals. Southern Voice provided coverage of local and national events, editorials, and guides to local arts and entertainment. Circulation grew to 15,000 within two years, reaching a maximum readership of 100,000 during the 2000s. Southern Voice became a weekly publication in 1992, and remained so until its closure in 2010. The original owners sold the business to Windows Media in 1997, which published a number of newspapers targeted to the gay community throughout the United States. In 2009 Windows Media filed for bankruptcy, and Southern Voice was last published on December 2, 2010.

The digital collection consists of the Southern Voice newspaper, which was a significant resource for the LGBT community in the Southeast from 1988 to 1995, providing in-depth information on topics such as the fight against AIDS, marriage equality, legal issues, workplace discrimination, and violence against gay individuals. The digitized collection does not constitute a complete run of the newspaper, only covering 1988-January 1995.

This digital collection is also available at the Digital Library of Georgia.

The digital reproductions on this site are provided for research consultation and scholarly purposes only. To request permission to publish, reproduce, publicly display, broadcast, or distribute this material in any format outside of fair use please contact the Kennesaw State University Archives and Special Collections.

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