Midlife Sapphic Revelation in the Digital Age: How Digital Media Support Coming Out Later

This book documents the lived experiences of women and nonbinary people who came out as queer in middle age, often after long heterosexual marriages. Using a survey and in-depth interviews, it documents the experiences of way-later-in-life sapphics as they come out, navigate dating apps, and join LGBTQIA+ communities on social media. The author complements this analysis by exploring their own experience coming out as queer and nonbinary in my 50s after a 22-year relationship with their ex-husband. They explore the role digital media--social media, online communities, and dating apps--played in supporting and complicating the process of self-discovery and coming out. This volume stands as a subversive statement--＂We’re here, we’re queer, get used to it＂--against the threats on LGBTQIA+ rights in the United States.

Gina M. Masullo (Ph.D., Syracuse University) is Associate Director of the Center for Media Engagement and an Associate Professor in the School of Journalism and Media, both at The University of Texas at Austin, USA. They are the author of Online Incivility and Public Debate: Nasty Talk and The New Town Hall: Why People Engage Personally with Politicians.