In America, at the current rate of infection, 1 in 2 Black men who has sex with men will be infected with HIV in their lifetime. There is a glaring gap between this infection rate and the current standard of care, which in large part can be attributed to social and institutional stigma. How can we eliminate stigma in order to reduce infection rates? We can tell stories and we can foster radical empathy.

Our notions of what is culturally acceptable are in large part forged in the world of media and entertainment. We understand and shape ourselves through these stories. The entertainment industry, like many others in this country, is built on a foundation of oppression and inequity that is perpetuated to this day - including deeply destructive stereotypes about Black gay and queer men and people living with HIV/AIDS.

Being Seen isn't just a podcast, it's a platform that has been designed to change behavior and perception with the goal of reducing HIV/AIDS infections. It is built on rigorous research demonstrating that this kind of storytelling has the power to change perception and behavior. Certain stories, told in the right ways, change us; they can protect us and they can have a measurable impact on cultural perceptions and inequity.

Each episode is an examination of how we create stories, or a specific theme of a story, brought to life through conversations, performances, and archival audio from extraordinary Black gay and queer creatives, academics, and community leaders. They are woven together following a central narrative designed to explore the power of offering/creating one’s story as “proof of life.” The podcast is a provocation to the listener, an archive of an incredible moment in Black creativity, and a call for change.

The strategy behind Being Seen was to create a space where we could foster radical empathy for the experience of being rendered invisible by media/entertainment and the way that experience impacts one's conception of self and how one is seen (or not seen) by the culture at large. We did this by inviting listeners to be part of deeply personal, intimate conversations that explore how we conceptualize and interrogate our own stories and specific themes within our lives like faith and intimacy. Our hope is that all our listeners at many points in an episode can say to themselves “I have felt this too,” and in doing so, can either feel seen or see others differently. It is also an attempt to shift the burden of responsibility by establishing communities of care where we all have concrete, immediate actions to take when it comes to reducing stigma.

The 11-episode series was released over 8 weeks. Each episode was accompanied by an artist's interpretation of the theme as well as three photos curated to bring that theme to life through the specific lens of a Black artist. In this way, we created a visual accompaniment to reinforce the importance of being seen as one wishes to be.

The podcast was released on all major audio streaming platforms and was featured by both Apple Podcasts and Amazon Music. During its release we were ranked in the top 10 podcasts in culture and the top 75 podcasts overall on Apple. The podcast attracted 100,000+ listeners, received extensive press coverage in top-tier outlets, and demonstrated a measurable and significant impact on the listening community.

Our hundreds of thousands of listeners around the world wrote beautiful reviews, moving letters and shared the show extensively across social media. More than just a podcast, Being Seen became a platform and a community that fostered conversation and connectivity.

At the end of the season, we implemented a listener evaluation to measure the show’s impact and its ability to create perception change on topics/areas connected to HIV stigma. The evaluation demonstrated that the show had a measurable and statistically significant impact on listeners. The show was also spotlighted by most major streaming platforms for the quality of its content and the power of its message.