Make Love Not Porn founder Cindy Gallop says the future of pornography is "social sex" and the end of fetishizing women of color.

Although attitudes are shifting, pornography has long been seen as objectifying at best, and encouraging violence against women at worst — especially women of color.

That may be one reason why half-Chinese sex tech entrepreneur Cindy Gallop insists that her startup, Make Love Not Porn, does not function like an internet pornography website. Instead, she compares the adult online community she leads to Facebook, except that instead of birthday wishes and pet portraits, users share videos of themselves having sex.

Her business is "pro-sex, pro-porn, pro-knowing the difference," she says, adding that what she hopes to be doing is pioneering a new category of social sex where content creators feel empowered, not reduced to stereotypes.

I talked with Gallop about the adult film industry and its influence on Asian female representation. Our conversation occurred at the height of the recent spike in hate crimes targeting Asians in America, shortly after after the mass shooting in Atlanta where a gunman rampaged through three spas. He killed eight people, including six Asian women. Authorities reported that the murders were fueled by the shooter's sex addiction.

In response, mainstream and social media feeds lit up with calls to #StopAAPIHate, and conversation surged around Asian and Pacific Islander representation.

Gallop said if some, or even most of that response is simply performative, she doesn't care. "We should absolutely seize this environment to make the things that we want to happen, happen," she said, adding that she doesn't care what the motivation is as long as the discourse leads to change.

This feature was produced by Kristin Leong for KUOW Public Radio's Speakers Forum podcast. 

Photo credit: courtesy of Cindy Gallop

'Shame changer': Sex tech CEO disrupts Asian stereotypes with adult films

Jamen Lanogwa Saziru believes there's hope for Puget Sound style beyond fleece and flannel.

In a city of bike commuters where people tend to be more comfortable in socks with sandals than a pair of heels, fashion designer Jamen Lanogwa Saziru is an unexpected visionary.

In this episode of KUOW's Seattle Now, host Patricia Murphy joins Saziru to explore the connection between style and identity, and to hear more about why this up-and-coming creator thinks Seattle is the perfect place to launch a fashion renaissance.

We'll also hear from transgender consultant Spencer Bergstedt who says that style and identity are inextricably linked for the queer community, and White Center skateboarder Ryan Arnold who says that pandemic mask-wearing has made him a little vulnerable. 

This episode was produced by Kristin Leong, hosted by Patricia Murphy, and edited by Clare McGrane for KUOW Public Radio. 

Photo credit: portrait of designer Jamen Lanogwa Saziru shot by Alex Synder

Designer Aims to Turn the Socks-with-Sandals Capital into Fashion Hot Spot

Kristin Leong and Diana Opong are Seattle-based public radio producers who are part of mixed-race families. Opong is from Ghana, West Africa. Leong is from Honolulu, Hawaii.

Race & Identity at Home is a narrated 18-minute audio feature exploring life in multicultural families, and the joys and challenges of navigating race and identity with the ones we’re closest to. 

Written and produced by Diana Opong and Kristin Leong, with editing support from Katy Sewall and Catherine Saint Louis. Sound design and mixing by Diana Opong.

This feature was produced for #AZNxBLM, a national multimedia project fueled by 20 creatives of color calling for solidarity between the Stop AAPI Hate and Black Lives Matter movements in response to the 2020-21 surge in anti-Asian violence. 

Learn more and hear Kristin's interview on #AZNxBLM with Morning Edition here: https://kuow.org/stories/black-and-asian-solidarity-how-20-artists-explored-america-s-complicated-relationship-with-race 

#AZNxBLM was created and led by Kristin Leong in partnership with The Slants Foundation and Leong's newsletter, ROCK PAPER RADIO. Learn more at RockPaperRadio.com and at kristinleong.com 

Graphic by Kristin Leong.

Race & Identity at Home: Exploring the Perks and Pitfalls of Multicultural Family Life

Sisters and retired nurses Linda Wilson and Sandi Lacey discover a man in a ditch and find themselves on a surprising detour. 

This story was produced for KCRW's 2021 Radio Race. Producers have 24 hours from receiving the contest theme to produce an <4 minute nonfiction feature. The theme for 2021 was "Won't You Be My Neighbor." 

This story was written, produced, and hosted all in one day by Kristin Leong. Editing support was provided by Keri Zierler. 

Photo credit: Courtesy of Sandi Lacey (left) and Linda Wilson (right).

Music credit: Champs de Tournesol by Komiku. 

Special thanks to Linda and Sandi, the most hilarious mother- and aunt-in-law duo, for jumping into a Zoom interview on such short notice to share their spectacular story. 

For more stories about misfits and unlikely optimists, subscribe to Kristin's newsletter at RockPaperRadio.com.

The Pickup Artists

Second generation Korean American Phillip Lee thought he only had two options in life: work for his family’s food truck, or keep using drugs until he died. At 24-years-old, he found out there was a third option: music.

In Odd One In’s debut podcast episode, follow Lee’s unexpected reinvention into Old Chingu as his life is saved through hip hop and faith. In this episode you’ll also meet author and professor Dr. Daudi Abe, Seattle first hip hop scholar, who will flip your understanding of what hip hop is and who it’s for.

Our pilot episode of Odd One In just dropped. Subscribe to our newsletter to join our curious crew and to be the first to know when our next episode is live and about upcoming special events.

Odd One In is hosted, written, and produced by Kristin Leong. The song you heard in this podcast trailer is Memories by Old Chingu and Tyler Parker. This trailer was produced and sound designed by Matt Martin. Odd One In’s pilot episode was made possible with generous support from The Slants Foundation and 4Culture.

Odd One In Ep. 1 trailer

Odd One In debuts with host Kristin Leong sharing her own misfit journey through single motherhood, a Korean American musician’s bargain with God during a night in jail, and a rap battle tale of poetic justice triumphing over racism from Seattle’s original hip hop professor.

Odd One In is a production of ROCK PAPER RADIO. This episode was written, produced, and narrated by Kristin Leong. Sound design was by Matt Martin. Editorial support was provided by Yowei Shaw and Diana Opong.

The music featured in this episode is by Old Chingu and producer Tyler Parker. Their debut album is Anxious Kids. Tracks by Fresh Kid Ice, Yung Kartz, and Rocky Marsiano were also included. Our guest scholar was Dr. Daudi Abe. His book is Emerald Street: A History of Hip Hop in Seattle.

This debut episode of Odd One In was made possible through generous support from The Slants Foundation and 4Culture.

Episode art credit: dimapf, iStock # 2084847350

Sign up for our newsletter and join our crew of misfits and unlikely optimists at RockPaperRadio.com.

Odd One In podcast episode 1: Hip Hop Redemption

Chartreuse, the secretive monks who brew it, and the single mom who made a small fortune with a hypothetical cocktail inspired by it. 

This story was produced in 24 hours for KCRW's 2022 Radio Race. The theme was Your Secret's Safe With Me. It was written and produced by Kristin Leong and Keri Zierler. Radio Race Twitter support for Team ROCK PAPER RADIO was from Kristin and Keri's favorite teenager, Finn Leong.

The song in this story is Hansel and Pretzel by Henri René and His Orchestra. 

Photo credit: Keri Zierler. 

If you liked this story, you can find more journeys of misfits and unlikely optimists in my newsletter. Subscribe for free at https://rockpaperradio.substack.com/. Thanks for listening!

The Lighted Tree

Just a few years ago, Philip Lee was an 18-year-old in a jail cell making a deal with God while high on Ecstasy and LSD. Today, Lee is a rising anti-pop/hip hop star better known by his stage name Old Chingu, which means “old friend” in Korean.

This is the not just Lee's redemption story, it's a story about the American Dream and the complicated path to coming-of-age as a first gen Asian American who never strove to be the model minority or the dutiful son.

Written and produced by Kristin Leong for Odd One In. 

Music credits: Old Chingu and Tyler Parker, Yung Kartz. 

Find more stories of misfits and unlikely optimists and subscribe for free at RockPaperRadio.com.

Faith and Hip Hop Saved His Life

Fatoumata “Fifi” Doumbouya never planned to become an entrepreneur, but when she lost her husband to cancer and became a single mother with three young children, she found her inner business woman and in the process became Mama Fifi, the Queen of Hillman City.

Fifi is a humanitarian with two master's degrees - one in Arts and Human Sciences from her home country of Guinea Conakry, the other in Business Administration from America where her shop, the West African International Market, has become part of the heartbeat of South Seattle's immigrant community. 

Fifi and her husband Almamy Sylla opened the shop in 2005. Since his passing in 2016, she has been raising her children while running the store and nourishing Rainer Valley's community with warm welcomes and West African staples on her own ever since.

West African International Market is located at 5997 Rainier Avenue South, Seattle, Washington 98118.

This story was a Creative Connections project for the Essential Southeast Seattle Collective. It was produced with support from Seattle’s Office of Arts and Culture. 

Kristin Leong wrote, produced, and hosted this feature. If you’re looking for more stories of fascinating outsiders making their own way, you can find her Odd One In podcast and her newsletter at RockPaperRadio.com. ROCK PAPER RADIO is generously supported by 4Culture. 

Photo credit: Kristin Leong, West African International Market, November 1, 2023.

Mama Fifi, Queen of Hillman City

On April 26, 1950, 23-year-old Sylvia Jones was given ten more years to live after she was permanently paralyzed when the boiler in her and her husband's Seattle apartment building exploded.

After 75 years of depending on a wheelchair while raising a family and building a life abundant with humor, joy, and pragmatism; Sylvia passed peacefully at 98-years-old.

With archival tape from their pandemic interview, host and producer Kristin Leong unravels her grandmother's extraordinary story and traces the lines of unlikely optimism between the two of them.

The Miraculous Journey of Sylvia Jones

Creative Capital awardee // AIR New Voices scholar // Odd One In host + producer // Edutopia Radio host // previously KUOW Public Radio

Kristin Leong

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