Logo doing pop culture from 2 perspectives

DAVID BAUDER
AP Television Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — The Logo TV network wants to explore how a gay and straight man look at pop culture differently.

That’s the basis for “The Straight Out Report,” a new weekly program starting next month that aspires to be the cable network’s own version of “The Daily Show” or “Talk Soup.”

It premieres Nov. 7 at 10 p.m. Eastern. Comic Stephen Guarino, who appeared on the ABC show “Happy Endings,” will provide the gay perspective while his “straight” man is Mike E. Winfield.

The show will primarily be a comedic look at pop culture, although some more serious news topics will seep in, said Pam Post, vice president of programming for the gay- and lesbian-oriented network. Some planned segments include “Unintentional Gay Moment,” mining film clips, and “Feud for Thought,” detailing Twitter fights.

“We realized we hadn’t seen this before — a gay man and a straight man sitting at a desk, talking over the headlines of the day in a comedic way, and this really appealed to us,” Post said.

A second contrast — Winfield is black and Guarino white — wasn’t planned but is welcome, she said.

Already the two men have found how they both look at Men’s Health magazine for different reasons. Certainly the role of the Kardashians in popular culture will be explored on the show because, how could it not?

“I realized that I certainly have an opinion on how they are invading my life regardless of whether I am seeking them out,” Guarino said. “It’s interesting how many times the word ‘Kardashian’ comes before you in a day. I’ve been a victim of the pop culture whether I like it or not.”

The series seemed like an intriguing idea to Winfield when he first heard it.

“You play a role,” he said. “But we’re people first. We just happen to be straight and gay, we just happen to be black and white. For myself, I just come in with comedy.”

Logo is in some 52 million homes, or half of the country’s homes with television.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up