ENTERTAINMENT

The $400,000 question about LGBT drinking.

The National Institutes of Health is spending over $400,000 studying whether gender norms of masculinity and femininity lead LGBTQ individuals to drink too much. Trying to find the “meanings of intoxication” of sexual and gender minorities is the central question of a study that was awarded in late July.

5 THINGS TO KNOW

No Moscow Pride for the next 100 years.

A Moscow court on Aug. 17 upheld a ban against gay Pride parades for the next century. The ruling from the city court affirms a Moscow law banning public LGBT gatherings from March 2012 until May 2112, according to the BBC’s website. An appeal is expected, first to a higher court in Russia and then possibly to the European Court of Human Rights.

5 THINGS TO KNOW

Did you make OUT Magazine’s 10th Annual Power List?

Every year, OUT magazine releases its list of most powerful LGBTQ personalities but this year is special as they celebrate the list’s 10th anniversary. This year, the magazine is profiling some of the most famous gay men and women for their ’10th Annual Power list.’ The magazine also has another list for the power rankings of prominent LGBTQ couples.

POLICIES

The NCAA evolves to support transgender athletes.

People working and competing in collegiate athletics are beginning to see light shed on how to navigate accommodating and supporting transgender student athletes. The National Collegiate Athletic Association, the organization that regulates the University of Nebraska at Kearney and many other athletic programs in colleges and universities across the United States, is working on legislation to dial down confusion about transgender student athlete participation in collegiate sports — a subject that’s created contention within athletics.

ENTERTAINMENT

Why straight women love gay porn.

After working for years in the lesbian and straight porn industry, feminist porn producer and director Nica Noelle is one of few women to venture into the world of gay porn. And she’s one of fewer still to see the level of success she’s achieved there, too.

HEALTH

Fighting for same-sex spousal benefits in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles County resident Judith Dominguez is suing her former employer, Cherry Creek Mortgage, for refusing to provide Dominguez and her wife with spousal health insurance coverage. The lawsuit was filed in federal court on Thursday and accuses Cherry Creek of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of sex, as well as other equal protection laws.

A & E

“Beach Rats” set to heat up the Sundance Film Festival.

Call Me By You Name, Luca Guadagino’s sun-and-tear soaked Armie Hammer and Timothee Chalamet-starring gay romance, might have been the breakout film of the Sundance Film Festival—even its recently released trailer earned breathless fawning on social media—but the much quieter, gritter, and, arguably, more authentic Beach Rats, which also made a splash out of Park City, is first out the gate in theaters and makes just as big a case for your attention.