by Suzi Nash
(Suzi Nash is a reporter at Philadelphia Gay News, and Jeremy Rodriguez is its editor. The following interview appeared in the February 18, 2026, issue of the newspaper and is reprinted here with permission.)

I assume we’ll be getting a letter from AARP soon. Why, you ask? Because Philadelphia Gay News (PGN) just turned 50! Yes — 50 years of award-winning journalism and representing the community. For this milestone, I thought I’d turn things inward this week and interview my editor, the fabulous Jeremy Rodriguez. In addition to overseeing PGN, Rodriguez is a freelance writer and podcaster. Throughout their career, they have interviewed government officials, activists and high-profile celebrities and have won several national and regional awards for their work. Jeremy hosts the “One Tree Hill” rewatch podcast, “Always and Forever” (currently on hiatus), and has made guest appearances on several podcasts, including “Buffering the Vampire Slayer.” We took a moment to grab some tea and talk. Sadly, I’m not able to capture their infectious laugh on paper.

You’re the editor of a prominent paper in Philadelphia, but where are you from originally?

I’m originally from Eastampton, N.J., right by Mount Holly. Born and raised there.

Tell me a little bit about your family in Eastampton.

I am the youngest of three. I have an older brother and an older sister. My brother is 10 years older, and my sister is 12 years older, so there was a big age gap. I was kind of raised like an only child and sometimes they were more like parents to me than siblings. They were built-in babysitters, which I’m sure was great for my parents. Probably not so great for the brother and sister, though! [Laughing] No, definitely not. I’m pretty sure they thought I was a little brat.

What’s the brattiest thing you remember doing?

Oh, my God, I feel like there’s so many, and I can’t think of one off the top of my head. Wait, here’s one. If my siblings were complaining too much while playing video games, like if they were losing or something, when I got sick of hearing them, I would just unplug the console! Not something I would do now!

How do you think that being the baby of the bunch affected you? Usually, the youngest are the wild ones.

I wouldn’t say I was a wild child. If anything, I feel like I learned from a lot of my siblings’ mistakes, seeing some of the things they did, and thinking, “OK, I am not going to do that.” Not to say that they did bad stuff or anything like that. But I learned how to navigate situations like job interviews, how to handle parents, that sort of thing.

What was your first job as a kid?

Well, I’ve wanted to be a journalist since I was a teenager. It’s just something I’ve always wanted to do. But people kept telling me not to major in journalism because the job market is lousy. It’s just not a good idea. So I said, “OK, I’ve always liked English. Let me be an English teacher.” I didn’t get my first job until I was 19. I was a teacher’s assistant for an after-school program at an elementary school, and let’s just say, working with younger people taught me that maybe I’m not cut out for teaching! So I started taking journalism classes, and it just skyrocketed from there.

So did working with six-year-olds prepare you to deal with us writers?

Maybe some! [Laughing loudly] Honestly, if anything, I feel like working with children taught me how to talk to difficult people who are in power. They can be hard to work with sometimes, and you have to figure out the right way to talk to them to get what you want.

Hopefully, you haven’t had to offer any peace prizes to soothe someone’s ego.

No, not yet!

As a youngster, other than journalism, what things were you into?

There was one point in time before I discovered journalism when I wanted to be an actor. In sixth grade, I was in an original play written by a high school student. And it was sort of a mixed-up fairy tales thing, kind of like “Into the Woods,” but not really. I played the Genie from “Aladdin,” and my character was a womanizer-type person, so I would swagger in and be like, “Helloooo, who are these lovely ladies?” I was 12 and I didn’t know about acting … or ladies! That was a lot of fun to do, but it wasn’t for me. So I decided I wanted to figure out another creative outlet for myself.

Then, in seventh grade, my teacher, Mrs. Lytle, told me that I was a very good writer. And I was like, “I am?” And not only that, but I also liked writing. So I decided to practice that craft. I took journalism classes in high school, and I became the editor in chief of my school newspaper. I was also the president of the gay-straight alliance in high school. Fun fact: As the president of the gay-straight alliance, I brought the national Day of Silence to my high school. That was really exciting because there were about 300-400 students who participated in the movement. I remember thinking during that time, “Wow, the hallways are very, very quiet because of all the people participating.”

When was that?

That was in 2008, I graduated high school in 2009. Very funny that the job that I’m doing now is a mashup of the two things that I was into then —  journalism and LGBTQ+ issues.

What do your parents do? Are either of them writers?

Well, my mom used to write short stories in high school and I read them in her old files. She was a really great writer and I feel like seeing other people doing it in my immediate sphere was inspirational to me. My dad was a landscaper and a hardscaper. He could make beautiful patios and amazing landscape scenery and whatnot. He’s retired now.

So was your backyard the hangout for everybody? I imagine the landscaping was top-notch.

It was. Yeah, growing up, we always had barbecues for the entire family. It was a typical Puerto Rican gathering with lots of different food. We had a great picnic table. And my dad had a little — I call it his “man cave.” It was off to the side, and he had a little refrigerator in there. He was always cooking things on the grill. It was really fun.

Is your Puerto Rican background from your dad’s side?

Yes, I am biracial. But don’t ask me to speak Spanish!

Have you ever been to Puerto Rico?

I never have, actually. That’s something I’ve really missed out on [Laughing] I’m a horrible Puerto Rican person! I would like to one day, though. I’ve actually never left the country. That’s something I gotta work on. Maybe sooner rather than later, depending on what happens with this administration. I have been to several places across the U.S. for various different adventures, though.

Do tell of your adventures.

So many, but I’ll keep it PG. There’s this podcast I listen to called “Buffering the Vampire Slayer.” The two hosts discuss every episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” my favorite show of all time. Every other year, they host an adult prom. This particular one was held at the high school where “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” was filmed. So I have had the honor of going there twice. And that was actually the first time I’ve ever experimented with a little bit of gender fuckery with my presentation.

The first time I went, I dressed as the character Faith Lehane, but it was like a butch Faith Lehane. I had short hair and whatnot. And then, a few days later, I thought, “I’ve been experimenting with this nonbinary identity for a little bit, this could be the time to come out.” So that’s when I started officially going by exclusively they/them pronouns, whereas prior to that, I was going by he/they.

The podcast is very queer-friendly — the two hosts, Kristin Russo and Jenny Owen Youngs, are queer — and they’ve created an amazing safe space for queer “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” fans. Just seeing so many different people play with their gender and realizing that it was a safe place for me is what made me feel a little safe to come out as nonbinary, and I did a few days later. The second time I went to prom, I actually wore a skirt for the first time!

So when did you first come out as queer?

I would say the first time I ever had an inkling of being attracted to a man was watching “Baywatch” and seeing the actor David Chokachi. In his very first episode, he’s wearing this little tight blue Speedo. I’m 12 years old, and I’m looking at him, and I’m like, “Oh, this feels a little nice. What is this? Something’s going on in my body.” I liked that feeling, but I buried it for a really long time. And then, a few years later — when I was 15 — I just decided to tell my best friend at the time that I was attracted to men and that I thought I was bisexual. She took it well, and then I slowly started coming out to everybody.

So fast forward. How did you get to the PGN?

My first time even knowing PGN existed was when I saw that they were hiring. That was in 2014, right when I graduated from Rowan University. I saw that they were looking to hire a full-time staff writer. So I applied and I received a rejection email, like, immediately. I mean, I didn’t have a lot of experience or published work to really showcase for myself. So it was whatever. That was one of the many rejections I got. I moved on. But a year later, I saw that the position opened up again. I’d done a little bit of freelance work here and there, and I had a few published samples to show, so I applied again. I went in for an interview with Jen Colletta, and I was a nervous wreck. I bombed that interview, too, so I got rejected again. But she did decide to bring me onto the freelance team. Jen told me later it was because I mailed a handwritten thank-you note to her after the interview. And a year later, I was able to come on full-time when they were hiring again!

And now you’re the editor, interviewing other people. [Laughing] Now you’re gonna get handwritten notes every time you turn somebody down. Let’s see, what was the best thing about coming out, and what was the scariest?

Growing up, I was always teased for being gay before I even knew what being gay was myself. I was a little bit effeminate. I loved Britney Spears — I still do. I loved “Sailor Moon” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” typical quote-unquote “girly things.” One of the things I noticed after I officially came out was that people couldn’t hold my gayness over me anymore. People would say, “Ooh, you’re gay.” And I’d say, “Yeah, I am.” You take that power away from them.

For sure. Who was the hardest person to tell?

I didn’t come out to my dad until I was 19 or 20. He grew up in a very hyper-masculinized environment. He was a landscaper and did very masculine, physical type of work. So I felt like he was a little bit closed minded, but he did accept me. It took a minute, and he did cry.

Manly tears I presume?

Yes! It was nice that it showed me that he had feelings and that he did love me. He’s met my boyfriend and he’s great with it now.

So what was it about “One Tree Hill” and “Buffy” that drew you to them?

I’ve always had a thing for chicks who kicked ass. But also, the character of Willow comes out as a lesbian in season four of the show, and I feel like that was the first time I ever saw a real, positive, queer relationship presented on television. When I saw her with another girl, I realized, “Oh, that’s something you can do.” I was young, absorbing all of that. I also like that they got the same level of respect as the straight relationships on the show. That was very powerful, and that definitely helped me come out.

“One Tree Hill” also had a very good coming-out story in season two. The character Anna only lasts for one season, unfortunately. She comes out to her parents and goes through the motions of trying to figure out who she is.

I found that to be very empowering. And fun fact, she has a whole coming-out speech she gives to her parents on the show, and I pretty much copied that speech verbatim when I came out to my mom.

That’s funny! I chuckled when I saw that one of your earlier jobs was writing descriptions for Burlington Coat Factory. 

Yes, I wrote product descriptions for men’s and youth clothing. I always liked doing the youth stuff, like the Disney T-shirts, because I got to put in some Disney puns and have a little bit of fun with that. Like, if it was a T-shirt related to the Disney movie “Frozen,” I’d write, “She can let it go and add this outfit to her stylish wardrobe.” So it was fun in some ways, but not what I wanted to do forever. I did that for two years and then left to come to PGN.

What’s one of the most difficult parts of your job at PGN?

I wouldn’t say this is the most difficult part, but one of the things many people don’t realize is that as editor, you’re not just doing creative work. You’re also making sure people are getting paid on time. You’re responding to emails. You’re also doing organizational tasks. There’s a lot of administrative work that can be challenging. But I love getting to do what I get to do. I love being a voice for our community. I love being able to showcase not just the LGBTQ community as a whole, but also segments within the LGBTQ community that aren’t often properly represented.

It’s been very, very fulfilling for me.

Let’s wrap it up, you know my task master editor only lets me have 2500 words! [Laughter] What would be your go-to song at Tavern on Camac?

So, I’ve never actually done that [there], but I need to. I do not have the pipes for this, but the first thing that comes to mind is “Defying Gravity” from “Wicked.” I feel like I would try my hardest to hit that belt, and then people would politely clap for me, just to be nice.

Who is Britney Spears Rodriguez?

That is my cat who I adopted at the end of 2024 and I love her to death. She brings so much joy to my life. I can’t imagine life without her. She’s great!

People often mistake me for…

The other day in my building, there was a kid who said I looked like Jack Black’s character from “A Minecraft Movie.”

Ever been in jail, even as a visitor?

I’ve never been to jail, but I have been to the courthouse a few times to cover different cases for PGN. So I’ve been in the presence of alleged and convicted criminals.

What was your first book as a kid?

The first book that comes to mind is this book called “Winnie the Witch.” It’s about a witch who lives in a house that’s all black, and she has a black cat, but she keeps stumbling over the cat because it blends in with the environment. So she keeps trying to change the color of the cat with her magic wand. At the end, she learns to appreciate the cat for what he is and how he presents, and she changes the house to be more colorful instead. I’m sure there’s a good queer metaphor there.

What is a favorite quote or motto?

Dr. Seuss’ “Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.” I always try to live by that quote.

SPECIAL REPORT
Volume 28
Issue 2