Jay Katari has resigned from the board of equalpride, the parent company behind The Advocate, Out, Them, Pride.com and other major LGBTQ publications, just weeks after joining amid reports that he had publicly supported President Donald Trump and the MAGA movement.
A Fast Rise, Faster Fall
Katari, a straight man with no prior public profile in LGBTQ media, was appointed in late August by equalpride's lead investor group under its investment agreements, which allow the investors to name two board members without management sign-off. His mandate, according to reporting, was to help equalpride evolve from a traditional publishing house into something closer to a lifestyle platform, complete with commercial partnerships and recurring revenue streams built around "products, services, and experiences" for LGBTQ readers and their allies.
That pitch collapsed fast. On September 14, journalist Kevin Ortega-Rojas published a report on his Substack detailing Katari's social media history: photos in a MAGA hat, shared pro-Trump imagery, jabs at Biden, and follows on Trump family members and senior administration staffers. Ortega-Rojas also flagged Katari's Instagram bio, which listed his pronouns as "dude/bro/guy/man/Jedi" - a detail Ortega-Rojas read as a mocking jab at trans and nonbinary people, the very community equalpride's publications exist to serve.
Staff Push Back, Then a Resignation
The backlash inside the company moved quickly. Editorial staff across The Advocate, Out, Them, Pride.com, Out Traveler and Plus raised concerns about credibility and demanded clarity on Katari's role, ultimately releasing a joint statement assuring readers that he had not influenced their reporting while pressing equalpride for more transparency. CEO Mark Berryhill initially defended the appointment in an email to staff, writing that he had "full confidence" in Katari and that Katari "genuinely loves what we do at equalpride and believes deeply in our mission." Within a day of the staff statement, Berryhill announced Katari's departure, and his name and bio disappeared from the company's site.
My intention was simply to volunteer my time and experience to support the incredible team and the important work they do for the LGBTQ+ community.
Jay Katari
In his resignation statement, Katari said his involvement was never meant "to cause disruption within a community I hold dear and deeply respect." He did not address the specific reporting about his political activity or his pronoun bio, and he offered no explanation for why a self-described admirer of the LGBTQ community had spent his personal social media mocking the language trans people use to describe themselves.
Why This Touched a Nerve
The timing made the appointment especially fraught. equalpride only returned to LGBTQ-majority ownership in June 2022, following a rocky stretch under non-LGBTQ investors Adam Levin and Maxx Abramowitz, whose tenure drew steady criticism over political donations and outside business dealings rather than editorial stewardship. Handing a board seat to another straight, MAGA-aligned outsider looked to many staffers like a step backward, not forward.
It also landed just months after equalpride acquired Them from Condé Nast in February 2026, an expansion that reportedly coincided with layoffs of queer and trans journalists and editors across the company's brands. A
Source: Metro Weekly
Cover photo: Chris F / Pexels
