MORE LIGHT PRESBYTERIANS
       PROJECT HEARTS & MINDS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (with answers)
                      v1.02 last update April 3, 2004

Q: What is "Project Hearts & Minds"?
A: Project Hearts & Minds is the national video release by More Light
Presbyterians (MLP) of a series of TV talk-show interviews with LGBT people and
allies.  MLP's hope is that LGBT supporters within both religious and secular
communities will use the programs as a way of introducing "swing communities"
-- groups of people neither heavily pro nor anti-LGBT -- to the lives and
concerns of real LGBT people.  Much accumulated experience with prejudice
reduction suggests that the way to win hearts and minds on LGBT issues is to
share the stories of real LGBT people living ordinary lives.


Q: Where did the shows come from?
A: The interviews were taped by the Peninsula/San Jose chapter of PFLAG at
KMVT cable access studios in Mountain View, California, and were originally
broadcast on various stations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.  More
Light Presbyterians and the San Jose PFLAG chapter are cooperating on this
project -- the PFLAG chapter provides the video content, and MLP handles
distribution and the creation of supplementary teaching material.  The show
series as broadcast is called "Parents, Families, and Friends", and each video
interview begins with "Parents, Families, and Friends" opening credits.


Q: Is there material available to help me use these interviews in a classroom
setting?
A: Yes!  Each DVD or VHS tape ships with a printed facilitator's guide, which
contains discussion questions suitable for use in a small- or medium-group
context, once a group of people has viewed a particular interview.  The shows
can make good discussion-starters, and are excellent to use in a 1-hour
class timeslot.  You can show one of the interviews for 30 minutes, then
facilitate a simple discussion for 30 minutes.


Q: How long is each interview?
A: Each interview is a self-contained 27-minute program, formatted for TV
broadcast.  Watching an interview is like watching a half-hour television
program.


Q: Is the material appropriate for youth?  
A: Yes.  The shows were originally created for broadcast during afternoon and
early-evening hours on public access cable TV stations.  Unless you're
offended simply by hearing openly gay and lesbian people talk about who they
are, you'd be hard pressed to find language or content in these interviews
that parents might object to their kids seeing.  Once in a while a show
touches briefly on topics that some more sensitive people might find
offensive, and in this case the facilitator's guide makes a note of it.  As
with any video material used for teaching purposes, you'll typically want to
preview the interviews before showing them to a larger group.

Q: What video formats are available?
A: The Hearts & Minds series is available on both DVD and VHS.  Each DVD or
VHS tape contains 4 self-contained interviews, for approximately 2 hours of
content.


Q: Can I make copies for my friends?  
A: Yes!  Neither the VHS tapes nor the DVDs are copy-protected.  The copyright
assigned to the material explicitly allows you to copy the shows for
non-commercial purposes as long as you don't modify them.  Both San Jose PFLAG
and MLP want people to feel free to make copies of the Hearts & Minds
("Parents, Families, and Friends") series and circulate them to friends and
family.  However, you are not allowed to modify the video content, including
the PFLAG and MLP logos that lead in to each show, nor can you repackage the
originals or copies as if your organization produced them.

Q: What are the prices?
A: As of the current writing of this FAQ, each DVD is $3.75 and each VHS tape
is $9.50.  A $2.00 flat-rate packaging/handling fee is added to each order.
Prices can vary from month to month (often they creep lower) as we find new
ways to reduce costs.

Q: Why are the prices so low?  Is MLP cutting corners on quality?
A: More Light Presbyterians is running this project on a cost-recovery basis,
so we're not trying to make money from our DVD/VHS charges.  Consumer video
technology has advanced to the point where it's now possible to create and
duplicate high-quality copies of video content at low cost.  We use name-brand
VHS tapes and DVD-R discs.  Both VHS tapes and DVDs are replicated from a DVD
master.  The DVD masters are in turn created from digital master tapes
provided by Peninsula / San Jose PFLAG.


Q: Why are the VHS tapes more expensive than the DVDs?
A: Currently we burn and print the DVDs in-house, but we outsource the VHS
duplication, so we pay more for a duplicated VHS tape than for a DVD.  Also,
VHS tapes are much heavier than DVDs and the shipping envelopes are pricier,
so shipping VHS costs much more.


Q: How are the shows packaged?
A: To keep costs down, we use low-frills packaging.  VHS tapes have a color
"Parents, Families, and Friends / Hearts & Minds" label affixed to the spine
and to the top, and ship in a color paper sleeve.  The DVDs have a full-color
image printed onto the top surface, and ship in a clear polypropylene case the
size of the DVD.  The different volumes use a "rainbow" color theme for
packaging:  volume 1 is green, volume 2 is yellow, volume 3 will be red, etc.

Q: How are the shows sent to me?
A: VHS tapes and DVDs are normally mailed USPS first class.  Express shipping
isn't available.  Occasionally we mail larger orders using USPS "media mail",
which is significantly less expensive than first class.


Q: Will the DVDs play on my DVD player?
A: We duplicate the DVDs onto name-brand DVD-R discs.  The vast majority of
modern DVD players and computer DVD-R drives can play these discs.  If you
experience playback problems, we can make case-by-case arrangements to ship
you DVD+R discs instead of DVD-R.


Q: How can I order the shows?
A: You can order online with a credit card at the More Light Presbyterians
Hearts & Minds web page: www.mlp.org/heartsandminds

There's also a printable paper order form, which you can mail in with a check,
at www.mlp.org/heartsandminds/orderform.txt


Q: Will more volumes of interviews be available in the future?
A: Yes.  San Jose PFLAG continues to produce interview shows, and MLP expects
to make these available for national DVD/VHS distribution over time.


Q: Where do I sent questions or comments?
A: You can email them to heartsandminds@mlp.org


               THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF MORE LIGHT PRESBYTERIANS!
                         The MLP Hearts & Minds team