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May 13, 2004updated 17 May 2007 11:30am

New editor gives Diva a makeover

By Press Gazette

Diva, the magazine for lesbian and bisexual women, has appointed Jane Czyzselska to be its new editor.

The move coincides with a new look, a bigger emphasis on fashion and the introduction of the first science column for lesbians.

Czyzselska said the redesign gave the magazine a stronger identity. She also hoped to change outdated perceptions of lesbian and bisexual women.

“When people talk about gay culture having a huge impact, they are nearly always referring to gay men.

We tend to only hear about lesbians if they have been in a sex scandal or beaten up their lovers. We don’t hear about the amazing things they are doing, whether in parliament, the music business or in local communities.

“Those are the sort of people we are hoping to introduce to the readership over the next few months,” she told Press Gazette.

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The new-look Diva will feature celebrities and five pages of fashion.

“People don’t equate lesbians with style and it is a bit of joke with the rest of the world that lesbians are not very fashion-conscious,” added Czyzselska.

The title also includes an in-depth report on why Viagra does not work for women and a science column, in which the Financial Times’s science and technology correspondent, Fiona Harvey, explains the reasons behind “second-date syndrome” – when lesbians want to move in with their partner after just one date.

Television presenter and comedian Sue Perkins has been signed up as a regular columnist. Other contributors include Tim Teeman, who writes for The Times, and Stephanie Theobald of Harpers & Queen and The Observer.

Czyzselska has taken over from Diva’s former editor, Gillian Rodgerson, who quit after six years to return to her native Canada.

Prior to Diva, Czyzselska was editor of website Queercompany.com and was an online editor at the BBC. She has also written for The Times, The Independent, The Observer, Attitude and The Big Issue.

Diva has been published by Millivres Prowler since 1994 and celebrated its 10th birthday in March.

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

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