TV Host & Producer Alex Berg Says Telling LGBTQ+ Stories Can Inspire Compassion & Allyship

Alex Berg is an on-air host, creative director and journalist telling stories from in front of and behind the camera.

Alex is currently a producer and director of the documentary series Authentic Voices of Pride for LGBTQ Nation, the largest publisher of queer news, the co-host of the I’m From Driftwood Podcast, where she talks about LGBTQ+ topics for the eponymous storytelling organization, and a senior creative producer at Blink, where she helps brands tell their stories organically.

In this episode, Alex shares what she's learned in her 20s, including the importance of speaking your truth and dreams into the world powerfully, how telling stories of the LGBTQ+ community can inspire understanding and allyship, and how a $4 tube top from H&M taught her a critical life lesson.

Sh*t I Wish I Knew In My Twenties (SIWIKIMT) is a podcast dedicated to helping 20-somethings thrive in their twenties, not just survive.

Host Debra Alfarone knows how tough being in your twenties can be. As a high-school dropout turned-network-TV-correspondent, she learned most of life’s lessons the hard way. She overcame the odds and now covers the White House for CBS News nationally. She’s also a confidence coach for young women in the TV news industry.

Connect with Alex on IG: https://www.instagram.com/itsalexberg and on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/itsalexberg/

Transcript

Debra Alfarone: 

You are listening to, I wish I knew in my 20s, this podcast is hosted by me, a former high school dropout turned network TV correspondent who had no mentors, zero, no big sister, no nothing to show her the way. So now that I've kind of got my life together, and that still remains to be seen, I want to pour into you to help you not just survive, but thrive in your 20s. And with that, today's guest is Alex Berg.

Alex Berg:

I'm Alex Berg, and I'm coming to you straight from the CDs floor in Las Vegas.

Debra Alfarone:

On-air host and creative director and a journalist and she tells some stories in front of and behind the camera, a producer and director of the documentary series authentic voices of pride for LGBTQ nation, which is the largest publisher of queer news, the co-host of the I'm from driftwood podcast, where she talks about LGBTQ plus topics. And I met Alex when she was talking pop culture trending topics, but she was interviewing just about everyone from presidential candidates to Oscar winners. I mean, just you did it all.

Alex Berg:

It is so great to talk to you. And I feel like it feels really special and full circle. And like I haven't talked to you since pre-pandemic times. So I am so excited to be here. I love this topic.

Debra Alfarone:

Oh, thank you, right? Don't do we all need someone to hold our hand through those 20s.

Alex Berg:

So much.

Debra Alfarone:

How did we even make it here?

Alex Berg:

A lot of lessons were learned. It's like one of those things. I have an 18-year-old niece, where I'm like, you can either learn this lesson directly or you can learn from my mistakes. So let me just save you some time and energy, maybe a little bit of disappointment and embarrassment. And let me just tell you, and then you know, you can absorb that and do what you will.

Debra Alfarone:

Okay, Alex is my new co-host. Seriously, I watched your short doc for LGBTQ nation, busy Phillips, talking about her non-binary child and interviewing parents and children who identify with the LGBTQ plus community. I mean, it's incredible. So how did this project come about? This project

Alex Berg: 

It's a docu-series where we cover basically the sort of evergreen issues that impact LGBTQ people. So for that one, raising LGBTQ kids, we've also covered building your families and LGBTQ person, we've also covered playing sports as an LGBTQ person. And you know, you kind of can get a sense of the the the topics and conversations. And so this came about because I actually previously hosted a podcast for LGBTQ nation. And then they were sort of ramping up this series, they knew that I had done a lot of video production. And so asked me basically to get involved with them. And so that was about a year ago. And so since then, I've produced and directed about a handful of these videos. And really, it's an opportunity to hear from people who are directly impacted by so many of the topics in the news who are really directly impacted by the legislation around LGBTQ people by what happens in pop culture related to LGBTQ people. And just a way of telling their stories from really, I think, sympathetic and understanding point of view, and that one raising LGBTQ plus kids, I spent time with a couple of different families. One of them they have a 13-year-old transgender daughter Skylar, who is just this incredible kid who from the time that she was young, really had to stand up for her rights as a transgender girl. And it's just been speaking out before different legislatures and protesting and now hosts her own podcast and, from the time she was a little kid has just kind of had to stand up for herself and such an amazing story. So I definitely encourage people, even if you're newer to these issues, to check it out. And her family, they were just so loving and incredible to share their story with us.

Debra Alfarone:

I fell in love with her watching this doc, I thought I just need to hang out with her. Maybe she's my next guest. I don't know, we'll see.

Alex Berg:

I mean, she was like 13 going on 28. So who knows?

Debra Alfarone:

Exactly, exactly. I felt like she was wise beyond her years, if so much. What do you think this doc and other ones like it can teach people in their 20s

Alex Berg:

I think one of the things that it can teach us is that we should all give ourselves the space to evolve in our own identities. And I think with so many of these stories, and definitely with the stories of LGBTQ people, and for the listeners, I also identify as queer and bisexual. And I also came out in my 20s I think that you know, it's not like you turned 20 Or you turn 18 And you stopped growing as a person. And so I think to give yourself the space to explore and find out who you are. And so I think that these Doc's can teach people about different identities, but also teach them a little bit about themselves. Maybe they're wondering what their identity is or how they fit into this or even how to be a good ally and I also think that a lot of times, people who are open-minded and open-hearted to hearing LGBTQ stories, a lot of times it means that you're a compassionate and understanding person. And it never hurts to be more compassionate and understanding. If you are open-minded and open-hearted to a lot of these topics and documentaries, I think people go through a lot in their 20s. And that you should bring that kind of compassion and understanding and willingness to walk in someone else's shoes, into your relationships and experiences in your 20s. Your 20s are such a time of growth. And a lot of times I think a lot of people are financially independent and autonomous for the first time in their lives. You know, some of us are sooner than that, but I think that it is a time of like a great deal of growth, where you're really figuring out who you are.

Debra Alfarone:

How do you reconcile, perhaps the increased acceptance of your people who identify as LGBTQ plus, you know, with the current situation in the country, with states in introducing bills that legislate how schools and teachers are handling sexual orientation, and gender identity? How do you reconcile the two?

Alex Berg:

Yeah, yeah, I mean, in some ways, I think it feels like they're really irreconcilable because they both speak to the fact that there are more people we know, there's data that Gen Z is coming out and younger ages that they are the most out generation and at the same time, there's this incredible tide, I think, something like 200, anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced this year alone, across all of the states. And so I think one of the ways of thinking about it is that in the past 10 years, we've really had a lot of unprecedented growth and acceptance and visibility. And I think, especially when it comes to trans issues, there's been a lot more visibility. And now a lot of these anti-LGBTQ forces have recognized that, and now understand, because they're able to see the community more they understand how they can actually target people and how they can make this an issue of the culture war. So I think in some strange ways, these two things are very linked, where LGBTQ plus people have become way more visible. And at the same time, that makes it way easier to strategize around how to chip away at the rights of LGBTQ people, and also how to make us this piece of the culture war, when, you know, we're actual real people. And we're talking about in many of these cases, children who are just trying to play a sport at school or just trying to live their lives. So I think that it is, it's a very odd time, because we do have these kinds of extremes. But I think that they are linked in that way.

Debra Alfarone:

We're talking about helping people in their 20s giving them knowledge. But if you think about it, and going back to your short doc, it seems like so many people in Gen Z, and there's 2 million households, one person who is identifying as LGBTQ plus, so maybe those people in their 20s can teach us something,

Alex Berg:

I definitely think that they can teach us something, I feel like they are challenging the status quo. They are thinking in broader and more inclusive ways. They are coming up with their own terminology. I feel like always so amazingly challenged in a great way by them, because they're thinking they're demanding more, and they're demanding better for themselves where I feel like, you know, I think I'm pretty solidly a millennial. And I feel like a lot of us were very keen to, like accept a lot of like, the hustle culture, and, you know, and like except what we were given. And I feel like they are totally claiming their seat at the table. They're building their own tables. So I feel like we have so much to learn from them.

Debra Alfarone:

I've definitely tweeted something with the hashtag girl boss in the past, and I am so upset.

Alex Berg:

Listen, we're all, we're all relearning. You know? Yeah, well, yeah. Cuz it was like, you know, you look back and was like, gosh, I've had so many T-shirts that were like, hustle all day, all night. And, and then I got really burned out. And now I think we're all having this moment where we're like, wow, we like, you know, still worked ourselves. We were working to burnout. We were working beyond what we should have been working. I mean, sometimes I to be honest with you, as a journalist, I feel like I still work beyond measure. And we have to make sacrifices. And I think that's part of I think being a really ambitious person is like trying to find that balance and sometimes failing with that balance. But yeah, totally, I feel you.

Debra Alfarone:

What's that word? Balance? Yeah. What is that? What is it? Exactly? As a journalist, gosh, I work every Christmas and New Year's and weekend and overnight, and I literally worked 1am to 9am, which is tough shift. I did this for so many years. And I have to remind myself these days, you don't have to do that extra thing. You don't have to say yes to that. Because I'm thinking well, when am I going to have some fun?

Alex Berg:

Yeah, what's it all for? Absolutely. I mean, I also feel like your 20s are for having fun and making some mistakes. So like, make sure you try to find a little bit of time in there to get all of that fit all that stuff in. But I feel like you know, especially in journalism, there is a sacrifice there because it's like it's a really good It's a tough industry, you have to be like cut out and willing to kind of fight for what you want to do, especially if you're on air. And I feel like at the same time, it's, it's a big give and take, because it's like, if you want to be on air, you have to make some of these sacrifices, and you really have to bust your ass to do it. And work really, really, really freaking hard and be willing to sacrifice holidays and Hangouts and all that kind of stuff, if you want to make it. So I feel like, you know, it's an informed decision that a person should make trying to go into this field.

Debra Alfarone:

What is one thing you wish you knew in your 20s? Alex,

Alex Berg:

One thing I wish I knew in my 20s was to ask for what I wanted to speak the thing that I wanted to be, and to be unafraid to declare what I wanted to do in the world. For me in my 20s, I was very nervous of the rejection of the failure of the consequences of what would happen if I just said the thing that I wanted to be in the world, which at the time, was a host, I wanted to be an honor host. And I felt like, somehow, if I really stood in the truth of wanting to do that, that that opened me up for failure because it meant that somebody could tell me no, which they definitely did. It meant that people would tell me that I wasn't good on air, or they couldn't envision me as a host, which I've heard all of those things before. And so it was really hard. But at the same time, I think you can't get to the place where you want to be if you can't even speak the thing that you want. And if you can't even ask for the thing that you want. And so even though it can be really terrifying, and I think vulnerable, especially if you're young, and you're inexperienced, you haven't held that role before. And I think there can be in newsrooms like a lot of hierarchy. And just, you know, it can be a very difficult environment. But I think that you have to be able to speak the thing that you want and help communicate that to other people around you in order to even just start doing it.

Debra Alfarone:

It was so hard for me too, I'm with you. I remember certain situations where I worked on Wall Street, but I wanted to be an on-air host correspondent, storyteller something. And I decided I was going to do this thing, I was going to finally do this thing. And I made these cards, business cards. And I have I don't remember what the title was on it. But something like on-air host or something. And I remember being really excited and showing a boyfriend's friend both of which are there the hill with those two, but back that was stuff I should not been dealing with in my 20s. But I remember he looked at it and laughed in my face. And I was so hurt by it. Because I was doing something different. I was trying something. And you know, Bray Brene Brown has that great quote about, I'm gonna mess it up. But something about being in the arena. Yeah. You know, that's where the bravery is. You've got to be in the arena, getting your ass kicked, and putting yourself out there. Don't be someone on the sidelines, throwing tomatoes at people. You've got to be actually doing the thing. You've got to be putting yourself out there in order to get what you want. And I remember it was tough. I've had a lot of people tell me, you're never gonna do that. And why are people so mean-spirited?

Alex Berg:

It is so true. I mean, I definitely had people tell me like I didn't have the right look, that wasn't the right voice. I was way too unconventional. There wasn't anyone like me that they had seen on air at the time. So that also seemed weird. You know, he's very outspoken about certain things. So that also wasn't the right fit. And you hear a lot of no’s. And I think that the big thing is like, once you start getting used to hearing that, that sounds awful. But once you start getting used to putting yourself out there, it gets easier, I think. But then the other thing too, is that nobody can read your mind. And I felt like for a long time because I was afraid to ask to do I was a producer, I was afraid to ask to go on air. And I think that for a long time, I just assumed like if I kept working and tried behind the scenes to get these opportunities that then it would somehow work. But I really felt like I had to put myself out there and go ask somebody, or ask a friend who was a producer, like do you think I can do this? Can you help me do this? What do I have to do? What is the next step to get there? And I think that that was really hard because it was like acknowledging that, you know, you might fail it might not actually work out. But also, I would never have ended up with that first opportunity on air if I didn't actually ask for it and speak that thing out loud. And I also think that sometimes it can be really hard, especially if you're someone who if you're a woman in the media industry if you're someone from a marginalized background, I think that sometimes that you don't know you don't understand how to get from point A to point B if you don't come from a very privileged position or you don't come from a very connected family or something like that. And I think that sometimes It can also be really helpful to speak the thing that you want to be in terms of just helping you craft a plan of how to get from point A to point B because as soon as you figure it out, you can almost have your own personal mission statement. And that can kind of help be a guiding light for you to figure out what is that point B, I really had to figure out, okay, I enjoy being a producer, I enjoy being a journalist. But there's something missing here. I'm always producing for on-air hosts. And I feel like I could have asked a better question or I feel like I know this topic inside and out. And I'm putting in the hours of doing pre-interviews for them. And I feel like I could really do that. And so I think it was in being able to articulate exactly what I wanted for myself, it really helped me figure out okay, here are the next steps to be able to do that. And I do think it's important in my position, I identify as LGBTQ. I'm a white cisgender. Woman, I think that's also just important to acknowledge because there is so much, you know, I had such a hard time getting on air. And I was told so many times, I was so dismissed, and I was told I was unconventional. So I do think that there are so many layers of challenges, especially that marginalized people encounter in the media that I also want to recognize that it can be people are met in very different ways. When we do say what it is that we want to do. So I just think that that's an important piece of the conversation where, for me, it was like people were so dismissive, dismissive of me, in my position, that I think that there's no one size fits all advice, I guess that would be like my caveat here. And that, you know, I feel like everyone has their own unique challenges that they're trying to navigate. But I feel like as a step one in your 20s, figuring out what the heck it is you want to do, and saying it out loud, telling people, that's what you want to do owning it, and figure out that first step and then take it.

Debra Alfarone:

It's so important, because our words have meaning and energy, we say these things, and the energy goes out into the world. And sometimes we scare ourselves with the power of that energy when we say it. But I really do believe you have to if you can't even say it. And believe me, it took me a long time to get the hair and say what I wanted to do. And still had people saying, You can't do that. What do you know? But really, there is a path for everyone. And everybody's path may look different. Yeah, I find to add on to this, say its advice, I would say find the people who believe in you best. For a long time, I just didn't want to tell anyone. And I remember having a boss who I don't know why. But we connected we're still good friends to this day. And we both decided like I sat in his office. And we were talking and for whatever reason, we both felt like we could trust each other and say the thing that we wanted, I wanted to work in New York, and I wanted to work in New York. And that was a big, far-off dream. But just having that person to kind of talk with and just say it aloud a lot to it really helped. Say it and find the people who will support you, someone's out there. Don't listen to those people who say no, they're gonna be out there don't make it mean anything. Yeah.

Alex Berg:

I think what you bring up is so important. So I also had a boss who I remember I really wanted to raise and I was I went to her office, it was like very anxiety-inducing to have to ask for a raise. I feel like it's it always is, even though I feel like you've gotten so much better as a culture talking about how to do these things. I remember going to her office, and I was like, just really beating around the bush like I was like, Well, I think I've been doing a good job. And maybe if you could possibly sometime think of me to maybe give me some more of recognition of what I have the work I've been doing. And she literally turned to me and was just like, say exactly what you want, say what you want. And she was just like, I can't help you, unless you say what you want. And so I had to be like, I would like raise, because I think that I'm crushing it at this job. And I am going above and beyond, you know, but it was like one of those moments where it was like, Oh, you're totally right. Like, I can't sit here and just like talk in circles. I just need to sit here and say the thing that I want, which was really hard for me. So you know, and really helpful to have somebody who was like very much like just frickin say it already.

Debra Alfarone:

Well, we don't want to upset people. We don't want to come off in a certain way. I coach young women in their 20s. And that's the one thing that we talk about all the time is asking for what you want, whether it be a promotion, a job, or raise. And when we mock, we did a little mock-like discussion. It's always so I just want to see if maybe I could talk to you about you know, and every word counts. And so I'll say to them, think about every word costing you $5. You might remember me

Alex Berg:

Saying that? No, I love that, though. I mean, I'm glad that you're Yeah, yeah, you might I yeah, that's such good advice.

Debra Alfarone:

You want to just get to it. And then I read this amazing book called, "Ask for More" by Alexandra Carter. And she says over and over again, land the plane. Stop talking. So after you say, I wanted to ask you if you would consider giving me a raise. land the plane, say another word. Because what we do is we get because I think I'm really doing a good job. Like you can lay that out before him. And once you make the ask land. Yeah, but it's it. Yeah, exactly. And comfortable. But it's okay to be uncomfortable.

Alex Berg:

Mm hmm. Yeah. And I think also, something that you said reminded me when you get a no from someone or you get that discomfort, a lot of times people have an idea of who you are. And you trust your own idea of who you are, you know, I think people part of being able to say the thing that you want to do, part of being able to land the plane is having that sense of yourself where you can envision yourself as the host, or you can envision yourself with whatever expansive idea you have of yourself. And just because other people have a limited idea of who you are, they don't know you as well, as you know, you. And I think it's easy for people to put you in a box, or to put a cap on what they think your abilities and potential are. And you just, you just can't believe them when they say it.

Debra Alfarone:

Well, you know what they say about opinions?

Alex Berg:

That is very true.

Debra Alfarone:

And hopefully people know what I'm talking about. Got one. 

Debra Alfarone:

It's irrelevant, like what you think of me is none of my business. Yeah. And of course, that's not ever denying that people can be jerks, or people can look down on us or people aren't that helpful. One of my colleagues, Errol Barnett said, once on this panel that we were speaking at, there's enough people who are going to stand in your way, they're gonna, they're gonna just stand in your way, they're not going to help you, they're going to be a roadblock. Don't you be one of them. And the easiest way you can not be one of them is to believe in yourself have an undying belief in yourself, whatever it is, and you don't have to like you're saying, Oh, well, you know, you don't fit the role, or you don't fit the model of what we're thinking, okay? I'm breaking the mold. You can be anything you want to be maybe you're the first this that or the other. But you can do anything you want to but it starts with you. You're so right. It's really hard in your 20s to be really good and confident about who you are and what you bring to the table. But I'm telling you, I think Gen Z and Skylar in your doc. That's a really good example of someone who knows who they are.

I need to be more like Skylar.

Alex Berg:

Me too. I think so. Yeah. I mean, I think that like there today, I think especially young people today are being so sorry, my dogs in the background. I think young people today are so forced in a way to know who they are just because of all the challenges that they're encountering. So that they're almost like, they have to have a sense of autonomy. I mean, I think there are so many people in this world because of the circumstances of their lives and how they're raised. They have to know who they are. And that sometimes it can be a luxury to get to find out and explore in your 20s. And have that sort of like exploration of self and, and a lot of people don't have that luxury at all. And I think Gen Z especially, they're so keyed into politics and social justice issues, that I totally am with you and that I think that they have that sense of autonomy and they know who they are.

Debra Alfarone:

Okay, now you're giving me something to think about for the next My next guest. Okay, I got it. I do know that you partake in a roller derby. Yeah. And that is really cool. Tell me a little bit about your roller derby journey. And I also want to ask you what it's taught you about life.

Alex Berg:

Yeah, well, I started Derby in my 20s. I went to I was visiting a friend in Texas, and we went to this big roller derby culture in Texas, and we went to a game. And it was just all these really badass women and athletes who were really claiming their space and having a good time. And I just never been in a space that way. We're women and non-binary athletes were really encouraged to take up physical space to find their voices, and to be aggressive. And so I was like, I could totally I could do that. So I got some skates. I started playing with a local league in New York City. And then I tried out for Gotham roller derby, which is the league with which I skate today. And I mean, it's just sometimes you know, there are few things that make more sense in this world than just putting on some skates and like hitting your friends on the track. So it's really fun to play roller derby. It's very cathartic because you are like getting out your pent-up aggression, and you're getting some good exercise so I feel like that always really clears my head. But then also, I think that it just, if you want to be a successful roller derby athlete, you really do need to know how to claim your space in a very literal sense on the track, but also how to, I think advocate for yourself, you can imagine the kind of personalities that roller derby attracts, it tends to be a certain kind of person who is pretty fearless. So I think, you know, I've learned so many lessons, but among them is to be less afraid of taking up that space, and that sometimes it is required of you to do so. And then also, like, there are so many things about Derby, Derby is actually a very talkative sport, and that you have to constantly communicate and be really loud and in people's faces when you're playing, because it's very loud in the venue, and you're trying to execute certain strategies on the track. And it's very chaotic. So I also think like, in a very literal way, it makes you find your voice because you're literally yelling at your teammates and trying to communicate. And I feel like there's a certain amount of breaking out of your shell, that happens in order to do that. And also, as an adult, like, could talk about putting yourself out of your comfort zone, and having to learn how to like roller skate in your 20s. Again, you have to be okay with like not being good at something the very first time you try it again. And I remember for me that was when I started playing derby. It had been a really long time since I put myself out of my comfort zone with a group of people who I didn't really know who weren't coworkers. And I was like falling on my butt every five seconds. And that was really embarrassing. So I feel like Derby has brought so much to my life. And it's just another one of those things that really pushed me outside of my comfort zone and taught me some lessons. And I've also met people who I consider to be amazing confidants and people who are in totally different fields, have such different life experiences, people of all different ages, that I also feel like there, there's some of those like cheerleaders, I have that now, if there's something I want to do, I can talk through it with them.

Debra Alfarone:

You know, I did a story about a roller derby league in Connecticut when I worked there. And they said to me, you got to come back. And I regret that I didn't. I regret that I didn't at that time, but I was living in Connecticut. And my one thing again, talk about your 20s I never went back. They were like you really should come and skate with us. And I was Eyes on the Prize wanted to get to New York journalist. Blah, blah, ha. So it's never too late. Never.

It’s never too late. Okay, next time I'm in New York. Yeah, talk to you about meeting up with you even just to watch the first time.

Alex Berg:

A game at least to come watch. Yeah,

Debra Alfarone:

I love it. I love it. So was there a worst date, worse job worst outfit in your 20s that you'd be willing to share?

Alex Berg:

Honestly, it's the amount of, of anecdotes I could tell you truly. So many, I'll stick with one for now, which is something that happened at work that both like makes me cringe. But I also think it's funny. So when I got my very first job out of graduate school, I was an associate producer for a website. And I was really like a one-woman band. So I would take a camera, you know, I would go film, you know how it goes? Like, they put me out with a reporter yes. Do it all Exactly. And, you know, early 20s, new to New York, just trying to live my best life going out all hours of the day, right? And also have that like now when I'm in my net, you know, now as a gal in my mid-30s, I drink like one glass of wine. And I'm like, I'm done. Like, I'm never going out again, I'm on the couch for two days, you know, it's like, but back in back in these days. There was one night where I had gone out until like 4am. And I had to be at work at like 8am or something or 7am. And my 23-year-old brain thought that that was a good idea. Just to stay out so late, had the best time was probably like the last person to leave the party. And so the next day, the way that my job work is you would go in and you get your assignment that morning and then you go out and do your thing. And I was kind of thinking okay like I can go out because the next day is going to be a really quiet day. No big deal. So I get it together in the morning. I remember I think it was something like the end of summer in New York, which is very hot. And I put on this like $4 to top from h&m had my hair and like a side ponytail. I've learned so much from this experience,

Debra Alfarone:

And you have iconic hair.

Alex Berg:

Thank you so much. So and I'm happy to say I've grown a lot since this experience but I went into the office and I was assigned to cover a New York Fashion Week show. And I was like I'm in my $4.02 top. I have stayed out until 4am And so we went backstage for it was like a designer who at the time had dressed Michelle Obama So obviously very high profile like of the moment and we were backstage and let me tell you nothing will make you feel more like a troll will then functioning on no sleep and your $4 h&m to top and not being ready, and then having to stand next to like Carly Closs with Oklahoma, you know? So I feel like, definitely I learned so much from that experience, which is, if you're in the news business, you got to stay ready at all times because you don't know what your assignment is going to be. I definitely learned like, let's keep some of the going out and party times for the weekend with friends. It's all cute. And I feel like I have a lot of life experiences for being in my 20s in New York City during that time, and wait for the siren to go away.

Debra Alfarone:

That's part of the ambiance. Exactly, yeah,

Alex Berg:

I live on a very loud street corner. I learned so much. But also I'm like, you know, it was like, fine to be sort of have that wild 20s experience when I do that again? I don't think so. So I learned a lot. Don't recommend it. And, you know, God bless h&m for making $4.02 cups.

Debra Alfarone:

Hey, everyone, you gotta follow. "It's Alex Berg." If you don't, what are you doing? TO follow you on Twitter on Instagram - It's Alex Berg. It s a l e x b e r g. Yes. And then you can also get to see her short doc, which was incredible. I love it. You get to see Skyler as well. Who is now you know, my favorite first? Yeah, that's my next call today.

Alex Berg:

Yeah, we actually we have a couple more of these documentaries coming up as well. We just released one on young LGBTQ leaders. And then we have another one that I'm presently working on about small town and rural queer life. So go check out LGBTQ nation authentic voices of pride if you wanna watch them.

Debra Alfarone:

Oh my gosh, I cannot wait to see the next month. Because this was so well done. And so beautiful. You make me smile You make me so and I appreciate you sharing all of the people that you wish you knew in your 20s

Alex Berg:

Thank you so much for having me. This was truly such a delightful and fun conversation. I feel like I learned a lot from you. And I can't wait to listen to all of these shows.

Debra Alfarone:

Oh my gosh, me too. All right, everyone, that's some beef that you wish you knew in your 20s. We'll see you next week.