Our America with Lisa Ling

***Our America with Lisa Ling*** is an American documentary television series hosted by journalist Lisa Ling, who examines aspects of American society that may be viewed as marginal or outside the mainstream. It aired for five seasons on the Oprah Winfrey Network from February 11, 2011 to July 31, 2014.

## Overview

Lisa Ling takes viewers along for an in-depth look at some of the most controversial and thought-provoking issues in the United States today, including religious movements, sex offenders, drug addiction and online brides. In each episode, Lisa immerses herself into the lives of the people she meets, offering compelling accounts of varied experiences and providing insight into some of our nation's most contentious issues. In sharing these stories, Lisa challenges viewers to understand different perspectives and even question what they themselves have always known to be true.

## Episodes

Main article: *List of Our America with Lisa Ling episodes*

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## Reception

### Ratings

The series premiere episode of *Our America with Lisa Ling* drew an average of 574,000 viewers. This was an improvement over the average viewership that the network attracted during its first week on the air and an improvement over 242% over its predecessor, Discovery Health Channel, over a year earlier. The show continued to gain strong ratings during its second season, ranking #17 in its time period among 95 ad-supported cable networks. The show posted triple digit growth for the month of October across the key demos versus year ago numbers (+189% W25-54, +108% HH, +126% P2+, compared with Discovery Health's ratings in October 2010).

### Critical

Hank Stuever of *The Washington Post* praised the series, calling it "intelligent, ruminative affirmation on the ways life might resemble a daytime talk show." Ling is called empathetic and sensitive, and the series is a throwback to "the quality TV magazine journalism that predated the infotainment glut." However, he finds that while Ling is emotionally affected by the stories she finds, she seems "none the wiser" for having found them.

### Controversy

The series fell into massive controversy over the episode "Pray the Gay Away?", which profiles several people as they seek to reconcile their homosexuality with their Christianity. Many sources have criticized the episode, citing inaccuracies and lack of research into the issue. GLAAD media strategist Justin Ward criticized the episode for asking "a question that's already been answered", and criticized OWN, whom he deemed irresponsible, for broadcasting a program that he said had the potential to do harm to young people who may be enduring bullying and harassment for being gay. He added that Ling should have looked into Christian denominations that accept LGBT people and that literal interpretation is only one of many ways to interpret the Bible. Truth Wins Out founder Wayne Besen, a vocal critic of the ex-gay movement, faulted an apparent lack of research into Exodus International, stating that the company "No longer promises to make you straight", and called on OWN to refrain from ever airing the episode again.

On August 21, 2012, OWN aired a follow-up special entitled "Pray the Gay Away? - The Conversation Continues", in which Ling is hosted by Gayle King and featuring follow-up interviews with some of the participants and television calls from the public. Appearances include Rashad Robinson of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) who questions Ling's decision not to place the individual stories she reported into the larger context of anti-gay discrimination in the United States, and psychologist Andrea Macari who noted there is no reputable medical evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. The special aired one day after Exodus International announced that it was disbanding.