Telling the Untold Stories: Michael J. O'Loughlin

Our guest Michael J. O’Loughlin returns to Things Not Seen to discuss his recent book, Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics, and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear.

Set against the backdrop of the HIV and AIDS epidemic of the late twentieth century and the Catholic Church's crackdown on gay and lesbian activists, Hidden Mercy searches out the untold stories of those who didn't look away, who at great personal cost chose compassion--even as he seeks insight for LGBTQ people of faith struggling to find a home in religious communities today.

Listeners will recall we spoke to O’Loughlin back in 2020, when his podcast, Plague, was released. Hidden Mercy expands upon those stories, and adds context and depth to the history of those times.

Michael J. O'Loughlin is an award-winning journalist and the national correspondent for America Media. He is the host of the podcast Plague: Untold Stories of AIDS and the Catholic Church, recommended by The New York Times and featured on NPR. Prior to joining America magazine, O'Loughlin was a national reporter for The Boston Globe. He has written for The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Foreign Policy, National Catholic Reporter, and The Advocate and has been featured on MSNBC, Fox News, ABC, CBS, and NPR. He lives in Chicago.