Yesterday, former President Bill Clinton introduced the premiere of MTV's new feature film Pedro, a biopic about Pedro Zamora, one of The Real World's most memorable cast members. In his Reuters blog entry "Pedro's Story Still Relevant Today" yesterday, Clinton commented on Zamora's impact: "For the first time, viewers saw an openly gay, HIV-positive young person on national television. As we followed his story each week, Pedro humanized the growing epidemic, reducing our ignorance and fears and increasing our determination to act. By living bravely and allowing MTV to show his story, Pedro set an extraordinary example of what a tremendous impact a single person can make in our world."

MTV used the latest season of its flagship reality series to screen Pedro for preview audiences last fall. The cast of The Real World: Brooklyn, the season finale of which also aired last night, helped organize and promote a screening at New York's Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Community Center. One of the cast members on the Brooklyn installment of the series was Katelynn, a 24-year-old, recently post-op transgendered woman from West Palm Beach, Florida who piqued the interest of her housemates, including a straight Iraq War veteran who quizzically referred to her as "it." MTV isn't the powerful medium is once was, but The Real World's producers are evidently still interested in breaking new ground and helping to expand viewers' awareness. Katelynn's evolution, from dealing with her deadbeat boyfriend back home to coping with how and when to come out to new people she meets, has given her an opportunity to be an advocate in the same way Pedro was more than a decade ago.

Both Pedro and The Real World: Brooklyn are both airing on MTV now, so check your local listings!