Wednesday, June 08, 2011

Upcoming AP article will feature religious right crybabies

In an Associated Press article that was published then taken back, various religious right figures are whining that lgbts are picking on them.

The article was originally published Burlington Free Press but was taken back. The following note was left:

Editor's note: This story was mistakenly published on Wednesday on burlingtonfreepress.com ahead of Sunday's release date.
We regret the error.
Please check back on Sunday to read this story.

I can only hope that the article's author, David Crary, goes back and does more research because ThinkProgress totally panned it:

Rather than recognize the historic and systemic oppression and violence against the LGBT community, AP reporter David Crary instead gives multiple anti-LGBT groups (including several hate groups) a pedestal for propagating their lies. Here are the individuals Crary invited to whine that their bigotry is not well-received:

JIM CAMPBELL (Alliance Defense Fund): The ADF regularly spreads negative stereotypes about the LGBT community as part of their legal “defense” of Christian hegemony.
 
RICHARD BARNES (New York State Catholic Conference): The Catholic Conference has defended the vitriolic rhetoric of Sen. Rubén Díaz (D) and been a primary opponent of marriage equality in New York.

CHUCK COLSON (The Manhattan Declaration): In addition to signing the odious Manhattan Declaration (a willful commitment to ignore any laws that protect same-sex couples’ equality), Colson, a convicted felon from the Watergate Scandal, regularly condemns LGBT people.

ALAN CHAMBERS (Exodus International): Exodus International is perhaps the most dangerous anti-gay propaganda machine, reinforcing the harmful junk science that same-sex orientations are disordered and can be changed.

ROBERT GEORGE (National Organization for Marriage): Crary neglects to even mention George’s connection to NOM, let alone that he is, in fact, its chairman and cofounder. NOM regularly reinforces the victim meme by distorting supposed “consequences” of LGBT equality. It’s no surprise George helped draft the Manhattan Declaration.

Think Progress said that those representing our side - Evan Wolfson (Freedom to Marry), Fred Sainz (Human Rights Campaign), Evan Hurst (Truth Wins Out) and James Esseks (ACLU’s gay rights project) - was forced to play "defense."

I managed to read a little bit of the article before it was taken back and I liked what I saw. But ThinkProgress does have a point.

The lgbt community is forced to play defense too often. However, this isn't totally the fault of the news media.

When have you seen a good expose in the major lgbt magazines (The Advocate, Out, etc) detailing religious right lies?

When has the lgbt channel Logo ever covered this subject with as much fervor as they show episodes of RuPaul's Drag Race or reruns of Absolutely Fabulous? And don't even get me started about the idea for news segment strictly devoted to the lgbt community on this channel?

Our problem is that we expect the media to do the work when we should be the ones doing it - and before the right starts attacking us on a specific issue. We should be directing the media where to go and pushing their attention to stories and issues pertaining to the lgbt community.

Anything beats complaining after the fact.



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8 comments:

Mykelb said...

But we do have our own news programs "In the Life" and a program out of NYC that I get on the DishNetwork called "Gay USA"

BlackTsunami said...

We need to do more to get more the community aware of them.

Andrew Pang said...

Wow, has the AP turned into Fox News? If you read the blog NewsHounds.us you'll see that FNC frequently does these "persecuted Christians" segments that of course do the usual Fox News spin and selective reporting.

And you're right about the media, it seems that you and other members of the New Media (blogs etc.) are doing more to expose the Religious Wrong than the Advocate or Logo are, if the magazines indeed haven't done real investigative journalism on that. Don't you think that Logo seems to be perpetuating bad LGBT stereotypes in a way like BET (another Viacom network) perpetuates negative black stereotypes?

BlackTsunami said...

Thanks for the compliment, Andrew ;p

And to answer your question, I think that Logo can be a bit more diverse in the images it portrays. It does strike me portraying the lgbt community as a bit vapid. I no longer watch BET because of what you mentioned. I'm a TV-One fan lol

Andrew Pang said...

So I googled the names of the regular sleazebags like "Porno" Peter LaBarbera, Matt Barber, Bryan Fischer, etc. into the Advocate.com website (Out is more of a fashion-oriented magazine and wouldn't really want to touch politics). While Advocate.com regularly exposes the hatred of these fools in its online daily news section, their homophobia and empty excuses didn't really provoke enough editorial compulsion for the print magazine's features section. Do the editors fear a large backlash from those holy bullies?

Mykelb said...

Here is the FB page for "Gay USA" http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gay-USA/109315879094386?ref=ts&sk=info

BlackTsunami said...

Thanks Myk.

Andrew, I don't think they are scared of them. But I think they don't care. Maybe they figure lgbts are more interested in semi-naked flesh, Lady Gaga and overpriced fashions from designers with silly names. They are wrong but that's how it always is - those with power hardly ever know how to use it effectively.

Anonymous said...

Re Robert George.
He is sometimes promoted as the leading, and even most influential, "catholic" intellectual/"theologian" in the USA.

He is of course just another ignorant dingbat who has become part of the Republican Noise Machine. as indeed is First Things where he hangs out.