Clear Channel Issues Statement Regarding Radio Host Jim Quinn’s Outrageous Remarks; GLAAD Asks the Company to Live Up to Its Own Diversity Policies
January 25, 2010
On the January 14 edition of Clear Channel’s nationally syndicated radio program, “The War Room with Quinn and Rose,” host Jim Quinn made outrageous and defamatory comments about people living with HIV/AIDS and what he called the “homosexual AIDS lobby.” Quinn erroneously compared contagious tuberculosis patients to people living with HIV/AIDS and went on to say, “When you get AIDS, pal, the door opens up to you. You have got all kinds of government goodies, including a maid to clean your house, transportation – I mean it’s – there’s just a wealth of wonders that come.”
Following our Call to Action, GLAAD allies wrote numerous e-mails to Clear Channel executives and demanded that Jim Quinn be held responsible for his outrageous comments.
As a result, Clear Channel’s Chief Communications Officer, Lisa Dollinger, released the following statement to GLAAD:
Clear Channel doesn’t condone Jim Quinn’s remarks and we don’t share his view. Clear Channel has raised considerable funds and positive awareness for HIV/AIDS and the GLBT community over the years and we will continue to do so. We’ve spoken with Mr. Quinn about the seriousness of this incident.
While GLAAD appreciates this statement from Clear Channel Communications, we urge the company to live up to its own diversity policy which states in part:
Our ZERO TOLERANCE policy that prohibits discrimination extends beyond our employees, into each and every market in which we conduct business.
If Clear Channel is truly committed to prohibiting discrimination, the company must ask Jim Quinn to apologize for his grossly inaccurate and offensive remarks and ensure that these kinds of defamatory attacks cease in future broadcasts.
Please continue to write to Clear Channel Communications and tell the company that Jim Quinn’s inaccurate and appalling comments are unacceptable and Clear Channel must stop allowing Quinn to perpetuate hatred, fear and misinformation.
CONTACT:
Lisa Dollinger
Chief Communications Officer
Clear Channel Communications
(210) 822-2828
lisacdollinger@clearchannel.com
Rod Phillips
Programming Senior Vice President
(210) 822-2828
rodphillips@clearchannel.com
Robert H. Walls, Jr.
Executive Vice President and General Counsel
(210) 822-2828
robert.walls@clearchannel.com
Washington Post Misses the Mark With One-Sided Profile on Anti-Gay Bishop Harry Jackson
November 18, 2009
In the November 18 edition of the Washington Post, staff writer Wil Haygood wrote a lengthy profile of Bishop Harry Jackson’s opposition to gay rights and to the current bill being considered by the Washington D.C. council that would extend marriage protections to same-sex couples.
GLAAD encourages media outlets to live up to the standards of fair and balanced reporting. Haygood’s article was neither. The bitter impact of Jackson’s work is trivialized by the opening line, “This is how Bishop Jackson spent his summer vacation.” The article positions Jackson as a crusader against marriage and is not at all against gay people.
Yet, it was not long ago that Jackson spearheaded the “Muzzling the Pulpit” campaign against basic legal protections for LGBT people. In the Post article he calls marriage for gay and lesbian couples, an ”oxymoron.” And, denying that he blames gay people for society’s problems or that he is homophobic, he says, “I’m looking at the extinction of marriage. And black culture is in a free fall.”
The story lacked any voices from pro-gay African-American clergy and African-American gay and lesbians. In the D.C. area alone, there are a number of African-Americans that could have been tapped: Dr. Sylvia Rhue of the National Black Justice Coalition; Aisha Mills, a black lesbian who testified at the D.C. hearings on marriage; The Maryland Black Family Alliance and the group, Clergy United for Marriage Equality, founded by Black clergy which now has 200 members listed on its website.
Although the article mentioned that Bishop Jackson has critics, the author only mentioned hate notes and body guards during worship services, implying that Jackson’s critics are violent extremists. Where were the credible critics who can speak to the harm done to loving couples, to gay young people and parents of gay people who go to church and are afraid to tell the truth because they are told they or their loved ones are rejected by God?
In addition, the lack of diverse voices in such a lengthy piece, reinforces the false notion that the African-American community and Black churches share Jackson’s anti-gay views. It plays on the belief that only white people are for gay and transgender equality and sets up the black community to be scapegoated when pro-LGBT legislation does not pass.
Haywood also showed his own bias when he used the term “alternative lifestyle.” Both the Associated Press and The New York Times have set guidelines against using that phrase because it denigrates the LGBT community and suggest that sexual orientation is a choice and therefore can and should be cured.
GLAAD has reached out to Haywood to discuss our issues with his story.
We urge you to write Wil Haygood at haygoodw@washpost.com to air your opinions about his piece. And now is the time. Hours after Haywood’s story was published, it was announced that Jackson filed suit against the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics over its refusal to allow an initiative to ban same-sex marriage. The board ruled that doing such would violate the city’s 1977 Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination.
Jackson’s lawsuit comes one week after D.C.’s City Council voted in favor of a bill that would allow for gay and lesbian couples to be legally married. A final vote is set to take place on December 1.
Related Posts:Call to Action: Seventeen Magazine Needs to Apologize for Transphobic Article
October 27, 2009
In their latest issue (November 2009), Seventeen magazine published a defamatory article representing transgender youth as “liars” and deceivers. In an “as told to Jessica Press” article titled “True Life Drama: My BOYFRIEND turned out to be a girl!”, they relate Sheri’s story of finding out that her first love was a transgender young man in an accusatory and sensationalizing tone.
As first pointed out by LGBT teen activist Ariel Bustamante when she alerted prominent Pam’s House Blend blogger Autumn Sandeen to the story:
“Rather than use this opportunity to educate readers about transgender issues, it …instead furthers the common transphobic assumption that someone whose gender does not match their sex assigned at birth is a deceptive liar and even compares them (at the bottom) to perverts, drug addicts, and older dads trying to get young women without disclosing their parental/age status.”
In her insightful blog about the article, Sandeen wrote:
“What the sensationalizing of this Seventeen story [creates] is a recipe for teaching intolerance of trans youth based on gender identity and expression, and this recipe — when I think about Brandon Teena and Angie Zapata — is also a recipe for fueling violence against trans people.”
While Seventeen was certainly right to publish Sheri’s experience of her dramatic break-up, there is never an excuse to misgender and misrepresent transgender youth, especially given the highly at-risk status of this demographic. (See GLSEN’s report on the experiences of transgender youth in U.S. schools.)
GLAAD has written to senior editors at Seventeen, requesting a meeting and an apology for their sensationalized coverage in their December issue.
Bustamante has also created a facebook campaign to raise awareness of this unacceptable article.
Please Take Action Now:
Please write to Seventeen to voice your concerns about this sensational presentation.
Tell the magazine’s editors that sensationalizing transgender teenagers and young adults contributes to a climate that puts young LGBT people in harm’s way. Ask them to consult GLAAD for resources when covering future stories on LGBT people.
Please remember, when contacting Seventeen, to ensure that your emails are civil and respectful and do not engage in any kind of name-calling or abusive behavior.
Keep checking GLAADblog for further updates on this developing story.
Related Posts:GLAAD Reaches Out to Blog That Dehumanizes Transgender People
June 26, 2009
As the result of constituents contacting GLAAD, we have reached out to the site owners of a blog that dehumanizes transgender people and their experiences. Tranny Alert is a website that posts pictures of people who are perceived to be transgender and encourages readers to submit photos of perceived transgender people for the blog to publish and provide commentary. It is unclear whether the site’s subjects have provided consent to have their pictures taken and published in this context.
Lateisha Green
GLAAD has reached out to the blog about the defamatory nature of their content with their problematic language including the words “tranny,” “trannie” and “he/she.” We also expressed our concerns about the potential danger the site’s subjects could face as a result of having their gender identity and gender expression shared without their consent.
Given that transgender people are disproportionately targeted for violence, willfully subjecting them to this kind of online scrutiny could very well put their lives in danger. We need not look far to know how violence disproportionately impacts transgender people. Recent examples include Angie Zapata and Lateisha Green.
A Call to Action against Tranny Alert was started by a Livejournal user named gudbuytjane and it appears to have been quite effective. The blog’s Facebook page has already been taken down.
Tranny Alert remains active on Twitter. Some Twitter users have been tweeting #trannyalertfail to express their alarm and concern for the site’s questionable content.
Initially, @TrannyAlert tweeted the following in response to readers submitting their concerns:
Tranny Alert will be releasing a statement in the next 24 hours regarding the recent backlash.
Later, the blog sent out another tweet about readers concerns:
Wow people really need to get a f*cking sense of humor.
If you would like to share your own concerns about Tranny Alert and their content, you can email them at:
mayday@tranny-alert.com
You can also share your concerns about their problematic language and content with Blogger, the blog service that currently hosts Tranny Alert. You can contact them with your concerns here.
Blogger’s policy specifically states:
Blogger strongly believes in freedom of speech. We believe that having a variety of perspectives is an important part of what makes blogs such an exciting and diverse medium. With that said, there are certain types of content that are not allowed on Blogger. While Blogger values and safeguards political and social commentary, material that promotes hatred toward groups based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, veteran status, or sexual orientation/gender identity is not allowed on Blogger.
Please stay tuned for more details. Please check back with us for updates on this developing story.
Have an update to share with GLAAD? Send Senior Media Strategist Andy Marra a Tweet at @andy_marra
Related Posts:UPDATE: Bank of America Becomes Fourth Company to Pull Advertising on KRXQ
June 5, 2009
At 12:55pm EST, Bank of America provided GLAAD with a statement announcing their decision to discontinue advertising on KRXQ.
In their statement, Bank of America wrote:
In response to your inquiry, I would like to express our thoughts to you regarding Bank of America’s decision to discontinue advertising on the station and show in question.
Bank of America is proud to be a leader in supporting diversity and continues to be widely recognized for our progressive workplace practices and initiatives to promote inclusion. This commitment to equality and diversity informs every aspect of our enterprise, including our approach to advertising. As a result, we adhere to a set of media buying guidelines for syndicated programming and for local stations that promote inclusion and help our company reach a broad range of diverse customers.Bank of America prides itself on fostering a corporate culture that is inclusive of all the communities we serve. Our customers, clients and associates speak different languages; support different family structures and life situations; and have unique and personal financial requirements. In order to meet the diverse needs of our customers, we require a variety of products and services, marketing and a diverse workforce that demonstrate and reflect our awareness and appreciation of who our clients and customers are.
We hope the immediate actions that we have taken demonstrate our longstanding support of diversity, and we hope you inform members of your organization of the steps that we have taken to address your concerns.
Thank you for your inquiry and bringing this to our attention.
Bank of America is now the fourth company to pull their advertising after Sonic, Snapple and Chipotle. You can read more about that here.
KRXQ is continuing to receive scrutiny due to the May 28th “Rob, Arnie and Dawn in the Morning” show radio segment where radio hosts Rob Williams and Arnie States made offensive comments against transgender children. You can listen to the segment here.
Later, they aired a follow-up broadcast that you can listen to here and read GLAAD’s response here.
GLAAD is still encouraging its constituents to contact KRXQ and respectfully voice your concerns about the defamatory and dehumanizing comments made by the radio hosts. Please read our Call to Action here.
Please check back with us for more developments on this story.
Have an update to share with GLAAD? Send us a tweet on our Twitter account @glaad.
Related Coverage:
UPDATE: Snapple, Sonic & Chipotle Pull Advertising From KRXQ
June 4, 2009
In the wake of KRXQ radio hosts Rob Williams and Arnie States not apologizing for their offensive comments against transgender children, individuals continue to take action and share their concerns with the station.
You can listen to last week’s segment here and their follow-up to the controversy here.
On June 2, GLAAD issued a Call to Action and today renewed its call for supporters to let KRXQ know that Rob and Arnie should apologize for their remarks. We have also been blogging about this story (here and here).
Business leaders have also become alarmed by last week’s defamatory radio segment and are distancing themselves from the shock jocks and their dehumanizing remarks. Individuals are utilizing social networking tools like Facebook to voice their concerns and alert companies of the harmful diatribe.
At 1:33pm, I received an email from the Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. The company is responsible for well, Dr. Pepper and Snapple along with 40+ brands including 7UP, Country Time, Crush, Hawaiian Punch, Mott’s, Orangina, Welch’s and Yoo-hoo.
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inc gave us the following statement to share with our supporters:
We found the segment to be offensive and as a result, we are pulling our Snapple advertising from the station.
Thanks again for bringing this to our attention.
As far as we know, the beverage company now becomes the second business to pull its advertising from KRXQ as a result of last week’s defamatory and dehumanizing comments against transgender children made by radio hosts Rob and Arnie.
The popular restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill was the first to announce pulling their advertising contract from the station.
Please continue to check back for updates on this developing story.
—————
UPDATE:
At 4:00pm EST, GLAAD spoke with SONIC Corp, the largest chain of drive-in restaurants in the country. SONIC confirmed they pulled all of their advertising from KRXQ as a result of the offensive comments made on the “Rob, Arnie and Dawn in the Morning” show during their May 28 radio segment.
SONIC provided GLAAD with the following statement at 4:45pm EST:
Sonic wants to assure you that the views of this station are in no way related to the views of Sonic. Sonic was alerted to the May 28th segment only yesterday and immediately began researching the segment, show and Sonic’s planned advertising on the station. SONIC in no way condones violence toward children and does not wish to be associated with media content that condones or promotes such activity in any way. We have decided to immediately withdraw advertising from this station and have notified the station of our decision.
SONIC now joins Snapple and Chipotle in their removal of advertising on KRXQ.
Please check back with us for more developments on this story.
Have an update to share with GLAAD? Send us a tweet on our Twitter account @glaad.
KRXQ Radio Hosts Rob and Arnie Sweep Anti-Trans Namecalling Under the Rug
June 4, 2009
On Tuesday, we issued a Call to Action demanding that KRXQ radio hosts Rob Williams and Arnie States apologize for encouraging violence against transgender children. We also posted a blog update about the initial results from alerting our consitutents and media about the defamatory radio segment.
Reporters and outlets decided to cover the developing story including The Sacramento Bee, Instinct (here and here), The Huffington Post and FOX 40.
In a FOX 40 phone interview, KRXQ station manager Jim Fox responded to our Call to Action.He said:
Did they do anything wrong? If you’re a regular listener, the answer is no.
Hundreds of emails from our supporters poured into KRXQ from the United States and around the world demanding for Williams and States to issue an apology for their offensive comments. As a result, General Manager John Geary alerted us the hosts would issue a response on Wednesday morning in the 7:00am PST hour.
On the evening of Tuesday, June 2, GLAAD spoke with radio host Dawn Rossi. Director of National News Cindi Creager and Senior Media Strategist Andy Marra shared key information about the transgender community in preparation for their scheduled response. GLAAD also connected the radio host with Pam’s House Blend contributor Autumn Sandeen and Trans Youth Family Allies Executive Director Kim Pearson.
Chipotle Mexican Grill
Additionally, GLAAD’s President Neil Giuliano was also directly contacted by a Chipotle Mexican Grill executive in the same evening to inform us the popular restaurant chain pulled their advertising support from the station. Having heard concerns from customers about the issue, they decided to take immediate action that cost KRXQ a year-long contract.
GLAAD staff monitored Wednesday’s response that lasted for almost 3 hours. The Rob, Arnie and Dawn in the Morning show has posted the show in its entirety and can be listened to on their website.
In Wednesday’s response, Rob Williams said at 12:16:
This show has a strong, unwavering, unblemished, untarnished dedication and commitment to battling for children and against children being harmed in any way. For years, we did a feature called ‘The Silence Epidemic’ when nobody talked about children being left alone in hot cars. To bake to death and their parents not being in any way held accountable. We discussed child abuse at levels that no other show would talk about.
The Hosts
He also goes on to state:
Everyone that listens to this show, everyone that’s even aware of this show, knows that we have an underlying tone: You don’t hurt kids! That’s understood. But when you’re having a serious conversation, sometimes you need to what we call ‘release the pressure valve.’ That’s what Arnie’s role on the show is. To make a point and release some of the pressure and let people laugh.
He closed his point of clarification by saying:
I’m sorry that you might find it funny — or I’m sorry that you might not find it funny that some people laugh when Arnie — who does not have a child — talks about throwing a shoe at his non-existent son. You know what? Some people do laugh and they know we’re not serious, that Arnie’s not serious and we don’t advocate for it.
While it was heartening for us to hear that Rob Williams and Arnie States did not advocate for violence against children, they also did not hold themselves accountable for their dehumanizing and defamatory words used to describe transgender children in last week’s show.
You can listen to all of last week’s show here.
GLSEN Harsh Realities
In Wednesday’s show, Williams and States missed the mark when it came to how name calling and bullying can negatively impact transgender youth. In a groundbreaking report titled, Harsh Realities: The Experiences of Transgender Youth in Our Nation’s Schools by our friends at the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), nearly 9 out of 10 transgender students experienced verbal harassment at school in the past year because of their sexual orientation and gender expression. More than half were found to have experienced physical harassment.
Approximately 65% of transgender students reported feeling unsafe in their school because of their gender expression.
Most disturbing is that close to 40% of transgender students heard school staff make negative comments about someone’s gender expression (39%) sometimes, often or frequently in the past year.
It is the very reason why GLAAD commends radio host Dawn Rossi for clearly defending transgender people and the damaging impact that namecalling can especially have on transgender people. Even when in the minority, Rossi was an ally and spoke about the devastating impact namecalling can have on transgender children and how verbal harassment can contribute to a hostile climate and potentially lead to physical harm.
However, GLAAD remains disappointed in the fact that Rob Williams and Arnie States did not apologize for their egregious remarks from last week that dehumanized transgender children.
In a follow-up story by The Sacramento Bee, GLAAD issued the following statement:
While we appreciate hosts Rob Williams and Arnie States clarifying that
they do not advocate violence against children, they ultimately failed
to take responsibility for using dehumanizing and defamatory words to
describe transgender children on last week’s show.
We applaud host Dawn Rossi for articulating respect for transgender
people and acknowledging that defamatory words like those used last week
by her co-hosts help contribute to a hostile climate that continues to
place transgender youth at risk for bullying, harassment and violence.
We will continue asking our constituents to voice their concerns in a
respectful manner about last week’s remarks and urging Williams and
States to use their radio platform responsibly on future broadcasts.
GLAAD urges readers to continue contacting KRXQ. Let them know that dehumanizing and defamatory remarks against transgender children are offensive and not acceptable.
Please refer to our original Call to Action for further information.
You can contact the following KRXQ radio hosts and general manager at the following info:
John Geary
Vice President & General Manager
KRXQ-FM
(916) 339-4209
jgeary@entercom.com
Arnie States
On Air Personality
KRXQ-FM
(916) 334-7777
rad@robarnieanddawn.com
Rob Williams
On Air Personality
KRXQ-FM
(916) 334-7777
rwilliams@entercom.com
Please remember, when contacting KRXQ, ensure that your emails and phone calls are civil and respectful and do not engage in any kind of name-calling or abusive behavior.
Keep checking back for further updates on this developing story.
CALL TO ACTION UPDATE: So You Think You Can Dance Judge Nigel Lythgoe Issues Apology
May 23, 2009
On May 22, GLAAD released a Call to Action in response to remarks made the night before by judge Nigel Lythgoe on the popular reality competition show So You Think You Can Dance. Today, GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano and Senior Director of Media Programs Rashad Robinson spoke with Mr. Lythgoe. He expressed his apology over his misuse of words and released this official statement:
Nigel Lythgoe
“I sincerely regret the fact that I have upset people with the poor word choices and comments I made both during the taping of the ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ audition and on my personal status update. I am not homophobic and it was extremely upsetting for me to be classed as such.
I have been forthright and consistent with my opinion, as a judge, that professional male dancers should move with strength and agility — like Gene Kelly and Rudolph Nureyev. I now realize how this could be misconstrued.
I have been a dancer, and involved in the dance world, for nearly 50 years. Professionally and personally, I believe the sexual orientation of an auditioner or contestant is irrelevant. All that said, the fact that I have unintentionally upset people is distressing to me and it is obvious I have made mistakes that I must learn from. I trust that my humor will be more sensitive and mindful moving forward.”
-Nigel Lythgoe, judge and executive producer, So You Think You Can Dance
“We certainly appreciate the dialogue, and the opportunity for Nigel to help further educate people about how words and images matter,” said Giuliano. “His sincere words are appreciated, and we look forward to words, images and representations of the LGBT community on So You Think You Can Dance that will be fair, accurate and inclusive in the future.”
Call to Action: Demand that Colorado Radio Host Trevor Carey Disavow Remarks Condoning Violence Against Transgender People
March 17, 2009
Earlier today, GLAAD issued a Call to Action in response to comments made by Colorado radio host Trevor Carey.
Here’s some of what it said:
In a disturbing diatribe on KNUS radio on March 14, host Trevor Carey engaged in a conversation with a caller in which both men condoned violence against transgender people, blaming slain Greeley, Colo. resident Angie Zapata, an 18-year-old transgender woman, for her own brutal murder.
(Transcript from Colorado Media Matters):
CAREY: And what the transgender segment of our society needs to be telling their type is, you don’t commit fraud because –
CALLER: No, that’s exactly what it was.
CAREY: A), you’re at least gonna get your teeth kicked in, and B) — [caller laughs] — here’s a story from Greeley that turned out very tragic, and you should pay attention to this, because -
CALLER: You know, when I was growin’ up in Greeley, I grew up in Greeley, that kind of stuff didn’t ever, you know, surface in this town. And it’s just sad, you know; my heart just weeps for all, everybody that’s concerned. But, you know, we gotta go back to basics. You’re a man or you’re a woman, and, like you said, if you’re fraudin’ somebody, then you deserve to have your teeth kicked in. Not necessarily hung or you’re killed, but it just — they shoulda known better, you know?
Carey sustained his gratuitously defamatory tone throughout the entire show, and his remarks during the segment – including a false representation of a conversation with a GLAAD representative – make it clear that his references to Angie and her tragic murder will continue to be disrespectful, abusive and inaccurate. The transcript and audio for the program can be found on the Colorado Media Matters website.
It was reported in The Greeley Tribune on March 13 that Carey had issues with following The Associated Press’ style guidelines on transgender people in talking about Angie Zapata’s story. GLAAD often works behind the scenes with media profession to educate them on terminology and best practices for fair,
Radio host Trevor Carey
accurate and inclusive reporting on LGBT people and issues (details can be found in the GLAAD Media Reference Guide). After reading about Carey’s comments in The Greeley Tribune, GLAAD reached out to him last Friday. Carey not only has a weekend show with KNUS, but also a morning show on KFKA in Greeley – where Angie was murdered.
Carey was unwilling to discuss the issues at hand over the course of a half hour conversation, and instead continued to bring up unrelated – and often offensive – topics about transgender people. The following night, he went on the air and made his defamatory claims, and while doing so, falsely characterized his conversation with GLAAD.
At the end of the day, there is no excuse for promoting violence against transgender people. As a news host, and as a media personality, Carey has a responsibility and obligation to treat Angie Zapata’s story with dignity and respect. He did not, and he needs to disavow his remarks.
Here’s how you can make your voice heard:
TAKE ACTION NOW!
Please contact Trevor Carey and ask him to disavow his remarks that condone violence against transgender people. Call on KFKA and KNUS to hold Carey accountable for his remarks and establish clear standards to ensure their media platforms will not be used to condone or promote violence towards any parts of the communities they serve.
Please forward this link to any of your friends and others who may also wish to take action. When contacting KFKA and KNUS, please ensure that your emails and phone calls are civil and respectful and do not engage in the kind of name calling or abusive behavior that we are expressing our concerns about.
Trevor Carey
Host, KNUS, “Trevor Carey” and KFKA, “AM Colorado with Trevor, Troy and George”
Phone: (720) 434-2714
trevorcareywork@aol.com
Justin Sasso
General Manager, KFKA
Phone: (970) 356-1310
justin@1310kfka.com
Kelly Michaels
Operations Director, Salem Communications (KNUS)
Phone: (303) 750-5687
kelly@salemdenver.com
CALL TO ACTION: Sean Delonas & The New York Post
February 20, 2009
From Good As You to Pam’s House Blend to Joe.My.God to Gawker to The Huffington Post and almost everywhere else on the intertubes, you can read about the brewing controversy surrounding Sean Delonas’ recent cartoon in the New York Post. The cartoon depicts police having shot and killed a chimpanzee while making reference to President Obama’s recently passed economic stimulus bill.
The cartoon has sparked widespread anger and outrage, and community leaders have coordinated ongoing protests of the New York Post.
GLAAD’s President had this to say about the controversy:
Sean Delonas has a history of defamatory work and we stand with those who decry this recent cartoon as unacceptable and a vicious portrayal that neither enlightens nor entertains. It’s unacceptable that the New York Post continues to provide a platform for such instances of hateful defamation.
Below is a slideshow (images available here) of Delonas’ defamatory and anti-LGBT cartoons.
As we mentioned yesterday, Delonas has been the subject of three separate GLAAD Action Alerts for his continued juvenile and defamatory treatments of LGBT issues as well as making the “Worst” on the “Best and Worst” list on several occasions. This year he was named to GLAAD’s “Worst Defamation of 2008” list.
Today, GLAAD has issued a Call to Action for members and an Eye on the Media to raise awareness for Delonas’ history of anti-LGBT cartoons.
From today’s Call to Action:
GLAAD is calling on our community members and allies to stand up and join those who are speaking out against the New York Post and News Corp.’s continuing promotion of Sean Delonas’ hateful defamation. Demand that News Corp. hold the New York Post and Delonas accountable for their defamatory representations, and that the Post stop providing a platform for such vile, abusive attacks.
Contact:
Mr. Col Allan
Editor In Chief
New York Post
Phone : 212-930-8272
Email: col.allan@nypost.com
Teri Everett, Senior Vice President
Corporate Affairs & Communications
News Corporation
Phone: 212-852-7070
E-Mail: teverett@newscorp.com
Jack Horner, Director
Corporate Affairs & Communications
News Corporation
Phone: 212-852-7952
E-Mail: jhorner@newscorp.com
We urge you to please contact the Post today.
Call on The New York Times to Check Accuracy of Anti-Gay Advertisement
December 5, 2008
In the December 5, 2008 edition of The New York Times, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty published a full page advertisement that makes inaccurate and unsubstantiated claims about supposed “violence and intimidation” against religious groups by “mobs” since the passage of Proposition 8.
When GLAAD learned about the ad earlier this week, we contacted The New York Times, and after repeated back and forth, they said that while they recognized our strong concerns about publishing misleading assertions, “we do not require opinion advertisers to document them unless we believe they are potentially libelous or otherwise legally actionable.”
Click to see a larger version of the ad.
Neil G. Giuliano, President of GLAAD, made the following statement:
The factual inaccuracies made by the Becket Fund in this grossly misleading ad have no place in The New York Times or any credible media outlet.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and allies across the country have worked to make our voices heard in the face of laws that strip away vital protections for members of our community. The peaceful marches and rallies that have occurred since the passage of Prop 8 have given us an opportunity to become more visible and make our voices heard, and it is unacceptable for media platforms, particularly ones as respected as The New York Times, to provide space for groups to make misleading and false attacks that would only seek to silence us.
It is unacceptable to publish these kinds of dishonest claims.
The New York Times needs to hear from you. Contact them TODAY and demand that they discontinue allowing inaccurate claims in their advertising: letters@nytimes.com.
For tips on writing letters to the editor, see GLAAD’s Media Essentials Training Manual.
Make Your Voice Heard – Dobson & The Radio Hall of Fame
October 23, 2008
On November 8, 2008, the Museum of Broadcast Communications plans to induct James Dobson’s anti-gay Focus on the Family radio program into its Radio Hall of Fame.
And while the Radio Hall of Fame justifies the induction by claiming it, “does not endorse or support the views voiced by any nominee or inductee on the air or via any other platform,” his nomination came from “the 27 members of its Steering Committee[.]”
Either the members of the Steering Committee don’t know who James Dobson is and of the hurtful and defamatory things he says about LGBT people, or they just don’t care.
James Dobson has a long history of attacking and making things up about gay people. Unfortunately, the media will often times give Dobson a national platform outside his radio program to spread his lies, lies that then reach millions.
Among his many false claims, Dobson has said being gay “has to do with an identity crisis that occurs too early to remember it” and that gay people “have as many as 300 to 1,000 partners in a lifetime.” He has also falsely claimed that committed gay couples “cannot be a family” and that allowing them to get married would “destroy the family.”
Dobson has even gone after entertainment media, asking if the makers of the children’s movie Happy Feet were “getting at the idea that homosexuality is genetic” and said that the Britney/Madonna kiss was, “part of this continuing effort to desensitize people to homosexuality[.]”
Respect My Research, a website run by the organization Truth Wins Out, takes Dobson to task when he cites discredited research and distorts credible research to fit his arguments.
In our video above we highlighted just one example. In December 2006, Time Magazine gave Dobson a national platform to spread lies and distortions about same-sex parenting. The article Dobson authored – “Two Mommies is One Too Many” – was fact checked by the progressive media watchdog group Media Matters. They found it to “misrepresent” science and make baseless claims.
Dr. Carol Gilligan, one of the researchers who had their work cited in his article, was outraged and wrote an open letter to Dobson:
I am writing to ask that you cease and desist from quoting my research in the future. I was mortified to learn that you had distorted my work this week in a guest column you wrote in Time Magazine. Not only did you take my research out of context, you did so without my knowledge to support discriminatory goals that I do not agree with. What you wrote was not truthful and I ask that you refrain from ever quoting me again and that you apologize for twisting my work.
Dr. Kyle Pruett, another researcher cited in the Time article, also responded to Dobson:
You cherry-picked a phrase to shore up highly (in my view) discriminatory purposes. This practice is condemned in real science, common though it may be in pseudo-science circles. There is nothing in my longitudinal research or any of my writings to support such conclusions.
James Dobson doesn’t deserve to be honored for his lies and distortions aimed to hurt and marginalize LGBT people.
Please take a moment and contact the Museum of Broadcast Communications and let them know just who they are about to induct into their Radio Hall of Fame.
Call: (312) 822-0512
Email: Bruce Dumont (CEO) – brucedumont@museum.tv
Email: Gina Doyle – gdoyle@museum.tv (No longer working)
Email: Gina Loizzo - gloizzo@museum.tv
**UPDATE** Due to so many of you making your voice heard, the original address above stopped working today (even though it is still listed on the Radio Hall of Fame contact page). We have listed a new address to contact.
For more information, Truth Wins Out also has a website dedicated to educating people on Dobson’s anti-gay rhetoric they call “Dump Dobson.”
