Anti-Gay Humor in Sports Media Has to End
November 18, 2008
On Wednesday November 12, WEEI 850AM Sports Radio in Boston produced and aired a recorded skit about the possibility of the 2014 Gay Games taking place in Boston. The skit was filled with tired jokes about gay athletes that we’ve heard a thousand times over. For example, in the skit, one of the characters – a reporter on the scene of the future Gay Games – comments that “the Gay Games flame is coming into the stadium, his name is Bruce and he’s from San Francisco.”
Click here to hear the audio.
It’s almost like the producers had a board filled with clichés and threw a dart to pick which one they’d choose. It wasn’t funny 10 or 20 years ago, and it’s even less funny today.
WEEI
According to the Boston Globe, “callers reacted to the news that Boston had been named a finalist to host the 2014 Gay Games with a stream of homophobic jokes and slights, as the show’s hosts cackled with glee and added their own antigay wisecracks.”
The way to stop this kind of juvenile, anti-gay humor is to make your voice heard to the gatekeepers – talk show hosts, producers, general managers, etc – of the media. The gatekeepers need to know that the LGBT community is tired of hearing these same old stereotypes, when there are countless LGBT athletes making their mark all over the country and the world. Ask them to produce fair, accurate and inclusive coverage of the LGBT sporting community and sporting events.
I’m sure if any of the talk show hosts or callers went to a Boston Ironsides Rugby Football Club game or played against a Boston Pride Hockey team they’d realize how amazingly talented and tough LGBT athletes can be, and maybe then the same old tired jokes will end.
Top Stories Today – 10.16.2008
October 16, 2008
National News:
- The New York Times – After 30 Years, a Film Returns to a Harrowing Time in San Francisco
- Slate – Obama vs. McCain vs. Gay Marriage
- WallStreetJournal.com – OP-ED: Best of the Web: Mandatory Transcendence
- Associated Press – Incumbent’s Ad Slams Dem in Miss. Senate Battle
- Library Journal – LJ Talks to Wasilla Public Library Director KJ (Kathy) Martin-Albright
Regional News:
- Associated Press (CA) – Poll: Asian-Americans Oppose Gay Marriage Ban
- Newsday (NY) – NY Policy Granting Benefits to Gay Spouses Challenged
- Associated Press (CA) – CTA Gives $1M More to Fight Gay Marriage Ban
- The Washington Post (DC) – Suspect Arrested in Death Of Man Beaten on Street
- New York Post (NY) – ACORN Scammer is Transsexual Escort
- KCRA.com [Sacramento] (CA) – Kids Pulled From Transgender Teacher’s Class
- Bozeman Daily Chronicle (MT) – School Board Votes to Protect Gay Students from Discrimination
- South Florida Sun-Sentinel (FL) – Anti-Gay Church to Speak at FIU Debate on Amendment 2
- Associated Press (WV) – Group Demands Gay Marriage Ban Special Session
- The Colorado Springs Gazette (CO) – Big Rift Develops Over Gay Event at UCCS
- The Clinton News (MS) – Activist Group to Make Return Visit
- St. Petersburg Times (FL) – Two Wealthy Republicans are Fueling Both Sides in the Fight Over Amendment 2
- New Haven Register (CT) – OP-ED: Marriage Ruling Has ‘Beautiful Observations’
- San Jose Mercury News (CA) – Prop. 8: Money Pours In to Oppose Same-Sex Marriage Ban
International News:
- The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia) – De Facto Couples Bill Passed by Senate
- Daily Monitor (Uganda) – Homosexuality Blamed on Greed
- Atlantic Free Press (Netherlands) – OP-ED: The American Family Association: In the Business of Deception and Hate
From the Blogs:
- Crooks and Liars – Virgil Goode, Bad Boy: Yet Another GOP Moral Scold Exposed
- Metro (The Plain Dealer) – Cleveland Will Make a Bid to Host the 2014 Gay Games
- The Florida Politics Blog (Palm Beach Post) – Michael Schiavo Campaigns Against Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment
- The Huffington Post – Same-Sex Marriage: Equality For All
- The Daily Dish – Marriage Or Bust: Civil Unions Are Not Enough
- The Huffington Post – A Land Where Nowhere Is Safe: A Lesbian Activist Speaks About Gender and Violence in Kyrgyzstan
Shirts & Skins: A slam dunk?
September 15, 2008
Take a bunch of gay basketball players, put them in a house to train for two weeks and what do you get? A slightly different twist on Big Brother? Not exactly.
Logo aims to showcase the talent and complexities of gay athletes in their new docu-series called Shirts & Skins, premiering tonight at 10:00 pm.
During its six-episode run, Shirts & Skins follows the players, managers and coaches of the Rockdogs, a gay basketball team, as they prepare to defend their title at the National Gay Basketball Championship in Chicago. The team has a notable history, winning more Gay Games gold medals over the past 20 years than any other basketball team.
AfterElton has a review of the show by Cyd Zeigler, co-founder of Outsports.com, calling it “a testament to the diversity of gay people and what should be a source of real inspiration for young gay men who, more and more, don’t want to turn their backs on sports.”
Shirts and Skins. [Mon, Sept. 15 at 10 PM on Logo, 30 minute runtime.]
