Date: Fri, 15 Nov 1996 16:41:35 -0700 From: Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Subject: GLAADAlert 11.15.96 GLAADALERT November 15, 1996 The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Contents 1. Turning Point Does Gay Marriage A Good Turn (ABC, Turning Point (TV News Journal)) 2. Britt Says A Four-Letter Word (The Washington Post) 3. Sparks Fly: Education 1, Stereotypes 0 (UPN, Sparks (TV Sitcom)) 4. Coming Out In The Wall Street Journal (The Wall Street Journal) 5. Gay Republican Blasts GOP Homophobes (Scottsdale (AZ) Progress Tribune) 6. Kansas City News Views Gay Marriage (WDAF-TV, Channel 4, Kansas City, MO= ) 7. Lesbian One of Us & Them (Us & Them (Syndicated Comic Strip) 8. "Gay Animal House?" (Boyfriends (Film)) 9. The Party's Over (Party Girl (TV Sitcom), Public Morals (TV Comedy)) 10. Media Guilty of Ignoring The Issue of Homophobia: The Schmitz Anti-Gay Murder Trial Media Round-Up (Jenny Jones, Reuters, Associated Press, TV Guide, Los Angeles Times) 1. Turning Point Does Gay Marriage a Good Turn On November 7, ABC's Turning Point looked at the issue of same-sex marriage by featuring four gay and lesbian couples and their families leading up to and following their marriage ceremonies. The show, by focusing on the love and emotions involved, put gay marriage into an appropriate context without clouding the issue with anti-gay hate-mongering. One ceremony was Jewish, one Episcopalian, and the other two were non-denominational, and the show explored a controversy among the Episcopalian diocese that arose when ABC wanted to film the ceremony within the church. While most family members were supportive, several struggled to adjust to the idea of same-sex marriage. In the end, however, they embraced their gay and lesbian loved ones and endorsed their weddings. Even the one fundamentalist Christian, who was completely opposed to her sister's marriage to another woman, and, for that matter, her sister being a lesbian, attended the reception and told her sister that she loved her. Most significantly, the program conveyed the love that the couples felt. It showed the all-important ceremonial kisses and emphasized that, whatever some people in society might feel, and whatever religious radical doomsayers might say, these unions are based upon love and commitment. Congratulate Turning Point on finding an excellent angle to sensitively cover the misunderstood issue of same-sex marriage. Contact: Turning Point, ABC, 77 West 66th Street, New York, NY 10023, e-mail: abcaudr@ccabc.com. 2. Britt Says A Four-Letter Word In the November 1 edition of the Washington Post, columnist Donna Britt described coming to terms with her own homophobia and the realization that when straight people call gay people "them," it is the same as white people calling black people "them" to distance themselves from the basic humanity of others. The column details the discomfort that she and those around her felt upon seeing the Melissa Etheridge/Julie Cypher "Having A Baby" Newsweek cover, and how many people simply shrug and say, "I just don't understand them." Britt notes, "As a black woman, I know about 'them.' The ultimate four-letter word, 'them' has unrivaled, unrecognized power to separate. It's the them thing, the easy thing, the thing that makes us feel wary of, or superior to, faceless folks whom we don't know." She continues, "Just as many whites know better than to confess their ongoing struggle with racist feelings, few people publicly discuss their sense of gays as 'them.' Instead, we feign enlightenment, make whispered jokes, or say nothing." She then describes several lesbian and gay people she has known, loved and respected in her life, and how, when it comes to a personal friend, the feeling of "them" doesn't exist. Britt sums up by saying, "Whoever they are, they're a lot like us, doing what they must for love in an us-against-them world." Please commend the Washington Post for a heartfelt, honest and thoughtful discussion of how personal feelings of discomfort can translate into societal discrimination. Contact: Leonard Downie, Editor-In-Chief, TheWashington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, DC, 20071, e-mail: webnews@washpost.com. 3. Sparks Fly: Education 1, Stereotypes 0 Last week the new UPN (Universal Paramount Network) sitcom Sparks, starring James Avery and Robin Givens, took a comical swipe at all brands of stereotypes. On its November 11 episode entitled "Good for the Gander," African-American attorney Maxey Sparks (Miguel A. Nunez, Jr.) crudely attempts to turn-on the openly gay judge, Judge Parker (Richard Bradford), when his defense of a hip-hop artist starts to go awry. He unbuttons his shirt, sprays on too much cologne, swaggers around the court, winks at the judge and uses an effeminate lisp to address the entire court. This, and the announcement that the judge wants to see him alone in his chambers, is met with delight and laughter by the audience. In chambers, attempting to make the point that the defendant could not be recognized in a stocking mask, the judge hands Sparks stockings. Sparks, misunderstanding, horrifyingly begins to put them on his feet. When the judge questions why he is putting the stockings there, Sparks screams, "I don't know how you like it!" The judge then turns the tables on not only Sparks but the audience, when he tells him that as an African-American he should know how hurtful and wrong stereotypes are. He asks how it feels when Sparks sees an old movie that portrays blacks as lazy and stupid, and then proclaims to Sparks, "that's how I feel when you prance in my courtroom." The stunned audience's silence turns to boisterous applause as Sparks apologizes. Please thank UPN and Sparks for reminding its audience that all stereotypes are degrading. Contact: Lucie Salhany, President-CEO, UPN, 11800 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90025, fax: 310.575.7201. 4. Coming Out in the Wall Street Journal In Hal Lancaster's "Managing Your Career" column in the November 5 Wall Street Journal, he looked into the question, "Should Managers Tell Colleagues That They Are Gay?" It examines several issues, including possible discrimination and harassment by others, the discomfort and inconvenience of being in the closet and the appropriateness of the venue for coming out. Additionally, the article gives strategies for how to determine whether or not coming out is the right decision for a person, and, if so, some tips for how to do it. "Map out a plan. Use role-playing to practice the conversation with friends," Lancaster writes after speaking with Sharon Silverstein, author of Straight Jobs, Gay Life. "Also, have some realistic career options in mind, just in case." Lancaster adds to "keep in mind that the longer you work somewhere, the more likely it is people will know or strongly suspect, anyway," and ends by noting that the corporate environment is becoming increasingly gay-friendly. Let the Wall Street Journal know that articles like this one are incredibly helpful not just to closeted lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers, but also the people with whom they work. Contact: TheWall Street Journal, 200 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10281, fax: 212.416.2658, e-mail: editor@cor.dowjones.com. 5. Gay Republican Blasts GOP Homophobes In the November 11 Sunday edition of the Scottsdale (Arizona) Progress Tribune, the lead front-page story, headlined, "Gay Candidate Says County GOP Shut Him Out" by David Leibowitz, was a powerful testimony to the courage of one openly gay Republican candidate, Steve May, for the State Senate and the ignorance of local party leaders unable to reconcile their ideology and his sexual orientation. The article discusses how May, a tireless worker and donor for his local Republican party since his teens, had his campaign systematically torn apart by party leaders. Maricopa County GOP chairwoman Bernice Roberts refused to give May the same $1,300 donation made to two other heterosexual District 25 Republican candidates, telling the Tribune, "'I do not support that homosexual agenda....I feel that it's wrong.'" Leibowitz quips, "Gosh Bernice, so much for 'inclusiveness' and a 'big tent,' huh?" Several other examples, including Republican committee members going door-to-door to denounce May, follow. May, in the article, says he was "outed" by religious radical Charlotte Reed (District 25 party chairwoman) during the primaries, and describes her as "'an ignorant, undereducated liar....The truth is, she has handed our district over to the Democrats... because she won't support anyone unless they adhere to her radical, right-wing philosophy.'" Since May is publicly attacking his own party's homophobia while also being opposed to same-sex marriage and, as Leibowitz puts it, "teaching homosexuality in the classroom," the columnist wonders if he might be "too gay to be Republican and too Republican to be gay." The article ends with May saying that, "'This is my mission in life, I guess. I have to help teach the voters that you can be gay and Republican. I have to teach Republicans that, and I have to teach gay people that. The question is, are the people going to let me have a chance?'" Please let the Scottsdale Progress Tribune know that such an interesting and challenging article is appreciated and thought-provoking, and encourage them to continue to cover lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. Contact: Hal DeKeyser, Editor-In-Chief,Scottsdale Progress Tribune, 7525 East Camelback Road, Suite 100, Scottsdale, AZ 85251, fax: 602.970.2360, e-mail: azforum@aol.com. 6. Kansas City News Views Gay Marriage On November 11, WDAF-TV, the Kansas City, Missouri Fox affiliate, ran an overwhelmingly positive and balanced story on the 9 p.m. news about three same-sex couples who hope that one day they will be able to legally marry and adopt children. On the whole, the coverage was both positive and sensitive, including comments not only by the couples but also by Unitarian minister Duke Tufty, who supports the sanction of any committed relationship, regardless of the genders of the couple involved. One couple included GLAAD member Randy Hate and his partner Rick Fisher. The daughter of one lesbian commented that she didn't understand how anyone could think that her child spending time with her lesbian grandmother could be wrong. Additionally, television cameras followed a gay male couple as they walked their dog, facing homophobic slurs from passersby. Finally, a telephone survey conducted by WDAF found that, despite national polls to the contrary, a whopping 58 percent felt that same-sex marriage should be legally recognized. The only flaw with an otherwise well-executed story was the obligatory interview with an antigay religious radical, Kansas State Representative Kay O'Connor (R-Olathe), who said, "It's very unnatural and very unholy and I don't want to do anything to encourage it!" Inform WDAF that they did a great job with the story, but explain to them that it is inappropriate to include an antigay perspective for so-called 'balance'. Contact: Mike McDonald, News Director, WDAF-TV, 3030 Summit Street, Kansas City, MO 64108, fax: 816.531.4444, e-mail: wdaftv4@wdaftv4.com. 7. Lesbian One Of Us & Them On October 28, Joe Pyle, the talk show host in the slice-of-life comic strip Us & Them, found out during a casual conversation that Kit, his producer, is a lesbian. Joe asked her if she ever thought of them as a married couple and remarked that they know everything about each other since they have worked together for so long. Kit quips, "Sheesh...You sound just like my wife, Joe." After Kit's coming out, Us & Them had a week-long dialogue about gay issues, as Joe had many a conversation with friends about how he thought he knew everything about Kit. The conversations have provided humorous social commentaries on coming out and homosexuality as Joe explored his own feelings about discovering that a co-worker is gay. Encourage Wiley Miller and Susan Dewar, the comic strip's creators, to continue featuring Kit and to develop her character further. Contact: Wiley Miller and Susan Dewar, c/o Universal Press Syndicate, 4520 Main Street, Kansas City, MO 64111-7701, fax: 816. 932.6681, e-mail: joepyle@aol.com 8. "Gay Animal House?" Boyfriends, a romantic comedy set in a gay fraternity house at a conservative Midwestern college, is currently in development at New Regency Productions' Regency Vision division and getting wide support from within the film industry. The executive producer of the film, Joel Schumacher, has produced such past hits as A Time to Kill, Batman Forever and The Lost Boys, and Warner Brothers has plans to distribute the film worldwide. Please praise New Regency for developing a major lesbian- or gay-themed Hollywood film and urge them to follow suit with other films involving lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender characters. Contact: Alexandra Milchan and Elinor Milchan, Regency Vision, New Regency Productions, 4000 Warner Boulevard, Building 66, Burbank, CA 91522-0001, fax: 818.954.3295. 9. The Party's Over While the good news is that ABC has picked up Relativity for four more episodes following appeals from GLAAD; the bad news--at least in terms of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender representation on television-- is that Fox has canceled Party Girl, which featured openly gay actor John Cameron Mitchell as Derrick, the lead's sassy gay pal, and CBS has canceled Public Morals, which featured Bill Brochtrup as administrative assistant John Irvin. However one feels about the quality of the canceled shows, both characters were positive and both Fox and CBS should be commended for these representations. Contact: Fox Broadcasting Company, P.O. Box 900, Beverly Hills, CA 90123, fax: 310.369.1433, e-mail: foxnet@delphi.com. CBS Television Network, 7800 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036, fax: 213.651.0285, e-mail: marketing@cbs.com. 10. Media Guilty of Ignoring the Issue of Homophobia: The Schmitz Anti-Gay Murder Trial Media Round-Up The verdict is in. The media completely failed to discuss the central issue of homophobia during the most publicized anti-gay hate crime of the decade. On November 12, a jury found Jonathan Schmitz guilty of second degree murder for killing openly gay neighbor Scott Amedure after Amedure revealed a crush on Schmitz during a taping of the Jenny Jones show. As the trial ended, neither Schmitz's violent homophobia nor the societal homophobia that leads an individual to kill were ever effectively discussed by a media obsessed with whether the talk show had gone "too far." Following are ways that the media deflected the story from its core message: =85 The November 12 Reuters story never mentioned homophobia or hate crimes, but instead wrote that "the humiliation [Schmitz] suffered from the show," along with his mental illness prompted the jury to be lenient in sentencing. In doing so, the article's faulty premise is fueled by an expectation that its readers believe that having a gay man express attraction for you on television is a sufferable "humiliation." =85 The Associated Press story from November 12 also calls the same-sex attraction a "humiliation," and says the case "focused attention on 'ambush' television." =85 The November 16 issue of TV Guide had two articles about the trial, one of which explores Jenny Jones' lackluster appearance on the witness stand, the other, "Talk Shows in Trial," explains that, beyond Schmitz, it is "clear that the Jenny Jones show-and 'toxic talk' programs in general-are, in effect, on trial." Clearly, for the TV Guide editors, homophobia is not on trial. =85 The November 13 Los Angeles Times quoted Juror Joyce O'Brien saying the phenomenon of having someone of the same sex express attraction to a person on TV was "like someone pulls the rug out from under you. Even a sane person might have trouble dealing with all that stuff." There are, however, no lesbian and gay organizations or individuals quoted. The GLAADAlert is the weekly activation tool of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. GLAAD is the lesbian and gay news bureau and the only national lesbian and gay multimedia watchdog organization. GLAAD promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation as a means of challenging all forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity. Copies of articles referred to in the GLAADAlert are available to our members by contacting GLAAD. Contact GLAAD by e-mail at glaad@glaad.org or by phone at 213.658.6775 (Los Angeles), 212.807.1700 (New York), 413.586.8928 (Northampton), 202.986.1360 (Washington, DC) or 415.861.2244(San Francisco). Report defamation in the media by calling GLAAD's Toll-Free AlertLine! 1-800-GAY-MEDIA (1-800-429-6334) Visit GLAAD's Web Site at http://www.glaad.org "GLAADAlert," "GLAAD" and "Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation" are registered trademarks of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, Inc. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~= ~~ Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) glaad@glaad.org TO REPORT DEFAMATION IN THE MEDIA - Call GLAAD's Alertline at 1.800.GAY.MEDIA or go to the GLAAD Web Site at www.glaad.org and report through our Alertline Online. 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