Sexuality

CNN anchor Don Lemon grabbed headlines over the weekend with his Twitter announcement that he is gay. On Monday his co-workers provided plenty of time for him on two separate shows to share his story and his own views on the gay-rights issue, and showered him with support. As if that wasn't enough, he asked them in turn to do the same for others "who choose to come out." "I really appreciate…

CNN anchor Don Lemon has openly acknowledged that he is gay in his book "Transparent," set to be released June 16. He tweeted an article in the Sunday's New York Times about the book  late Sunday night, later thanking his followers for their outpouring of support in the wake of his revelation. "I think it would be great if everybody could be out," he was quoted in the Times interview. "But…

Novelist and infamous liar James Frey has a new novel out, "The Final Testament of The Holy Bible," which he pompously holds forth as a "theoretical third volume of the Bible" that conceives of a second coming of the Christ in the person of "an alcoholic bisexual living in the Bronx who impregnates prostitutes, titillates priests and becomes the ultimate seducer himself," John Murray of the…

Denizens of the Daily Kos were delighted Monday by a more-than-6,300-word rant by an abortionist from Texas bylined "Beket." The headline was "Extreme Religion Stops a Thinking Brain -- and Kills Women and Teenage Girls." Naturally, it was "One of the best diaries I have read on DKos," wrote one thrilled commenter. "Well-written. Well-thought out."  Dr. "Beket" began: "I am a proud, even…

Mother's Day is around the corner. While the rest of us are agonizing over what to give mom on her special day, the Washington Post religion website "On Faith" sees it as another excuse to bash conservatives for trying to defund Planned Parenthood. "This Mother's Day, support family planning," urges the teaser headline for Debra Haffner's May 6 post (see below page break for screen capture).

When you’re right, you’re right. Last month, the Culture and Media Institute reported that internet marketing material from preppy clothing maker J. Crew featured a photo of the company’s president painting the toenails of her young son hot pink. "Lucky for me I ended up with a boy whose favorite color is pink," said the caption. "Toenail painting is way more fun in neon." CMI pointed out…

BuzzMedia.com bills itself as "pop culture amplified." It recently acquired a former Turner Broadcasting site called "The Frisky." BuzzMedia's press release announcing the acquisition said that "The Frisky has struck a major chord with female audiences for its authentic voice and fierce sense of humor." Last Tuesday, The Frisky "Guys" section contributor and Julie Gerstein, whose occupation…

Towards the Good Friday edition of the 12 p.m. hour of programming she anchors, MSNBC's Contessa Brewer highlighted a Louisville Disciples of Christ minister who refuses to sign off on marriage licenses until same-sex marriage is legal in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Brewer, the daughter of a Baptist minister, is an advocate for same-sex marriage. As you can see from the video embedded…

Call him a NOW-hawk . . . Of all the reasons to send our people to fight and die in Afghanistan, spending $2 billion per week in the process, Howard Dean has managed to come up with perhaps the worst: feminism. On today's Morning Joe, Dean explained that "the whole reason" he used to support President Obama's waging of the Afghanistan war was that leaving the country would plunge its…

As part of its effort to "shore up" the backing of social conservatives, House Republicans today "issued a contract today to pay former Solicitor General Paul Clement $575 an hour, up to $500,000 to defend the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act," San Francisco Chronicle's Carolyn Lochhead insisted in the paper's Politics Blog. "Republicans claim they will take the money out of the Justice…

With its latest discussion question, the Washington Post/Newsweek "On Faith" website explored the overly-broad and loaded question "What is religion's role in gender discrimination?" So what's the news hook? Why, none other than the most recent pontifications of America's favorite moralizing deacon, former President Jimmy Carter:

On Tuesday's Morning Edition, NPR's Tovia Smith promoted a homosexual activist's campaign protesting the inability of same-sex couples to file joint federal tax returns. Smith played sound bites from the founder of the campaign, as well as two other supporters of same-sex "marriage," but omitted any from opponents. NPR also highlighted the tax-related "complications" of a specific same-sex…

Doing it's level best to push the meme that Planned Parenthood is a crucial provider of basic medical services for poor women -- and hence deserving of federal taxpayer support -- today's Washington Post devoted one-eighth of page A5 in today's print edition to a photo entitled "Relying on Planned Parenthood." Depicted is a 24-year-old woman, one Minah Khan, having blood drawn "during a…

Every once in a while the folks at MSNBC can get a thrill for a Republican. It just has to be one who's denouncing the right people, you see. Take Contessa Brewer, who today yelled "Preach It!" in enthusiastic agreement after showing her audience a clip of  "truth teller" former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.) excoriating the "homophobes" in his party: