February 22, 2012 11:21 am ET
Fox News Underreports Advancements For LGBT Equality
Fox News has consistently underreported stories about major victories attained by the LGBT community, including the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT), the beginning of same-sex weddings in New York, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s decision to declare California’s gay marriage ban unconstitutional.
January 10, 2012 12:00 pm ET
Gingrich Denies Facts About Same-Sex Adoption In Massachusetts, D.C.
During an appearance on the January 10, 2012, edition of CNN’s Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien, GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich attempted to advance his claim that the legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. had forced Catholic Charities and other religious institutions to put an end to their adoption services. O’Brien attempted to correct Gingrich by pointing out that, in both cases, Catholic Charities were simply being asked to abide by non-discrimination laws in order to receive public funding. Gingrich rejected O’Brien’s explanation, but her analysis was exactly correct.
December 19, 2011 9:47 am ET
Dr. Keith Ablow: Misinformer Of The Year On LGBT Issues
In 2011 Fox News’ Dr. Keith Ablow brought a toxic mix of homophobia and pseudoscientific anti-LGBT talking points to new lows. The “Fox News Medical A-Team” member has been a prolific source of anti-LGBT misinformation, disguising his animosity toward gay, lesbian and transgender people as expert commentary on human sexuality. His bigoted rants against J. Crew, Dancing with the Stars, and the Girl Scouts have earned widespread criticism and mockery, eventually causing him to resign from the American Psychiatric Association. For his consistent promotion of known falsehoods and shirking of established medical opinions on LGBT issues, Ablow has earned the title of LGBT Misinformer of the Year.
December 12, 2011 9:26 am ET
News Networks Regularly Promote Anti-Gay Family Research Council On Air
In November of 2010, the Southern Poverty Law Center listed the Family Research Council as an anti-gay hate group due to its “propagation of known falsehoods” about the LGBT community. Since being listed, however, FRC spokespersons have been invited 52 times to discuss issues ranging from the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” to the 2012 presidential campaign. Despite FRC’s long history of producing anti-gay propaganda, every major news network has invited the group on national television while failing to acknowledge its hate group designation.
December 05, 2011 6:10 pm ET
Right-Wing Media Celebrate Barney Frank’s Retirement By Reviving Prostitution Smear
Following Rep. Barney Frank’s announcement that he wouldn’t be seeking a 17th term in office, most major news outlets praised openly gay Frank for his career advocating for LGBT equality and supporting financial reform. However, right-wing media outlets used the opportunity to revive discredited allegations of Frank’s involvement in a prostitution ring in the 1980s.
November 17, 2011 2:54 pm ET
Anti-Gay Activists Turn Penn State Scandal Into Horror Story About Homosexuality
Anti-gay activists have been jumping at the opportunity to turn the Penn State child molestation scandal into an excuse to attack gays and lesbians. Leaders of groups like the American Family Association and Americans For Truth About Homosexuality have cited the story as evidence that gay men are more likely to engage in pedophilia, while others have lamented the scandal as an inevitable outcome of society’s “anything goes” attitude towards sexuality, including homosexuality.
November 01, 2011 8:19 am ET
Chick-Fil-A Donated Nearly $2 Million To Anti-Gay Groups In 2009
Earlier this year, Chick-fil-A became embroiled in a controversy surrounding its donations to anti-gay groups. Though Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy denied having an “agenda against anyone,” an Equality Matters investigation discovered that Chick-fil-A donated more than $1 million to anti-gay causes between 2003 and 2008. Now, new IRS 990 forms reveal that the company donated nearly two million dollars to anti-gay groups in 2009 alone, the most recent year for which public records are available.
October 31, 2011 9:25 am ET
Fox News Downplays LGBT Teen Suicide, Bullying
While Fox News consistently rails against efforts to reduce anti-LGBT bullying, the network is virtually silent when it comes to actually reporting on cases of bullying-related suicide. According to an Equality Matters analysis, Fox largely underreported the recent suicide of a bullied gay teen in New York. While CNN and MSNBC have made efforts to combat and cover the growing problem of anti-LGBT bullying, Fox has instead chosen to promote stories that reinforce right-wing talking points.
October 19, 2011 1:35 pm ET
Fox News, Keith Ablow Misinform About Transgender Child
Weeks after Fox News’ Dr. Keith Ablow was rebuked by the psychiatric community for his comments about Chaz Bono, a cast member on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, Fox invited the “Medical A-Team” contributor back on air to criticize a same-sex couple’s decision to put their transgender daughter, Tammy, on hormone blockers. During the segment, co-host Martha MacCallum and Ablow repeatedly refused to identify Tammy by her chosen gender and misinformed about the facts surrounding her case.
September 12, 2011 2:49 pm ET
NOM Mailer Warns Of Marriage Equality’s “Legal Consequences” In NY-9 Special Election
New York State Assemblyman and marriage equality supporter David Weprin is currently campaigning to replace former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) in the U.S. House of Representatives. The National Organization for Marriage (NOM), which has pledged $75,000 to defeat Weprin, recently released a series of mailers in New York attacking him for voting in favor of the state’s marriage equality law. One mailer warns of the “legal consequences” of same-sex marriage, rehashing a number of known falsehoods about states that have moved to recognize gay and lesbian relationships.
September 02, 2011 4:03 pm ET
Santorum Flip-Flops On States Criminalizing Homosexuality
During his appearance on the August 31 edition of CNN’s Piers Morgan Tonight, GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum argued that while he opposed Lawrence v. Texas – the 2003 Supreme Court decision which invalidated state laws criminalizing homosexuality – he didn’t believe states should be involved in regulating homosexuality. His claim, however, contradicts statements he made during an interview with the Associated Press just months before Lawrence was decided.
August 18, 2011 3:24 pm ET
Would Herman Cain Have Impeached Reagan, Both Bushes, And Clinton?
On a conference call with several bloggers Tuesday night, GOP presidential candidate and former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain said it would be “a great thing” to impeach President Obama for refusing to defend the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in court. According to Cain, Obama’s decision not to “uphold the laws of this nation” amounted to “an impeachable offense.” Following his logic, Cain would have also thought it was “a great thing” to impeach former Presidents Reagan, H.W. Bush, Clinton, and W. Bush, who all chose not to defend laws they viewed as unconstitutional.
July 29, 2011 6:30 pm ET
Not So Fast: Tony Perkins Actually Does Think Same-Sex Attraction Is A Choice
PolitFact recently rated as “false” former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s (R) claim that the science is in “dispute” as to whether being gay is a choice. In response, Family Research Council (FRC) President Tony Perkins came to Pawlenty’s defense, explaining that while “same-sex attraction” may not be a choice, homosexual behavior is. Some have acclaimed his explanation as a new and positive development in Perkins’ typically radical and hostile views on homosexuality. As much as we’d love to believe that Perkins’ opinion of gay and lesbian people is evolving, it just isn’t true. Not only is Perkins’ distinction between same-sex attraction and same-sex behavior nothing new, it’s also completely disingenuous.
July 29, 2011 11:37 am ET
Fox News Underreports Certification Of DADT Repeal
On July 22, President Obama, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen certified that repealing the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy would not affect U.S. military readiness, beginning a 60-day waiting period before the law is finally eliminated. Despite having gone out of its way to spread misinformation about DADT’s repeal in 2010, Fox was strangely quiet after it became clear on July 21 that the administration was preparing to approve certification. An Equality Matters analysis found that while CNN and MSNBC both aired multiple segments covering the story, Fox barely even mentioned the historic development.
July 28, 2011 4:19 pm ET
Fox News Underreports Beginning Of New York Gay Weddings
This past weekend, New York became the sixth and largest state to begin performing same-sex wedding ceremonies. New York City opened its city offices a day early Sunday so that gay couples could wed as soon as the state’s marriage equality law went into effect. When the law was first approved by the state legislature in late June, Fox News largely ignored the story. According to an Equality Matters analysis, a similar trend could be seen on Sunday, with Fox barely mentioning the historic development.
July 18, 2011 4:42 pm ET
WND Fearmongers That CA's FAIR Education Act Might Lead To "Social" Or "Sexual Indoctrination"
A WorldNetDaily column fearmongered that a recently signed history law in California might lead to "social" or "sexual indoctrination." The new law merely adds the LGBT community to an existing list of minority groups whose contributions must be taught in public schools.
June 27, 2011 11:28 am ET
Seriously Extreme: Rep. Bachmann's Journey To GOP Presidential Candidate
Today, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) formally announced that she is seeking the Republican presidential nomination at an event in Iowa. In a field of lackluster candidates, Bachmann is an unabashedly polarizing figure whose statements, agenda, and policy positions are not only often factually inaccurate but are also frequently imbued with extreme, hateful, homophobic and even violent rhetoric. The fact that she is considered a viable representation of the Republican party sends a stark message about the toxicity of the GOP in 2012. Often the Affordable Care Act's most apoplectic opponent, Bachmann has suggested that health care reform will result in "death panels" as well as "school-based sex clinics," and that it could allow a 13-year-old girl can be taken to an abortion clinic during a school day to "have their abortion, be back and go home on the school bus that night...mom and dad are never the wiser." She has rallied those against the Affordable Care Act to stand together, saying, "What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing." She has used such extreme rhetoric to oppose other policies as well, calling the federal tax code a "weapon of mass destruction" and referring to Wall Street reform as "thuggish." Additionally, Bachmann has proposed eliminating the minimum wage and cutting billions from veterans' benefits. She also voted against a bill providing for 9/11 first responders' health care and then bragged about it, calling it "new spending." Michele Bachmann's increasing legitimacy as a presidential contender speaks volumes about the atmosphere within the Republican party today.
April 22, 2011 1:12 pm ET
Nothing But The Truth: Anti-Gay Misinformation At The House’s “Defending Marriage” Hearing
On April 15, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution held a “Defending Marriage” hearing to discuss the Obama administration’s decision not to defend Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in federal court. The three witnesses at the hearing included National Organization for Marriage chairwoman Maggie Gallagher, Ethics and Public Policy Center President Edward Whelan, and Carlos Ball, Professor of Law at the Rutgers University School of Law. All three witnesses swore to tell “nothing but the truth” during in their testimony, but that apparently wasn’t enough to keep the pro-DOMA witnesses honest.
April 01, 2011 5:55 pm ET
Sen. Sessions Still Has No Idea What’s Happening With DOMA
When the Senate Judiciary Committee held a confirmation hearing Wednesday to vet several Justice Department nominees, Republican Senator Jeff Sessions focused on one nominee in particular – Donald Verrilli – who, if confirmed, would become the next solicitor general of the United States. Sen. Sessions turned the hearing into an opportunity to grill Verrilli on the Justice Department’s decision not to defend Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), rattling off a number of gross inaccuracies in the process.
March 22, 2011 10:03 am ET
Investigation: Chick-Fil-A's Long History Of Support for Anti-Gay Causes
In January 2011, after suffering backlash from a Pennsylvania Chick-fil-A restaurant's sponsorship of a prominent anti-gay group's marriage seminar, Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy publicly announced that Chick-fil-A "has no agenda against anyone" and "will not champion any political agendas on marriage and family." Earlier this month, two Missouri organizations, the Clayton Chamber of Commerce and FOCUS St. Louis, decided to cancel a presentation by Cathy over his company's controversial affiliations. Cathy again claimed that his company was being misrepresented and that Chick-fil-A did not support anti-gay groups. Equality Matters investigated Cathy's claim and found that, in fact, Chick-fil-A has strong, deep ties to anti-gay organizations like Focus on the Family and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. The company's charitable division has provided more than $1.1 million to organizations that deliver anti-LGBT messages and promote egregious practices like reparative therapy that seek to "free" people of being gay.
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