News Release February 27, 2006
NLGJA News > News Releases > November 27, 2006

A Question the Media Fears to Ask: Journalists Should Be Willing to Come Right Out and Say, 'Are You Gay' and Print the Answer

The following Op-Ed, written by NLGJA President Eric Hegedus, was originally printed in the San Francisco Chronicle on Sunday, February 26, 2006. Click here to view the online version of the story.

Five years ago, in New York magazine, writer Maer Roshan opined about the concept of "outing" and the closet that has at various times shielded the personal lives of celebrities such as Rosie O'Donnell, Nathan Lane, Ellen DeGeneres and countless others.

He wrote: "Journalists play along in the sincere belief that they are protecting gay people, but in doing so they serve the interests of a few individuals at the expense of the larger community. By dancing around the sexuality of gay public figures, they reduce them to oddly neutered figures."

Unfortunately, this still holds true. A professional sin of omission – the failure to get all the facts by shying away from asking a newsmaker his or her sexual orientation – still clouds the media's actions. And in the case of Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir, the problem becomes far more glaring. Stereotype-drenched speculation, gossip and wink-wink hearsay have taken the place of a sound journalistic practice: Asking the pertinent question. In this case, that question is: "Are you gay?"

In perusing news coverage of Weir's fall from competitive grace in the Olympic Games, I felt inundated by an excess of terminology and conjecture that only served to skate around the proverbial pink elephant in the middle of the ice rink.

Via news organizations from the New York Times to the San Jose Mercury News, from ESPN.com to the Washington Post, the public was treated to terminology that included, but was certainly not limited to: Flamboyant. Flashy. Whispers. Extravagant. Eccentric. Theatrical. Tinkerbelle. Chihuahuas. Boa. Masculinity. Effeminate. Flaming. Princessy. Female sport. Girly men. Oddballs. Revelation. Coy. Disclosures. Distraction. Tension. Embarrassing. Uncomfortable. Squirming. Fishnets. Prissy. Lifestyle. Gay style.

It's a lot of flash and stereotypes without substance, all in lieu of posing that obvious question to Weir: "Are you gay?"

The Chicago Tribune even queried former Olympic skater Rudy Galindo, who is gay, about Weir's orientation, with Tribune writer David Haugh noting that "Galindo still wishes somebody in the media would be brazen enough to simply ask Weir about it."

Galindo was quoted as saying, in part, "Why is everybody asking him about his 'style' and not just ask him if he's gay?"

To Rudy, I say thank you. I couldn't agree with you more.

And to writer Haugh and his use of the term "brazen," I ask: Why is it brazen to ask whether someone is lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender when we, as journalists, exercise far more abandon when covering the personal endeavors of countless heterosexual boldface names? Last fall, journalist Mubarak Dahir, writing for the Empty Closet Web site, penned a succinct, important piece on the contentious issue of outing.

In discussing its history, Dahir wrote, "Traditionally, outing was used by anti-gay people as a means to ruin a gay person's life. The revelation that someone was homosexual was so horrible, it meant their demise. Today, representatives of 'mainstream' media most frequently do not ask whether or not someone is gay because it is 'personal.' Another often-repeated line is that sexual orientation is 'irrelevant.'"

"... By refusing to simply ask whether or not someone is gay perpetuates the notion that answering affirmatively is the ultimate shame," Dahir concluded.

The news media have no problem hounding celebrities (as well as their publicists, friends and enemies) regarding romantic entanglements, alleged or otherwise, as well as other personal details. Think Brad and Angelina, Britney and Kevin, Tom and Katie, Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Colin Farrell. Even sports figures such as Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Anna Kournikova and formerly/famously single and sometimes outrageously married Dennis Rodman haven't escaped the very personal intensity of the media glare. Yet the question "Are you gay?" is still confined to its own little closet, the door seemingly forever closed. It's perceived to be somehow too personal or potentially shameful to ask.

This "don't ask, don't tell" policy only mars our judgment and professionalism, all the while giving our readers, viewers and listeners a degrading, murky and speculative portrait of our subjects.

As journalists, it is our job to ask questions in the first place. And when we have all of the necessary, relevant information, it is our job to tell, as fairly and accurately as possible. Reporting on sexual orientation and gender identity – perce! ived or otherwise, whether in life or postmortem – should be included and dealt with the same way we approach subjects for such basic information as whether they are married, divorced, single or dating. This is an important part of providing a full measure of an individual's life, one we should stop avoiding.

Journalists must be prepared and willing to raise questions, no matter how difficult they may seem. We hold that responsibility – even if we think the subject will be cagey or ultimately dismissive in response. And that includes simply asking, without shame or judgment, "Are you gay?"

Media Contacts:

Eric Hegedus
National President
Mobile: 215-840-3909
ehegedus@gmail.com

Pamela Strother
Executive Director
Office: 202.588.9888, ext. 11
Mobile: 202-486-5990
pstrother@nlgja.org