News: India, Tony Kushner, Jerusalem, Don Imus, Bash'd

Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis forbids liberal Catholic church from holding gay pride prayer service: "St. Joan of Arc Church in Minneapolis has held the event for several years in conjunction with the annual Twin Cities Pride Celebration. The archdiocese is instead suggesting that the church hold a "peace" service Wednesday with no mention of rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Archdiocese spokesman Dennis McGrath says the gay pride prayer service is inimical to the teachings of the Catholic church."

Global warming expert Hansen: Earth close to the tipping point.

This used to be her playground: Madonna and family go to Yankees game.

Grease RIP: A Rydell High death.

Angels in America playwright Tony Kushner to marry in California: "Mark and I are going to get married in California very soon. Then we’re going to be recognized in New York as legally married."

New Bedford, Massachusetts, where two-and-a-half years ago 18-year-old Jacob Robida terrorized a local gay bar with a hatchet and a shotgun, held its first gay pride over the weekend, which attracted 250 people.

Jerusalem gay pride a "go": "The High Court of Justice rejected Monday afternoon a petition filed by right-wing activists Itamar Ben-Gvir and Baruch Marzel against holding a gay pride parade in Jerusalem. As a result, the parade will take place as scheduled this coming Thursday."

Don Imus under fire again for racist comment.

Gay activists in India plan mass gay pride action: "The marchers plan to sing, give speeches and hold candlelit vigils in simultaneous parades in New Delhi, Calcutta and Bangalore on Sunday, said Gautam Bhan, a writer and gay rights activist involved with organizing the marches. While several dozen activists have marched in the eastern city of Calcutta in recent years, these would be the first gay pride parades in New Delhi and Bangalore. Bhan said the activists want to raise awareness of the issues facing the gay community in India."

Bash'd: a rap opera that fights back against anti-gay violence, playing in NYC: "With exceedingly bawdy lyrics, two rapping angels, T-Bag (Mr. Craddock) and Feminem (Mr. Cuckow), recount the tragedy of a Canadian couple, Jack and Dillon, who meet in an Edmonton club, fall in love and wed. But when Jack becomes the victim of violence, their idyll collapses."

New Yorker: Is "angry" Keith Olbermann changing TV news?

Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev sued over Moscow Pride: "Organisers of Moscow Gay Pride today applied to the city’s Tverskoi District Court accusing Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev of 'inaction on their letter' concerning the staging of the march for tolerance – and respect for the rights of freedoms of homosexual people in Russia – in Alexandrovskiy Sad, part of the Kremlin."

Jodie Foster in tussle with paparazzi.

PhD: Memoir of a gay stripper. “The truth was that stripping had long called out to me. It offered something different from my grad school grind of dealing with students, grading papers, and sitting through seemingly endless seminars.”

Obama curtails use of altered presidential seal.

James McAvoy on the perils of six packs and protein: "[The abs] were not a special effect. It was the result of a lot of time at the gym — which I hated. I was also trying to take these super protein supplements and they gave me incredible bouts of flatulence which wouldn’t have endeared me to the rest of the cast. But I’m back to normal."

Boy George takes his orchid for a walk.

A few notes and photos from the Provincetown International Film Festival.

New York Senate Majority Leader Republican Joe Bruno announces he won't seek reelection: "It also means a seat that had been considered a safe one for Republicans will not necessarily be a sure thing this fall. With all New York lawmakers' two-year terms ending in December, Republicans are defending their narrow 32-30 majority in the Senate, the party's last stronghold in state government. Democrats now hold the governor's post and dominate the Assembly by a 106-42 margin."

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Towleroad Guide to the Tube #211

DON IMUS: Asks former syndicated radio host, "Why don't you like Huckabee, because you're gay, or what? Media Matters has the transcript.

HILLARY CLINTON: New spot featuring her mother Dorothy Rodham.

MAMMA MIA: Just released trailer for the film adaptation of the stage musical.

GOP DEBATE: Veracifier presents highlights (or lowlights perhaps) from yesterday's final Republican debate before the Iowa primary.

Check out our previous guides to the Tube here

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Savage, Limbaugh, Imus, Coulter: The Week in Hate Speech

Or should I say free speech?

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has voted unanimously to condemn hateful radio personality Michael Savage for comments he made about immigrants:

"The resolution, introduced by Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval, not only condemned the language used by Savage, but reiterated San Francisco's commitment to being a tolerant, respectful city. Savage made defamatory remarks about college students who were involved in a weeklong fast in San Francisco's Civic Center Plaza from July 2 to July 9 to urge Congress to pass an immigration reform bill. Savage said in a radio program on July 5 that the demonstrators should "fast until they starve to death,' according to the resolution. The resolution states that the board deems Savage's comments as 'symbolic of hatred and racism,' both of which are not tolerated or endorsed by the city and county."

Savage's remarks in the past have also been virulently homophobic.

Clear Channel has responded to a letter from Harry Reid and Senate Democrats calling on the network "to publicly repudiate" comments made by Rush Limbaugh about "phony soldiers".

Said Clear Channel's president Mark P. Mays: "Mr. Limbaugh's comments have stirred a lot of emotion, and I have carefully read the transcript in question. Given Mr. Limbaugh's history of support for our soldiers, it would be unfair for me to assume his statements were intended to personally indict combat soldiers simply because they didn't share his own beliefs regarding the war in Iraq. I hope that you understand and support my position that while I certainly do not agree with all the views that are voiced on our stations, I will not condemn our talent for exercising their right to voice them."

Meanwhile, "In the House, Rep. Mark Udall, D-Colo., who is running for the open Senate seat in his state, has authored a resolution condemning the host. Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer has not decided whether or not he'll bring it up for a vote, his staff told FOX News."

Newsday reports that Citadel Broadcasting is close to finishing up a deal with Don Imus that would put him back on the air for the first time since CBS fired him for making derogatory remarks about the Rutgers Women's basketball team: "It was not immediately clear from where Imus would be heard, but Citadel owns WABC in New York, making its morning slot a logical destination. It also owns WPLJ-FM. Currently the ABC spot is occupied by Ron Kuby and Curtis Sliwa."

And finally, Ann Coulter's piehole has a new book out and it's already raising a stink. Unfortunately, in the next few weeks, you're likely to hear the piehole spewing forth.

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Towleroad Guide to the Tube #180: Phony Soldier Edition [tr]

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Don Imus Settles with CBS, Now Free to Spew Again

Radio shock jock Don Imus, who lost his CBS radio show in mid-April following outrage over his racist, sexist, and classist comments regarding the Rutgers women's basketball team, has settled with CBS: "The terms of the settlement will not be disclosed, according to the CBS statement. The settlement pre-empts the dismissed DJ's threatened $120 million breach-of-contract lawsuit."

Drudge is reporting that the settlement is to the tune of $20 million.

And Imus is reportedly in talks to resume his career at WABC radio.

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Turned Off: Don Imus Loses CBS Radio Show [tr]
MSNBC Cans Imus as Debate on Hate Speech Rages [tr]

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Bill Richardson Apologizes for "Maricón" Moment

Democratic Presidential candidate Bill Richardson, who said this week that in the Spanish that he grew up with, the word maricón "means simply 'gay,' not positive or negative," apologized for his exchange with deposed radio host Don Imus in 2006, saying he used the term playfully.

Said Richardson: "My record is the strongest among the presidential candidates on gay rights issues and I'm puzzled by the timing of this. When it happened a year ago, nobody seemed to think it was terribly important. Now it surfaces. It's probably a sign from other campaigns that they are little worried about me. It was a playful exchange between me and Don Imus that was not intended to demean anybody, but if I offended anybody, I apologize."

Richardson Says Remark Meant Playfully [ap via washington post]

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Bill Richardson's Support for Gays Ignored by Mainstream Media [tr]
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News: Norman Korpi, Seattle Pride, Britney Comeback, Don Imus

Deposed radio host Don Imus says he's suing CBS for the $40 million remaining in his contract: " Imus has hired one of the nation's premiere First Amendment attorneys, and the two sides are gearing up for a legal showdown that could turn on how language in his contract that encouraged the radio host to be irreverent and engage in character attacks is interpreted, according to one person who has read the contract. The language, according to this source, was part of a five-year contract that went into effect in 2006 and that paid Imus close to $10 million a year. It stipulates that Imus be given a warning before being fired for doing what he made a career out of - making off-color jokes."

Britney stages San Diego comeback. And then follows it up in Anaheim.

Scott Schweickert, a Florida man who in 2003 used drugs to rape and torture two young men, has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Bette Midler, setting up shop in Las Vegas, says she's a bit intimidated by the scope of it: "The stage is so enormous there's a terror that you might not be able to fill it all by your lonesome, you know, a little person in high heels. And it's got the biggest (video wall) in the world, and you say, 'What the heck am I going to put on that? My baby pictures?"

The story behind New Paltz mayor Jason West's re-election loss.

I know you've been wondering what The Real World's gay housemate Norman Korpi has been up to. He's been preparing for a show of his paintings, and they're now up at Creative Galleries in the Helms Building in Los Angeles.

Seattle's The Stranger takes a look at the mess that is Seattle Gay Pride: "The annual paroxysms of doubt about whether the event will even happen at all. The ensuing existential crises within the gay community "leadership." The announcement, this year, of a bankruptcy filing by parade organizers—and then the subsequent announcement, just hours later, that the bankruptcy filing would not be happening. And of course, the all-out war between gay factions over the parade's location, with the supporters of a downtown parade in one camp and the supporters of a Capitol Hill parade in the other. Angry words and recriminations fly back and forth between them, in private and in public. It's enough to make a homo want to stay home on parade day."

People in the world are walking 10% faster than they did 10 years ago, according to a new study. Singapore is the fastest city. NYC ranks eighth.

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News: Fat Gene, Tom Ford, Village People, New Hampshire

Senate committee in New Hampshire endorses (3-2) civil union bill that the House passed last week. The Senate is expected to vote next week!

The Washington Post tells the tale of Soulforce: "Even on American highways crowded with giant family cars, buses are still big enough to make a point. For his acid tour in 1964, Ken Kesey had his Merry Pranksters repaint a 1939 school bus in psychedelic colors with brooms. These days buses are plastic-wrapped with their messages, like giant Twinkies on a mission. The one driving down Route 7 in Virginia yesterday was purplish on one side and orange sunset on the other. In huge letters it said "Social Justice for Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People." On the highway, fellow drivers either honked and waved or threw Coke cans. In Sioux City, Iowa, someone spray-painted the bus with 'Fag, God doesn't love you.'"

Why is Brad Pitt losing his hair?

Don Imus just the tip of the hate speech iceberg: what about Glenn Beck, Neal Boortz, Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage, Michael Smerconish, and John Gibson? Al Franken calls on CNN to fire Glenn Beck.

Scientists identify gene that makes us fat.

Tom Ford celebrates the opening of his new butler-staffed boutique.

Fallen American Idol contestant Frenchie Davis shows that there's room for both God and the gays: "When I'm singing, that is when I feel closest to God. I feel like I'm fulfilling his purpose for my life. Sometimes I get goose bumps, and sometimes my bottom lip quivers. I know it is God, because this business is insane and I want to give up on it every day. It's my belief that keeps me going....I used to sing at the gay clubs in D.C., and the boys would come up onstage and give me tips. They still do! There was a gay Stanford law student who started a Save Frenchie Web site and Save Frenchie T-shirts. All the important men in my life have been gay. Even though I'm not gay, I've always been a member of the gay community.

Nice bathrobe: Will Arnett's gay cameo in 30 Rock.

Vogue Hommes International attempts to capture the spirit (and the abs) of JFK Jr.

Village People celebrate 30 years in show business: "David Hodo, the construction worker, remembers it well. 'The (casting) ad said, 'Must have mustache.' Back in 1977, the producers envisioned a gay disco group that would be "a very dark, very heavy Marlboro Man experience,' says Hodo, who immediately took another approach. 'There was absolutely no way I could do this seriously, so I started to spoof on the stuff. We realized it was more fun to have fun with it. That's what the group is, tongue in cheek.'"

HIV and Me: Stephen Fry making documentary about friends who are HIV positive and those who have died of AIDS. Fry: “I’m not HIV positive myself but the documentary is something very close to my heart as I have friends who have died from AIDS and who are HIV positive. I’ve also worked for the [AIDS charity The Terrence Higgins Trust] for a long time.”

Jimmy Kimmel called out for attack on Gawker editor.

Reporter: Despite their recently waning numbers, gay TV characters are gaining complexity.

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Turned Off: Don Imus Loses CBS Radio Show

CBS this afternoon announced that it was firing Don Imus for racist, sexist, and classist remarks regarding the Rutgers women's basketball team which Time magazine recently characterized as "a perfect little diamond of insult".

Said CBS chairman Les Moonves: "From the outset, I believe all of us have been deeply upset and revulsed by the statements that were made on our air about the young women who represented Rutgers University in the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship with such class, energy and talent. Those who have spoken with us the last few days represent people of goodwill from all segments of our society - all races, economic groups, men and women alike. In our meetings with concerned groups, there has been much discussion of the effect language like this has on our young people, particularly young women of color trying to make their way in this society. That consideration has weighed most heavily on our minds as we made our decision, as have the many emails, phone calls and personal discussions we have had with our colleagues across the CBS Corporation and our many other constituencies."

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MSNBC Cans Imus as Debate on Hate Speech Rages [tr]

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MSNBC Cans Imus as Debate on Hate Speech Rages

After several advertisers (General Motors, American Express, Sprint Nextel, GlaxoSmithKline, TD Ameritrade and Ditech.com.) said they were pulling ads from MSNBC due to Don Imus' racist remarks, the network announced that it would no longer be airing Imus' talk show (see video). CBS radio, another of the show's broadcasters, announced they would monitor the situation closely but stick to the two-week suspension they had put in place. Imus' comments, that memebers of the Rutger's women's basketball team were "nappy-headed hos", has set off a national debate on racism, political correctness, freedom of speech, and tangentially, homophobia and sexism.

Al Sharpton, who has been a vocal leader in efforts to get Imus off the air, said, "This has never been about Don Imus. I have no idea whether his is a good man or not. This is about the use of public airwaves for bigoted, racist speech."

Imus appeared on Al Sharpton's radio show earlier this week and apologized for the comments.

Imus' comments inspired statements from many of the presidential candidates as well.

Barack Obama, who said he would never again appear on Imus' show, told ABC News: "I understand MSNBC has suspended Mr. Imus, but I would also say that there's nobody on my staff who would still be working for me if they made a comment like that about anybody of any ethnic group. And I would hope that NBC ends up having that same attitude...He didn’t just cross the line. He fed into some of the worst stereotypes that my two young daughters are having to deal with today in America."

On Tuesday, Hillary Clinton said, "I've never wanted to go on his show and I certainly don't ever intend to go on his show, and I felt that way before his latest outrageous, hateful, hurtful comments."

John Edwards made his intentions less specific: "I believe in redemption, I believe in forgiveness...What he said is wrong because it's wrong. It has to be condemned, we have to speak out when people use this kind of language. This is a very serious matter, it should be taken very seriously."

According to CBS, John McCain and Rudy Giuliani have both said they would continue to appear on Imus' show.

In Pennsylvania, a radio DJ was fired for sponsoring a contest in which viewers called in to repeat Imus' poisonous phrase: "I'm a nappy-headed ho."

And at Rutgers, students rallied to protest Imus' remarks, and Mary S. Hartman, university professor and director of the Institute for Women's Leadership, explained to the Home News Tribune why she thought Imus' remarks had touched a national nerve: "I think what (Imus') remark did was to expose the latent anger that we all feel. We are awakened anew to things that we just never paid attention to. I think people are just saying, 'Enough! We're not going to take it anymore!' There is a lot of hope here. Today is the beginning. A celebration of these young women was critically important for us, and to tell the world that this kind of trash radio needs to stop."

Imus on Al Sharpton's Radio show - transcript [nyt]
NBC Drops Imus Show From Its Cable Network [nyt]
Edwards On Imus Spat: 'I Believe In Forgiveness' [cbs]
Obama: Fire Imus [abc]

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Towleroad Guide to the Tube: #114

BARACK OBAMA: Talks running mate on David Letterman.

DON IMUS: Calls the Rutgers women's basketball team "nappy headed hos" (above right) and then apologizes for the comments (below left). MSNBC suspended Imus for two weeks because of the comments.

Imus has a long history of not only racist remarks, but anti-gay and sexist ones, as well. Numerous examples can be seen in the video (below right) from 3/16. AmericaBlog has an analysis.

Check out our previous guides to the Tube here!

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