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The DMN drops not one but two ‘alternative lifestyle’ bombs in a Sunday Business piece
October 26th, 2009The Dallas Morning News ran an interesting piece in this Sunday’s Business section on Stephen Jarchow, a straight Dallas resident who’s chairman of Here Media Inc., which owns Here TV, Out, The Advocate and Gay.com. But as Rafael McDonnell at Resource Center Dallas pointed out to me this morning, someone at The DMN needs to check their Associated Press Stylebook. That’s because the AP Stylebook, which is essentially a bible in this industry, specifically says to avoid the term “alternative lifestyle” when you mean “gay,” and yet the DMN uses “alternative lifestyle” not once but twice in the story about Jarchow. As McDonnell put it, “I know The DMN’s laid off some editors, but what is this, 1970?” Indeed, while I generally try to avoid coming across as the politically correct LGBT police, there’s really no excuse. “Lifestyle” implies choice, and being gay or lesbian is no more a lifestyle than being straight. If someone at The DMN needs additional reference material, they should turn to style guides published by the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association and the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. As GLAAD puts it, “The phrase ‘gay lifestyle’ is used to denigrate lesbians and gay men, suggesting that their sexual orientation is a choice and therefore can and should be ‘cured.’”
UPDATE: DMN columnist Cheryl Hall, who wrote the piece, has taken responsibility for the mistake in a comment posted at the bottom of the story: “Mea Culpa…I’ve changed the offending phrase which was used unintentionally. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.” Unfortunately, it appears as though Hall has fixed only one of the two offensive references to “alternative lifestyles.” I suppose this would allow her editor to take responsibility for the other one and fix it.
Tags: Dallas Morning News, Stephen Jarchow
October 26th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
Maybe next week the DMN will do a story about Rosie O’Donnell and her separation from her “gay lover”.
October 27th, 2009 at 10:08 am
Your response is so hypocritical John…………..
First, you attack a journalist becuse he didn’t use a term that YOU thought was appropriate, but how funny that you wish to dictate to that same DMN journalist that he should use EXCLUSIVE and DISCRIMINATORY terms such as “gay” and “lesbian” ONLY !! Well, what happened to the bisexual and transgendered folks in your equation ??? I guess they are not included in the status quo “gay” media dictionary. How sad that you and other journalists only use the terms “gay” and “lesbian” when describing our community instead of using the acronym GLBT……………….
And by the way, how is Raphael McDonnell’s opinion bear any relevance to a journalistic issue ?? Is he a journalist for the DMN ?? Or just another RCD crony whom you want to name in the “gay” paper………………………
October 27th, 2009 at 10:39 am
Correction, the pronoun usage of the above comment was incorrect since the original journalist was female, so those references should be “she” and not “he” -CR
October 27th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
I see Mister Bitch Bitch Bitch is back in the comments section.
October 27th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
Dallas Morning News writer Cheryl Hall responding to comments on DMN site under her story:
“Mea Culpa…I’ve changed the offending phrase which was used unintentionally. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.”
October 27th, 2009 at 3:27 pm
OK John, but if you all are expecting her and her editor to take responsibility for “offensive” remarks, lest face more retaliatory comments from you as the be-all-tell- all of “gay” media then I think its only fair that both you and Tammye start taking responsibility for some the horrible discriminatory and offensive attacks and censorship that you both condone at the DV to filter out information that you both don’t want people in our community to know about…………
And by the way, it would show some degree of professionalism if you both engaged in your own debates rather than recruiting relaliatory commentors (cronies) on here to do your dirty work for you, as so clearly evident above…………….how unbecoming
October 27th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Dear Censored Reader:
Learn to stay on topic in your comments and stop attacking people, and you won’t have to worry about being “censored.” Read your freakin’ terms and conditions and abide by them.
It makes me laugh out loud to see you lecturing anybody about “professionalism.” And just for the record, neither John NOR I ever “recruit” people to comment for us. And to suggest that we do shows quite plainly that you don’t know either of us. And again for the record, my “cronies” consist of my wife, our two kids, my best friend from childhood and a couple of people who not only have nothing to do with the LGBT community, but aren’t even gay. And we are not holding secret meetings to plot about how to disenfranchise you (how could I try to disenfranchise you when I have no idea who you are?)
You truly need to grow up and get a life and stop inventing all these plots against you by some horrid gay cartel funded by corporate bigwigs who want to control the world. Trust me honey, I have enough trouble just maintaining some semblance of control over the pets in my own house. I have no desire whatsoever to control the world, or even the LGBT community.
And by the way, we DO take responsibility for the content of the print and online versions of Dallas Voice and the Instant Tea blog. Haven’t you noticed that we actually put our REAL NAMES on what we write?
SIGNED: TAMMYE NASH
October 27th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
“…….all these plots against you by some horrid gay cartel funded by corporate bigwigs who want to control the world.”
Well Tammye, the last time I checked, this is the same “horrid gay cartel funded by corporate bigwigs” which pays handsome advertising and sponsorship dollars to the Dallas Voice and its community partner organizations……………
Your above response, though laden with colloquialism, is not surprising under the circumstances. I mean, I wouldn’t have expected any less from such a “professional” senior editor of a paper………………
October 27th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Thanks Censored Reader for making my point for me
October 28th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
[...] GLAAD is not alone in finding Hall’s language problematic. John Wright from The Dallas Voice, a Texas-based LGBT media source wrote the following: [...]