20/20 on gay PDAs: The Good, the Bad, and the 911 Calls

I mentioned this on another board, but I am wondering - if this was so offensive to the lady, WHY did she watch them AN HOUR before calling 911? Mind you, I'm not saying she should have called 911 earlier (calling not at all, would have been the correct thing to do), but why wait so long? I'm sure she actually liked watching two hot guys kissing!! *ROTFL* 

R.I.P. - Heath Ledger [1979 - 2008]

Wow I can't believe that someone called 911 and that the cop actually went. That is insane.

Thanks for the great article :)

That was just sooo cool. :D I hope they do a little study like this in the UK!

I take offense a lot more to the 911 dispatch. Isnt she trained to discern between life or death situations or legal o illegal? She ovbiouslly knows nothing illegal happend and yet she sends a cop. The cop just goes where he is told. But still I was amazed when I saw it.

"You see a certain Democratic presidential nominee refusing to give up their ill-fated run for the White House. What would you do?" (The answer to the second is scream obscenities every time you see them on the television and pull out all of your hair.)

I already loved you, but now my love for you is so huge that it reaches all the way around the planet and meets itself on the other side.

But didn't you get the memo that the gays don't support that other guy?

In other news:

And think folks.... I don't think that May Sweeps had begun yet..... I can guarantee that your nightly news and at least one these news amgazines will have some gay-baiting on the agenda. Great for ratings...

At the risk of sounding like a stereotypical straight man, that woman just needs to get f'd. Of course not before she releases a Ameera-like mane of hair that she must be hiding under that bun and eases up on the rouge. I am calling the fashion police.

As far as John Quinognes is concerned, I'd say that the number gay men kissing is as high as his TVQ. Poor suckers. Hot bfs though.....

Coming blog attractions: Guillermo's Media Guillotine

http://springintoaction.typepad.com/

I had previously posted the following on another thread, but I'll repost here where you've dedicated more space to this television segment: ================================================

Watching clips like this do make me feel a bit uneasy, because you just know that there are going to be some completely moronic, hateful, homophobic remarks made by total idiots. Being somewhat of a hermit, I don't come across people like this on a daily basis, but I know the world is full of them, and it's rather upsetting...

I would very much take exception to the show's initial assertion, however, that television programming is full of depictions of gay people. That is not the case, by a long shot!

Truth be told, being rather reserved myself, I'm not all that big on PDAs in the first place. I don't mind people showing affection, but heck, I'm not all that interested in seeing people (gay or straight) make out while sitting on a park bench. (Oh, okay, I don't mind it so much when it comes to same-sex make-outs----ha!) Perhaps 20/20 should have done a test first, to see how passers-by reacted to a straight couple making out. And then compared that to the two gay couples. (The bit showing a straight couple making out in the restaurant was not at all equivalent to a couple kissing outdoors on a bench near a busy sidewalk.)

Sigh... it's all so ridiculous---like that woman calling the police, for goodness sake. Insanity; a lot of people really are idiots. But then, when I'm feeling discouraged about the state of the world, I see someone like that completely delightful woman who came up to the guys and was so very outgoing and friendly toward them. Now, if more people behaved in that manner, what a wonderful world it would be, eh? Really, she was too sweet for words. (In an odd way, she reminded me of Dianne Wiest, with a bit of that woman who plays Carly on ATWT thrown in!)

I'm like a superhero, with no powers or motivation...

Yeah, about ten years ago I used to live near Birmingham. I was walking with my boyfriend in one of the actually more progressive parts of the city (in fact, I think it's very near the place shown in the ABC video). We weren't holding hands, kissing, or any PDA, but we were obviously together. Got stopped by one of the fine members of the Birmingham police. He demanded to see our I.D.s; wouldn't say why. Made us stand and wait for a long, long time while he just stood there and glared at us. Never explained what was up.

I don't know how much things have changed there in the last decade, but I'm guessing there's a whole lot more to dig into should ABC want to do so. But then I remember, hey, this is 20/20 and ABC News we're talking about here. I guess we're just lucky that it wasn't another segment where 20/20 took their usual approach to gay issues and, like, gave Matthew Shepard's killers twenty more minutes of free airtime to justify what they'd done while playing ominous music over pictures of Matthew and playing "blame the victim"' cause he might have liked to party sometimes.

20/20 ought to have a "What Would You Do" segment that goes something like this: "What would you do if you encountered a television news show that exploited the murder of a young gay man in the most vile, sickening and exploitative way possible?" They could interview me. My response would be "Write their advertisers and explain my disgust. [Which I did, at the time] Then, never watch that show again. Ever. Under any circumstances."

this doesn't surprise me one bit. i wish i was shocked, but i'm not. it amuses me, only because it's so damn stupid..

after all, gay PDA is just as bad as kidnapping a child in broad daylight. i think she had every right to call 911....

tsk

During the opening bit, with the "gay kissing is ALLL OVER TV!!!11" line, one of the examples was the ad that really promoted gay acceptance and good visibility - the Superbowl Snickers ad!!! Way to go ABC!!!!

Also, I found it interesting, that while the gay couple were merely lounging in the chair, and sharing random pecks, the lesbian couple later in the story seemed to be taking it much further. They seemed way more intimate than the gay men, but perhaps that was just me.

I wonder what the citizens and Mayor of Birmingham are thinking right now? And has any one talked to Operator 9283?

The Caller said that they were "kinda kissing and drooling all over each other, for the past hour or so." It seemed apparent she was disapproving, not threatened.

"It's not against the law, right?"
The Caller knows it's not against the law and doesn't offer any other excuse for a complaint. But she fishes for a reason to make a complaint.

"So, there's no complaint I could make?"
It's as if she wants the expert advice of the operator to help her trump up a charge. The Operator complies.

"I imagine you could complain if you like ma'am, We could always send an officer down there."

Since the woman is merely offended, and there isn't a law be being broken, and the woman can't produce evidence that one is likely to be broken (nudity, public sex, harassment, drunkenness, profanity) then why did Operator 9283 encourage her to complain?

Of course once a complaint is made, an officer would be called out to investigate. Which means he would have to put down his donut, get in his car, drive over there to investigate. At this point he might justify talking to them. Perhaps the caller was a stalker or had previously threatened the couple? But he could see by looking at them and talking to them that they weren't a threat.

So why does he admonish them? "keep it cool." and even after his boss informs him that it's okay he still adds, "just don't do that out in public." The only law the couple had broken was being the victims of him getting off his lazy ass. I'm guessing that's the main reason he decides to become a legislator and enact the law of, "don't bug the old bat's by being gay." He lets them off with a directive to cease and desist. Like he's being the nice guy. But his own bigotry shows. How would he have legislated if the complaint was against a straight interracial couple?

20/20 has a poor record on reporting gay issues but they got it right when they quoted June Frogens, "Love is good where ever you find it."

Anyway, am I the only one who hopes those two actors are hired to star in a daytime drama where they can repeat the show they did in the Birmingham park. How cool would that be?

.

I think they downplayed the hostile reactions.  According to news reports there were atleast five police complaints.  I was happy that the lesbian couple receive largely neutral or positive reactions.  The gay male couple were good but very restrained, they should have really kissed instead of just pecks on the lips.

I have to say I'm not supprised at all by the reactions of the people in the 20/20 segment, I wish i could be. As everyone above has stated, that 911 call was a farce. There was no law broken, the woman dispached an officer that was probably needed in a crack neighborhood for a drive by.I'm sure he would rather hasstle a couple of innocent gay guy's than put himself in danger though.

 Dennis