CNN's "Showbiz Tonight" Sets Bisexuals Back Twenty Years With "Flexisexual" Segment

When it comes to GLBT issues, CNN's Showbiz Tonight may have reached a new low this week, with their segment "Hollywood and flexisexuality."

Watch for yourself.

What's so bad? It's hard to know where to start. Clearly, the purpose of this piece of "journalism" was mostly to titillate male viewers with Megan Fox crawling around in her underwear and other clips of women kissing.

From Brooke Anderson's inane introduction, where she breathlessly announces the trend that could "redefine how we all talk about sex forever," to the self-serving warning that the content would touch on topics of an "adult nature," the segment was pretty much an embarrassment from start to finish.

Probably the most egregious aspect to the "report" is the way it reduces bisexuals — er, "flexisexuals'? — to wanton sexpots who "don't want to play by the rules." Then there is the "expert" named Dr. Reef Karim — a Psychiatrist/Relationship Therapist — who says "flexisexuality seems to be much more about sex. About eroticism. About doing whatever you want to do without being labeled."

Yeah, because bisexuals don't have nearly enough trouble dealing with the stereotype they are hedonistic, sex-crazed rule breakers as it is.

Then the show turns to UrbanDictionary.com to define the word "flexisexual." It says a flexisexual "will try to attract both sexes, yet refuses to be identified as bisexual." The definition then goes on to add, "This person will constantly alter which gender they are attracted to."

So much for the idea, widely accepted in the scientific community, that people don't choose their sexual orientation. Even bringing on Faith Cheltenham, the president of Bi-Net, to address the issue doesn't do nearly enough to present any actual thoughtful dialogue — especially when that is "balanced out" by yet another shrink who warns of the "dangers" of impressionable kids being influenced by their celebrity idols.

BTW, did anyone else notice what was missing from the segment? That's right — any discussion of male "flexisexuals." You'd think the show would at least acknowledge that fact, but since this is really just about pandering to stereotypes (and titillating straight male viewers), it probably never even occurred to them.

Obviously, there is a real discussion to be had around the issue of "bisexual chic," where some female celebrities seem to be coming out as bisexual — or at least playing with sexual boundaries — in order to be "shocking" or at least get attention for themselves. But wouldn't part of that discussion be why male celebrities aren't doing it, and what that says about our society?

Indeed, this whole piece was just an attempt by Showbiz Tonight to get attention for itself. In other words, they're just doing what some of these celebrities are doing. The difference is, Showbiz Tonight also wants to judge these celebrities.

Say what you will about annoying, self-promoting flexisexuals: at least they're not also sanctimonious hypocrites like Showbiz Tonight.