Kudos to the Post! - Wash Post subscribers in uproar over pic of men kissing

[WillParkinson]

Wash Post subscribers in uproar over pic of men kissing

The Washington Post’s ombudsman, Andrew Alexander, reported today that an unusual number of readers have complained and canceled subscriptions over the publishing of a photo of two men kissing on the front page.

The photo (shown at link) shows two men in a light kiss, celebrating the day that DC started accepting applications for marriage licenses for gay couples.

Many of the readers used anti-gay slurs, Andrews said. Twenty-seven subscribers canceled. One emailed one of the reporters who worked on the story to say: “That kind of stuff makes normal people want to throw up. People have kids who are being exposed to this crap. I will be glad when your rag goes out of business. Real men marry women.”

But Andrews said:

Did the Post go too far? Of course not. The photo deserved to be in newspaper and on its Web site, and it warranted front-page display.

News photos capture reality. And the prominent display reflects the historic significance of what was occurring. The recent D.C. Council decision to approve same-sex marriage was the culmination of a decades-long gay rights fight for equality. Same-sex marriage is now legal in the District. The photo of Ames and Ariga kissing simply showed joy that would be exhibited by any couple planning to wed – especially a couple who previously had been denied the legal right to marry.

There was a time, after court-ordered integration, when readers complained about front-page photos of blacks mixing with whites. Today, photo images of same-sex couples capture the same reality of societal change.

http://www.365gay.com/uncategorized/wash-post-subscribers-in-uproar-over-pic-of-men-kissing/

[virgogal]

1. I'm 77 and it doesn't bother me at all. Asses!!!!!!!!

[IntravenousDemilo]

2. I would also add my kudos to the vast majority of the readers who ventured an opinion.

Relatively speaking, very few wrote in to condemn the picture. Some of the yea-sayers even said they were going to be new subscribers.

And it would be good if Jennifer Vanasco could keep the name of the ombudsman straight (pardon the expression). It's Andrew Alexander. Who is this other "Andrews" fellow?