LGBT Organizations Urge Orbitz To Drop Fox News

Dan82 · May 18, 2011

http://dropfox.com/blog/201105160004

LGBT organizations Courage Campaign, GLAAD and Equality Matters join DropFox in asking Orbitz to cease sponsoring Fox News due to Fox's long history of anti-LGBT bigotry.

You can sign the letter to Orbitz and add your voice to future DropFox campaigns here.

Text of the letter sent to Orbitz's CEO:
TO: Barney Harford, CEO Orbitz Worldwide

Dear Mr. Harford,

It has recently come to our attention that your company buys advertising on Fox News Channel. Orbitz prides itself on being a good friend to the LGBT community, and we are writing you to raise our concerns about your association with a network that advances destructive anti-gay rhetoric.

Your gay-specific travel site has been warmly received in the gay community, has resulted in higher quality service for the LGBT community and has achieved an increase in growth for Orbitz. Additionally, in the last few years, leading LGBT organizations Human Rights Campaign and GLAAD have recognized the great work that Orbitz has done in partnering with and catering to the LGBT community.

In that same time period, Fox News demonstrated an indefensible bias in its coverage of core issues for the LGBT community. An analysis of coverage on everything from gay marriage to the repeal of DADT to gay individuals supports a conclusion that Fox's coverage is driven by a political agenda and cannot be considered an objective news source.

Here are a few examples of where Fox News acted in clear opposition to the best interest of the LGBT community:

* Fox News gave Mike Huckabee his own show despite a history of comparing homosexuality to drug abuse, incest, pedophilia, and necrophilia. Huckabee has repeatedly used his Fox platform to campaign against gay marriage, even insultingly suggesting that marriage equality poses a threat to stable society.

* Bill O' Reilly has repeatedly used his popular and prime time show to warn against the "dangers" of allowing gay people near children, to assert that same-sex marriage could lead to nuptials with turtles, ducks or dolphins, and to baselessly claim that implementing a hate crimes bill could protect pedophiles.

* Fox News repeatedly perpetuated lies that repealing Don't Ask Don't Tell would impact troop readiness and morale, despite multiple reports -- including the Pentagon's -- to the contrary.

These campaigns of misinformation, smears, and flat-out lies -- which are propagated throughout Fox News' programming, including its so-called news shows -- do real damage to our families and communities. They also call attention to the fact that by supporting Fox News, Orbitz is supporting an organization committed to advancing an agenda that demeans many of your customers and advocates limiting their civil rights. It also undermines Orbitz's laudable support for the LGBT community.

Given the tenacity with which Fox is committed to this agenda as demonstrated by an enclosed compendium of its coverage, it is our sincere hope that you will rethink your decision to support them financially through ad revenue.

We welcome the opportunity to discuss this further.

Thank you,

Rick Jacobs, Courage Campaign

Jarrett Barrios, GLAAD

Ilyse Hogue, DropFox Campaign

Richard Socarides, Equality Matters

http://dropfox.com/blog/201105160004
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Lolguy · May 18, 2011

Seems like a reasonable letter. Fox news is run by a bunch of ignorant bigots anyways. I've never liked them.

TheL · May 18, 2011

Yeah, that sounds pretty reasonable to me as well. Err...I do not like Bill O' Reilly.

LGBT Organizations Urge Orbitz To Drop Fox News

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