Anti gay sign outlet

Anti-LGBT Victimization in the United States

In Norway, authorities canceled all Pride events after a mass shooter killed two people and seriously wounded at least 10 others. In Saudi Arabia, authorities have been confiscating any object that has rainbow colors. One of those countries is Lebanon, whose caretaker interior minister, under popular pressure from hardline conservatives, banned all Pride events.

Homophobia is still the rule in many parts of the world, including the Middle East. In addition to state and religious authorities in the region, among the most insidious actors are local media. While some websites and news agencies are easy to dismiss by those of us who get their information from more reliable and professional media outlets, they still are very influential and harmful.

This includes Youm7 — the Egyptian privately owned daily newspaper with a website that millions visit every month — which almost exclusively uses pejorative terminology about gay issues and parrots statements by religious authorities, including a recent list of advice anti gay sign outlet how to protect children from homosexuality.

In addition, they do not bother reading any scientific research on the matter or anything that pertains to it. In their coverage of monkeypox, for instance, several media outlets around the world blamed the outbreak almost entirely on those who partake in same-sex relations, increasing the stigma against this group and misleading those who are not homosexual into believing that they are completely safe from this disease.

There has been some encouraging movement. The main threat, according to the report, remains the hate speech spewed by religious authorities and politicians, which media outlets disseminate without providing any other comment or interview to explore more nuances.

In other Middle Eastern countries, those issues are, for the most part, either ignored or addressed exclusively negatively. To varying degrees, bigger regional and international outlets that have an Arabic service were not as harmful in their coverage.

In a previous issue of this newsletter, I briefly addressed how some international media outlets that have an Arabic service — such as CNN, DW, Sky News and France24 — compromise standards that are upheld in the English-language service in order to please a more conservative staff and audience.

I have found most of their reports were neutral, sometimes slightly positive but also not scratching the surface of the issue, instead treating the matter purely as a hot topic that draws clicks and comments. In the end, the coverage of very few media outlets across the region was fair and nuanced.

This mostly includes independent and alternative online platforms run by a combination of journalists and activists, with a much narrower reach than that of mainstream local and regional TV channels and other outlets. Most platforms were either harmful or not particularly interested in anything other than conveying what happened and what the authorities said about it.

Media outlets that are still scared of endorsing homosexuality in the Middle East could at least do what we journalists are supposed to do: ensuring fair and objective reporting. They should refrain from merely parroting homophobic authorities and include activists, scholars, experts and others who are well versed in sexual orientation and gender identity, to provide facts and their point of view.

Those who partake in or endorse homophobic campaigns are guilty of perpetuating the oppression of a marginalized and persecuted community, but they are also, in the overwhelming majority of cases, guilty of supporting oppressors in general, whether in the name of the state or of religion.

Appeasing the most conservative strata of society is not alien to many of those outlets, some of them tabloid, others owned by politicians or run by states. But going after marginalized communities is an easy card to play in order to achieve political gain.

It is the easier path than professionally and patiently reporting on those issues to contribute to raising public awareness. Just Landed. Asser Khattab Asser Khattab is a former journalist from Syria who reported for various international media anti gay sign outlet and now works at the Clooney Foundation for Justice.

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