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| 2006/11/6-8 [Politics/Domestic/Gay] UID:45204 Activity:nil |
11/6 RNC attackes "Charlie Brown":
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/TD/20061102/NEWS/111020080
\_ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4190699.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/276677.stm
Could be worse. -John
\_ What is your point? I'm a Democrat but I also think gay people
are bad and they should minimize contacts with children.
\_ What is your point? I'm a Democrat but I also think gay people
are bad and they should minimize contacts with children.
\_ Hope springs eternal that this is a troll. |
| www.nevadaappeal.com/article/TD/20061102/NEWS/111020080 GRASS VALLEY - The son of "Peanuts" creator Charles M Schulz is questioning whether Republican campaign mailers lampooning a Democratic opponent named Charlie Brown infringe on the cartoon copyrights. The mailers use iconic images from the cartoon strip: Charlie Brown's yellow shirt with the black zigzag, Lucy's psychiatric booth and the football that Charlie never manages to kick. They came from the National Republican Congressional Committee in Washington, DC, and are directed at the Democrat who is challenging Rep. The real-life Brown is a retired US Air Force lieutenant colonel who is making a run against the eight-term congressman with a strength that is surprising some political pundits. wails one flier, reproducing the scrawled type of the comic strip. After seeing the mailers for the first time on Monday from a reporter, Monte Schulz dialed his telephone, scanned the mailers and e-mailed them to copyright companies in New York from his Victorian home in Nevada City. Casual in flannel and sweats, Schulz fiddled with his glasses as he spoke. A framed black-and-white "Peanuts" cartoon hung above his desk. A Charlie Brown bobblehead grinned from atop an antique wooden bookcase. more than five cents," reads the reworked sign above Lucy's psychiatric booth in one of the mailers. That's a dangerous plan for California seniors," the mailer continued. Richard Robinson, spokesman for the Doolittle campaign, said the Congressional Committee by law does not coordinate with the Doolittle campaign. The first time he saw any of the mailers was when he received one in his own mailbox. "I don't think there is any problem whatsoever with the color scheme of the mailers," Robinson said. "I think what should be concerning voters is what the mailers say." Sources listed for the information in fine print include newspapers in Doolittle's district. The "Peanuts" copyright and trademark is owned by United Media. The Charles M Schulz Creative Association is responsible for editorial and art control. Monte Schulz sent copies of the mailers to both companies, which sent them on to lawyers for further investigation. "We take all matters of infringement seriously," said Melissa Menta, vice president of corporate communications of United Media. "Peanuts" is considered one of its top-earning cartoons and still is carried in 2,400 newspapers nationwide. com listed Charles Schulz as the third top-earning deceased celebrity in the United States, behind Nirvana lead singer Kurt Cobain and rock 'n' roll king Elvis Presley. Spokespeople for the Congressional Committee, contacted Monday, said they wanted to confer with their lawyers before commenting about the fliers. Using the "Peanuts" design without permission in the political spectrum may be allowed because it is considered a form of free speech under the Fair Use Doctrine. "There is more room to borrow in a political setting than a commercial setting," said Stephen Davis, a copyright lawyer with Davis & Leonard in Sacramento. Still, taking a jab at an opponent's name is a low blow, said Charlie Brown's campaigners. "These pieces exemplify the pathetic desperation of our opponent," said Todd Stenhouse, spokesman for the Charlie Brown campaign. "Name assault just goes to show the sleazy characters we're dealing with." |
| news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4190699.stm Printable version US right attacks SpongeBob video SpongeBob SquarePants Spongebob is popular among adult gay men US conservative groups are up in arms over a music video featuring children's TV heroes such as the cheerful cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants. Focus on the Family and other groups say the video - a remake of the Sister Sledge hit, We Are Family - is a vehicle for pro-gay propaganda. The video's makers plan to mail it to US schools in the spring to promote tolerance and diversity. The video also features children's favourites like Bob the Builder, along with characters from Sesame Street and The Muppet Show. We see the video as an insidious means by which the organisation is manipulating and potentially brainwashing kids Paul Batura Focus on the Family But James Dobson, founder of right-wing Christian group Focus on the Family, singled out SpongeBob at a black-tie dinner in Washington in the run-up to President Bush's inauguration, the New York Times said. SpongeBob - who appears on the children's cable channel Nickelodeon - is seen as an icon for adult gay men in the US, apparently because he regularly holds hands with his sidekick Patrick. His creators deny that he is gay, but he is not the first such character to cause controversy. In 1999 conservatives claimed handbag-carrying Teletubby Tinky Winky, an import from the UK, was a bad role-model. "We believe that this is the essential first step to loving thy neighbour," he said. "And the fun and exciting format makes it a lesson that's easy for children to learn." But conservatives say it sees the video as a cunning attempt to promote homosexuality. They point to the fact that the WAFF is linked to a pledge being promoted by some liberal groups which includes a recognition of tolerance of sexual identity. "We see the video as an insidious means by which the organisation is manipulating and potentially brainwashing kids," Paul Batura, a spokesman for Focus on the Family, told the New York Times. Mr Rodgers said the groups may have confused his foundation with an unrelated organisation with a similar name that supports gay youth. WAFF spokesman Mark Barondeso told the newspaper that anyone who thought the video promoted homosexuality "needs to visit their doctor and get their medication increased". |
| news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/276677.stm Low Graphics Monday, 15 February, 1999, 12:13 GMT 'Gay Tinky Winky bad for children' Is the purple Tinky Winky a bad influence on children? The innocent world of the Teletubbies is under attack from America's religious right. The Reverend Jerry Falwell, a former spokesman for America's Moral Majority, has denounced the BBC TV children's show. He says it does not provide a good role model for children because Tinky Winky is gay. Cheerful Tinky Winky, the purple character with the triangular aerial on his head, carries a handbag - but apart from that seems much the same as his friends Laa-Laa, Dipsy and Po. The characters are famous for their use of baby language, including the catchphrases "eh-oh" meaning "hello", and "uh-oh" for "oh dear". But the Teletubbies have made the Rev Falwell, chancellor of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, hot under the collar. He decided to "out" Tinky Winky in the February edition of his National Liberty Journal. He said the "subtle depictions" of gay sexuality are intentional and later issued a statement that read: "As a Christian I feel that role modelling the gay lifestyle is damaging to the moral lives of children." In the same article he also condemned the US animated show South Park as "vile and impudent". The Teletubbies, aimed at pre-school children, is immensely popular in the UK and around the world. The show was first broadcast on US public TV last spring where it is now as popular as another children's show, Barney, a singing dinosaur. But perhaps parents should beware of Barney as well - he also happens to be purple. They all have television screens on their tummies and, according to the story line, live in a "chromedome" hidden in the hills. Steve Rice, a spokesman for Itsy Bitsy Entertainment, which licenses the Teletubbies in the US, said : "The fact that he carries a magic bag doesn't make him gay. To think we would be putting sexual innuendo in a children's show is kind of outlandish. "To out a Teletubby in a pre-school show is kind of sad on his part. A BBC spokeswoman said: "This is not the first time that people have read symbolism into a children's TV programme and it probably won't be the last. "As far as we are concerned Tinky Winky is simply a sweet, technological baby with a magic bag." |