The two sailors kissing upon coming home from sea. How sweet, indeed, except that, for some, the idea that the two sailors were women was just too much to handle.
Virginian-Pilot reporter Corinne Reilly wrote the story of the two female sailors’ kiss, but when accompanied by Brian Clark’s photo, she found herself the recipient of all sorts of vile opinions:
“That photo is illustrious of why people instinctive know this country is rotting from the inside out. Whats next a close up shot of bestiality! Jim, Southern CA”
“Please spare me the deviant behavior. How much did the Human Rights Campaign pay you to do this ‘story’???”
But she did receive some letters from people who loved the picture, and shared in the joy of that homecoming:
“Thank you and your editors so much for the story of the 2 Navy women sharing the kiss. What a refreshing change to open to this story. At last, some progress on an agenda that should not be an agenda at all.”Corinne Reilly says, "We’re in a Navy town and we cover ship homecomings all the time. We usually try to find new angles or zero in on individual sailors. In my mind, this story was no different, and I tried to write it as such, although I certainly expected that it would elicit far more reaction than most homecoming stories."
The story is no different. These women serve their country, my country, your country, and yet when they come home they should not be allowed to show their love for one another with a simple kiss?
Out in Washington state, the Seattle Times ran the photo right there on page one, and Times editor, Kathy Best says, "We got 12 calls and emails from print subscribers, a couple of whom threatened to cancel their subscriptions. The majority said they were not upset that we used the picture, but felt it was wrong to put it on the front page because it was offensive."
A kiss. Offensive.
In the online version of the Seattle Times, the photo and story generated more than 200 comments, ranging from “Go, Navy!” to: “I guess I’m getting too old. My respect for those in the military just went down a notch. My God we fell so far so fast. No honor left, just social engineering. How utterly depressing.”
But Kathy Best was not to be deterred in reporting the news, and telling that particular story, and she penned a letter to those Seattle Times readers who threatened to cancel:
Dear ________,
I’m sorry that you found the photo on today’s front page offensive. That was not our intention. We selected the photo because it depicted an historic moment for the U.S. military, vividly illustrating the end of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” era in a striking twist on the Navy’s “first kiss” tradition.
As you know, treatment of gay and lesbian members of the U.S. military has been hotly debated for years, including at military installations around the Puget Sound region. As politicians and military leaders argued, the effect on individual soldiers and sailors sometimes got lost. This photo, which both our picture and news editors described as iconic, showed what the policy change meant at street level.
Part of our responsibility as a news organization is to reflect the reality around us, even if it might make some readers uncomfortable. We do not make those decisions lightly. We debated how and where to use this picture extensively. In the end, we felt the historic nature of the photo merited front page treatment.
While you may not agree with this decision, I hope this explanation helps you understand it. We were not trying to push a political agenda. We were trying to show the real-world effect of a political change of policy.As it should be. It's just a kiss. A welcome home kiss. An "I've missed you so much" kiss. How is that wrong?
I hope you will reconsider your decision to cancel the paper. Just as we value lively debates in our newsroom about how to display news, we value lively debates with our readers about whether they think we’re doing a good job. We need readers like you who care enough to call us to account when you don’t think we’re doing our jobs well. It keeps us on our toes and helps inform the choices we make going forward.
Sincerely,
Kathy Best
Managing Editor, The Seattle Times
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It is just too rainy in Seattle. Makes people crabby.
ReplyDeleteIn another 20 years people will wonder what all the fuss was about...
ReplyDeleteTiger, I hope you're right.
ReplyDeleteSeveral already wonder what the fuss is all about, it's just not sensational unless hate, bigotry, or death is the story line. Pretty story. Wonder how many male soldiers got to share a sweet moment?
ReplyDeleteThe fuss is the same fuss that people have always made. People who don't like the idea of gay anything immediately jump to the idea of gay sex. If they were less concerned with what happens in our bedrooms and paid more attention to everything else that came with a relationship; love, commitment, responsibility, etc., they'd be better served.
ReplyDelete