CNN came under fire the weekend after labor day when it's Headline News Network affiliate posted an online poll asking if â┚¬Å”the surge in gay TV characters bad for society.â┚¬ÂÂ
GLAAD immediately responded and requested the major news network remove the offensive online noll.
The poll was an online bonus to a feature on Headline News' Showbiz Tonight about the â┚¬Å”surgeâ┚¬Â in gay and gay-friendly characters on TV, and the impact they would have on culture.
According to its website, GLAAD took some issue with the segment because of its â┚¬Å”war languageâ┚¬Â against the gay community, but the poll itself was significantly more offensive.
On their blog, the organization explains: â┚¬Å”CNN's offensive poll and its attempts to manufacture controversy by granting a platform to so-called experts like [Media Research Center's Dan] Gainor follows an alarming trend of media outlets creating simplistic, predictable â┚¬Ëœpro-gay'/'anti-gay' dualisms that do a great disservice to viewers.”
CNN responded accordingly and quickly removed the poll, though the segment that inspired it has not been revoked. Results of the poll were also disturbing with 44% of respondents saying that yes, gay characters are â┚¬Å”bad for society.â┚¬ÂÂ
