In the News
A Dallas couple had the nifty idea of bringing more attention to the same-sex marriage debate by making history on 10/10/2010 with the first same-sex e-marriage. Unfortunately, the Washington DC marriage bureau had a different idea - reject their marriage license.
Mark Reed and Dante Walkup, local business owners living in Texas, were married in front of about 80 people. The ceremony was rather typical...except for the 6-by-8-foot screen with the face of DC based marriage officiant Sheila Alexander-Reid looming behind them.
While the married (er...de-married?) couple were celebrating with friends and family in Texas, Sheila was attending digitally from DC via Skype, a practice known as e-marriages. While same-sex marriage was legalized in DC this past March, the statue does not specifically address the issue of e-marriages.
Walkup and Reed couple flew to DC prior to the ceremony to apply for their license. They consulted legal experts and took every step they could to make the service fall within the spirit of DC's laws, even attending an e-marriage conference in Michigan. However, DC notified the couple and Alexander-Reid that their ceremony, and in turn their marriage license, were not valid.
Sheila Alexander-Reid, a same-sex marriage activist, and Mark Reed-Walkup, a board member of GetEQUAL and previously active with the Executive Steering Committee for the National Equality March, are no strangers to taking bold actions. Alexander-Reid said the couple are considering their next steps to stay married while preserving the Skype option for other couples. Best wishes to Sheila and the couple on their efforts - this one could get interesting.
[Via: Metro Weekly & TBD]
Homotron.net has received confirmation from Apple on the removal of an app promoting anti-LGBT rhetoric. According to Apple PR:
We removed the Manhattan Declaration app from the App Store because it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people.
We previously noted the app's removal from the iOS App Store, but it was not clear what the official reason was or if the removal was permanent.
No word yet from Apple on other lingering questions, including the reinstatement of a previously removed LGBT social app and the upcoming release of an app from "ex-gay" group, Exodus International. We'll be sure to keep you posted.
For their part, the members of the Anti-LGBT Industry behind the "Manhattan Declaration" have posted a response and call for action on their site in response.
Alicia Keys is organizing the temporary Twitter "deaths" of some of her celebrity friends in support of her HIV/AIDS cause, "Keep a Child Alive". Taking place this Wednesday, December 1st (World AIDS Day), a group of celebrities will stop tweeting until Keys' organization raises their $1 million goal.
The participating celebrities have filmed their "last tweet and testament" videos and will appear in ads show them in coffins to represent their "digital deaths".
Celebrities involved with the project include Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Jennifer Hudson, Ryan Seacrest, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Jay Sean, Katie Holmes, Willow and Jaden Smith, Elijah Wood, Serena Williams, Janelle Monae and Keys' husband, Swizz Beatz.
According to their website, Keep a Child Alive (KCA) is dedicated to providing life-saving AIDS treatment, care and support services to children and families affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa and India by directly engaging the global public in the fight against AIDS. KCA currently funds 10 orphan care and clinical sites in India, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa.
While there are some celebrities I might consider donating to keep off of Twitter - I'm glad that Keys has gotten this crew together to help her worthy cause and intend to chip in a little to bring cutie Elijah Wood back from the digital grave.
[Via: AP News & The Huffington Post]
[More: Keep a Child Alive & Buy Life]
Recent confusion regarding where social apps for gay men stand and approval of apps promoting anti-LGBT politics is prompting some debate about whether we should consider putting our iPhones and MacBooks away for the cause.
In late October, the application "gay men's social network: Jack'd" was removed from the App Store, allegedly due to sexually explicit images. The app's developer also revealed that he was previously warned by Apple's automated submission system that the app may be rejected for it's use of the word "gay".
The "Manhattan Declaration" made its way to the App Store, allowing people to declare their opposition to LGBT people's "right to engage in immoral sexual practices, and even a right to have relationships integrated around these practices be recognized and blessed by law". A Change.org petition has since been posted by LGBT activist (and outing extraordinaire) Michael Rogers demanding that Apple remove the app. Reports are now coming out that the app has disappeared - although no confirmation from Apple or the developer, yet.
Exodus International, the leading "ex-gay" organization (HA!), has also announced its intention of targeting victims as young as 10 with new outreach strategies. Among the use of podcasts and YouTube, the group is also developing an iPhone app.
Recent boycotts of other companies for financially supporting politicians who support anti-LGBT stances seem to be getting Tweeters and followers of activist bloggers (in comments and forum discussions) in the boycotting mood. While the immediate demand would presumably be the removal of the offending apps, it's not exactly clear what the ultimate end-goal for any proposed boycott would be. However, the lack of a stated end-goal didn't prevent the other boycotts from proceeding.
If the ultimate hope is that Apple will censor content that LGBT consumers find objectionable - then the company may find itself revisiting the App Store submission guidelines. Apple has been struggling with the issue of censorship for over a couple of years now. However, this call for more censorship seems to be in conflict with previous demands by progressive consumers.
While Apple has been known for supporting LGBT issues, such as its public opposition to Prop 8, they have not censored anti-LGBT content from podcasts or ebook submissions. Since this issue has gained momentum, Apple's offices have been closed for the Turkey Day festivities. So it's unclear what official response, if any, the company may have. It's also not clear if the removal of the "Manhattan Declaration" app is for good. However, we may have more clarity from the company as early as Monday.
So what do you think? Should Apple censor anti-LGBT content from the App Store? Would that set the foundation for future LGBT supported Apps which target anti-LGBT polices from also being censored? Where do you think Apple should draw the line?
General Motors' Chevrolet Volt has scored a 93 miles per gallon (MPG) rating by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) while running purely on batteries. Once your 25-50 miles of driving on a full charge runs up - you'll experience an average of 37MPG using traditional fuel alone.
While not as high as the Nissan Leaf's 99MPG, or anywhere near the original promise of 230MPG, GM is optimistic the rating will help secure the Volt's position as leader of the electric car pack. Perhaps with good reason, in comparison to the Leaf and other competitors - the Volt seems like an actual sedan rather than a subcompact.
Perhaps the best news of all is that with the sticker finalized, after a series of delays, we may actually see these babies in showrooms.
Love or hate them - and there seem to be fewer people in-between - Apple is hard to ignore. Sliding past Google this year, they
receive more news coverage than any other tech company. So, what better way to return from the real life events which prevented me from posting (sorry about that) than by continuing Apple's media dominance? Wait...well in any case, in this post I'll recap some of Apple's recent news headlines. In Part 2, I'll engage in an Apple fan's favorite pastime - speculating on what it all means. You'll also be invited to join me as a speculator - so whip out that ouija board.
Since we last checked on Steve Jobs and company - much has transpired at One Infinite Loop. Here is a rundown of some of the headlines I'll expand on after the jump:
- iPhone 4 survives "Antennagate" - Apple exec's job does not
- iOS 4.2.1 is coming today - and one day it might even print
- Apple TV gets a makeover - but it's not iTV...yet
- Mac's userbase grows as Apple's cash stockpile grows more
- Lion giving Mac OS X and iOS a civil union - new Mac App Store offers sneak peek
- MacBook Air sends a Dear John letter to the hard drive
- Please welcome to iTunes...The Beatles!
The now-defunct XY.com and XY Magazine - which targeted gay youth - may be forced to sell as many as 1 million profiles to creditors. Which got the attention of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - who believes this puts the privacy of former members and subscribers at risk.
The site and magazine are now in federal bankruptcy thanks to poor advertising sales and rumored mismanagement of founding editor and primary owner, Peter Ian Cummings. The names, addresses, e-mail addresses, unpublished personal stories and other information about gay youth may be up for grabs thanks to Cummings' personal bankruptcy filings.
As reported by CNET News, Cummings, who founded XY in 1996, declared bankruptcy in February 2010 and among assets including a vehicle worth $1,500 and zero income - citing his status as a graduate student living on loans - he listed the "customer list, personal data, and editorial and back issues files of XY Mag and XY.com."
By including these in the filings, which Cummings did without using a lawyer, his creditors may claim ownership of his assets. His debts to Peter Larson for an unknown amount and Martin Shmagin for about $180,000 - have prompted them to file a claim stating they may sue Cummings for fraud if he does not turn over the personal data.
According to PCWorld, the FTC expressed its concerns in a letter this month to creditors and lawyers involved in the case. David Vladeck, the head of the FTC's bureau of consumer protection, stated in the letter that since XY.com's privacy policy stated "We never give your info to anybody," all the data should be "destroyed." Pointing out that even if Larson and Shmagin used the data to restart the magazine or website, the information may not be consistent with the original purpose for which it was collected.
While the issue of ownership of user data following bankruptcy has come up before following the dot-com bubble burst, those incidents did not include data collected specifically from gay youth between 13 and 17 years old.
In response to privacy concerns, Shmagin and Larson stated in a subsequent filing that "regardless of the debtor's privacy concerns, altruistic or not, the fact remains that movants have fraud claims" that could yet be the subject of a separate lawsuit.
What do you think? Do Peter Larson and Martin Shmagin have a valid claim or is the personal data of young people too private to trade hands in a bankruptcy proceeding? Personally, I can't believe Peter Ian Cummings made a filing mentioning such private data so casually and without a lawyer and while I'm sympathetic to his creditors woes - I'm appalled they'd violate gay youth's privacy to settle a debt.
Twitter is following Dell's lead by offering special deals via a new @earlybird account. Followers of @earlybird will receive tweets or text messages with special deals from Twitter's "partners" - aka advertisers.
According to Twitter's Help Center, @earlybird was created because:
Many of you use Twitter to stay on top of timely, relevant information, and lots of businesses are already sharing special offers on Twitter. We believe that surfacing deals through the @earlybird account will help you discover the best of those deals, as well as find and follow accounts that consistently provide exceptional value.
Although I think the suggestion made by ReadWriteWeb is far more accurate. Twitter has been trying out a number of new ways to generate revenue for a company that so far hasn't been nearly as exciting for investors as tweeters. These efforts have included the Google-esque "Promoted Tweets" and "Promoted Trends" as well as enhanced pages for corporations and making their tweets available to search engines and other sites.
This latest effort to cash in on the site's massive userbase is actually borrowed from Dell's playbook. In December, Dell reported $6.5 million in sales via their Twitter experiment over the past two years. Twitter wants a cut of this success and provide these partners with even more exposure.
All in all - it could be a win-win or an annoying string of ads in your timeline. At least these are ads you can "unfollow" if you so desire. What do you think? Will this idea be a huge hit with big rewards for Twitter's revenue or fizzle out as ads people actually don't want to follow? While you ponder that - head over to our Twitter account and click that fun "follow" button.
David Bohnett, who founded GeoCities at the age of 16 and after selling it to Yahoo! founded the David Bohnett Foundation, has made a $250,000 investment in LGBT social network Fabulis - founded earlier this year. As reported by Mashable, Bohnett's venture capital firm, Baroda Ventures, is known for investing in new social media and e-commerce websites - so long as they have a clear revenue plan in place.
According to VentureBeat and the company's own blog, Bohnett's investment joins ones by The Washington Post Company, Lars Hinrichs, Allen Morgan and Don Baer to bring the site's seed money to $825,000. The spherical looking interface, which ironically you can access after signing up via Facebook integration, is geared towards gay men and "their friends" to "discover where to go, what to do and who to meet."
If you've got an active Facebook profile - you'll fit right in. On my first visit I already had 2256 points, in a system that appears to be an elaborate popularity contest.
As you interact with the site - RSVPing for events online or in your area, networking with other peeps and answering questions in their Formspring style Q&A system - you gain "fabulis bits". For now you can only use these bits to vote up your friends on the fab list (aforementioned popularity contest), but according to a post to their help section - more uses of bits are coming in the future. Personally - I'm hoping you can use bits as currency in their online store featuring some cool pride items (most of which don't have rainbows - Hallelujah!).
I'll be looking more closely at Fabulis over the coming weeks - but in the meantime - what do you think of this new online venture? Valuable addition to the online queer universe or a waste of cyberspace?
A fantastic thing happened on Google's Blog today. Towards the end of a pretty typical Pride Month recap post they made a very atypical announcement. In response to recommendations by LGBT employees and organizations - Google will be providing compensation for the tax levied on same-sex couples utilizing Google's employee healthcare insurance.
As the New York Times explains, under federal law, employer-provided health benefits for domestic partners are counted as taxable income, if the partner is not considered a dependent. The tax owed is based on the value of the partner's coverage paid by the employer.
On average, employees with domestic partners will pay about $1,069 more a year in taxes than a married employee with the same coverage, according to a 2007 report by M. V. Lee Badgett, director of the Williams Institute, a LGBT research group based at UCLA.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, a handful of other organizations, including Cisco, Kimpton Hotels and the Gates Foundation, provide this same compensation as well. Syracuse University was the first higher education institution to do so when they adopted a similar "Grossing Up" policy earlier this year. However, Google is the first Silicon Valley company to take this step to level the playing field (or paying field as the case may be) for their employees.
Based on past experiences and the competition that still exists in the Valley for talent - a pool that has a high number of LGBT members - we can expect other tech companies to quickly feel the pressure to follow suit. The more companies in the US that take this important step - the more pressure competitors will feel and the domino effect continues.
For any policy wonks looking for a quicker solution, look to the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) - an action supported by President Obama and many members of Congress. For a policy change addressing this specific issue, check out the The Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act. Click here for info on how you can help the effort to repeal DOMA and click here for info on passing The Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act.
Chief Executive Cutie Mark Zuckerberg unveiled some new features on Wednesday at F8, Facebook's annual developer conference. In their latest kumbaya like move towards transforming the web into a giant social network, the company has dumped Facebook Connect in favor of "Open Graph" and partnered up with Microsoft to create a Google Docs competitor.
Open Graph is a set of APIs and Protocols that allow a web developer to add to familiar "Like" button to any web page "in just 10 minutes". In return Facebook provides the developer with demographics on their visitors via "Insights" - essentially a mini Google Analytics.
Facebook's partnership with Microsoft has resulted in a sort of Google Docs and Facebook hybrid. The experiment went live today at Docs.com and is based on Microsoft's Silverlight and of course Facebook's new Open Graph.
You might have noticed that Google is almost as prominent in this story as Facebook. That has led some to speculate this is the latest indication that Facebook is winning in a war with Google over control of the Web.
So what do you think? Is Facebook out to conquer the Wild Wild Web or just trying to make the Web a better experience for us all?
Facebook expands presence on other Web sites [SFGate]
Facebook Makes Major Announcements at F8 (Live) [Mashable]
At 11:34 AM EDT Saturday I received an iPad. It took awhile to get my data sync'd and even longer to download and update apps; yet the end result is pretty outstanding. Ok, yes, it's a big iPod Touch, but saying that doesn't do it justice. I believe that you have to hold it appreciate how different that it is, especially when dealing with apps that are written for the device. In fact, it is notable enough that I felt the need to write about it and finally revive Homotron.
GayGamers may want to check it out. It's my opinion that it will be an incredible platform for games. Even iPhone games seem to work fairly well. I know that many people complain about the 2x enlargement, but I find that that is only annoying on text-based apps. Graphical apps do get a little jaggy, but overall it's not too terrible, especially if you have any history playing the 8 or 16 bit games of yore.
I have spent much of the day exploring the iPad, and I have not yet encountered the problem of it not having support for Flash. I know that I will encounter it eventually, and I expect that to be a bummer when it happens. Until then, there is plenty to keep me entertained.
Like the iPhone, learning to type well is going to take some time. It's still not the same as a regular keyboard, but I know that I got much faster typing on my iPhone, so I'm expecting that I will get the feel for how to type quickly with the iPad.
The number of iPad apps is still a bit limited at the moment, but now that independent developers have the device in their hands, you can expect to see an explosion of iPad apps just like happened for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
And girls who like girls who like fembots!
Gadget of the Week
3D iPhone glasses. Why?
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A Dallas couple had the nifty idea of bringing more attention to the same-sex marriage debate by making history on 10/10/2010 with the first same-sex e-marriage. Unfortunately, the Washington DC marriage bureau had a different idea - reject their marriage license.
