May 5th, 1997
CHAIRMAN LARIMER EXPOSES ELLEN'S PURELY POLITICAL COMING OUT EPISODE TO NATIONAL AUDIENCE
Vancouver, WA—Thursday's "Rolonda Show,"
a national daytime TV talk show which aired the day after Ellen Degeneres's
'coming out' as a lesbian on TV and in real life, was titled: "Television:
Has It Gone Too Far?."
Appearing in New York as a guest panelist on the program, Washington for
Traditional Values Executive Director Robert R. Larimer Jr. agreed that
TV had indeed gone too far, and demonstrated that the lesbian "outing"
on the prime time sitcom, "Ellen," was being used as a vehicle
to advance the homosexual political agenda.
Mr. Larimer (an NRA member himself) pointed out that if Degeneres had 'come
out' with the claimed conduct of hunting and National Rifle Association
membership, seeking acceptance, approval and affirmation for her behavior
from her friends, the reaction of the Hollywood media elite would have
been quite different, and complaints by offended viewers would have been
treated with great 'sensitivity.'
Noting the undeniable political agenda of the show (Degeneres has stated
that she 'came out' "for the good of the show," and because it
"needed a point of view"), Larimer asked: "If it would not
be appropriate during commercial breaks to air spots by the NRA urging
responsible gun ownership and protection of America's hunting heritage,
why were spots by the pro-homosexual "Human Rights Campaign"
during this 'ground breaking' "Ellen" episode considered appropriate?
Who has agreed that this particular claimed behavior is any more 'noble'
than others?"
Larimer also observed that in 1989, an episode of "Thirtysomething"
featuring two homosexual men in bed lost over $1 Million because advertising
sponsors pulled their support of the program. He stated: "The sponsors
did not pull their support because they believed American viewers were
'uncaring homophobes.' They did so because they knew viewers would be offended
by such programming piped into their living rooms, and this applies to
the "Ellen" episode as well" (Chrysler and J.C. Penney withdrew
their sponsorship of "Ellen" because of the lesbian episode).
When a lesbian panelist on yesterday's "Rolonda Show" pointed
out that "Ellen" was 'just reflecting reality' since grade school
children are already being shown pro-homosexual films such as "It's
Elementary" at school and being exposed to books like "Heather
Has Two Mommies," Larimer responded: "Taxpayers certainly are
being forced to finance homosexual political advocacy in the public schools,
and here again we also have television - a very powerful medium - being
used to advance the homosexual agenda."
Washington for Traditional Values predicts that future "Ellen"
episodes, in which Ellen 'outs' herself to her parents and to her employer,
will further attempt to normalize homosexuality and seek viewer support
of pro-homosexual public policies such as the so-called 'Employment Non-Discrimination
Act' (ENDA).
Contact: Robert R. Larimer Jr.
(360) 693-2603
Email: blarimer@e-z.net