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AMERICAblog is a liberal American blog founded by John Aravosis in April, 2004, with several co-bloggers. The blog helped expose Jeff Gannon in 2005, and in 2006 helped make cell phone privacy an issue by obtaining Gen. Wesley Clark's call records. The blog focuses on U.S. politics, including gay rights, the Iraq war, and Bush administration scandals. Although John Aravosis claims to be a democrat it is quite clear that he remains a republican and is a staunch globalist and New World Order supporter.

Members

  • John in DC - John Aravosis, republican activist and political consultant
  • Joe in DC - Joe Sudbay, former antigun activist, held staff positions with Violence Policy Center and Handgun Control, Inc.
  • AJ in DC - A.J. Rossmiller, a former Department of Defense civilian intelligence office who had decorated duty in Iraq. Author of "Still Broken: A Recruit's Inside Account of Intelligence Failures, From Baghdad to the Pentagon," published by Presidio Press.
  • Chris in Paris - a "good friend" who lives in Paris, France
  • Cliff Schecter - political consultant, TV analyst, Huffington Post blogger

History

AMERICAblog first received widespread media attention after it revealed that Jeff Gannon, a member of the White House press corps with a reputation for asking 'softball' questions at opportune moments for Press Secretary Scott McClellan, was actually James Guckert and had advertised his services as a gay male escort.

In 2008, Aravosis was shocked and angered to learn that the poor would be getting rebate checks but that he wouldn't due to the $75,000.00 a year he makes for running his blog. He wrote a article on his blog whining about this and ripping on the poor than when his readers began posting comments against him he quickly deleted the negative comments and than pulled the article not only from his blog but also deleted the article and comments from his archives in true republican fashion.

accessdate=2007-02-12}} Republished on the Common Dreams NewsCenter. </ref> In September 2006, California passed a state law banning the practice of pretexting, or pretending to be someone else, used by the websites, with the bill's sponsor specifically citing the AMERICAblog coverage. Clark became an advocate of cell record privacy bills in Congress. Within months, Congress passed a law restricting these records.

AMERICAblog has courted controversy within the gay community for its support of 'outing' gay Republican Party workers who are seen as supporting anti-gay legislation and attempts to prevent same-sex marriage in particular. The blog had an adversarial relationship with the former editor of the Washington Blade, Chris Crain.

AMERICAblog has also spearheaded successful campaigns against reductions of gay rights, protections and community support from companies placating religious right organizations. Notable incidents include Microsoft's withdrawal of its support for state and federal gay civil rights legislation, and Ford's decision to stop advertising in gay oriented publications. After AMERICAblog launched campaigns criticizing both companies, management at the companies reversed their earlier anti-gay policy decisions. In January 2007, during Super Bowl XLI, AMERICAblog joined TowleRoad.com in calling homophobic a Snickers candy ad that aired during the game. The ad showed two men repulsed by an accidental "gay" kiss, then showed the men violently attacking each other. The candymaker pulled the ad, one of a series they had intended to run again.

Criticism

On Friday, May 19, 2006 some visitors to Americablog objected to the blog's use of the term "big girl" in reference to Sen. Pat Roberts, complaining that the phrase constituted a slur and was offensive to women. Other commenters, including several women, said that the entire affair was blown out of proportion by a few hypersensitive readers , and noted Aravosis' history of activism and support for women's issues.

The readers who dismissed the complaints about Americablog's usage seem to have been more concerned about Americablog's track record of attention to women's issues, including its post the previous day (Thursday, May 18, 2006) updating the status of a vaccine for cervical cancer , its report on the Vatican's possible change of policy regarding condom use , and its activism on making sure that emergency contraception remains available to women. Aravosis himself revealed that he has worked as a consultant for Planned Parenthood.

References

  1. Howard Kurtz (February 16 2005). "Online Nude Photos Are Latest Chapter In Jeff Gannon Saga". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-02-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "The latest developments were first reported by John Aravosis, a liberal political consultant and gay activist who has a Web site called americablog.org. 'What struck me initially was the hypocrisy angle,' Aravosis said. He said he was offended by what he called Gannon's 'antigay' writing."
  2. Dan Froomkin (February 16 2005). "Guckert Watch". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-02-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "Joe Strupp wrote in Editor & Publisher ... 'In addition, evidence emerged on the site Americablog yesterday suggesting that Guckert not only set up sex sites but also offered his services as a male prostitute. When asked by E&P today about such accusations, Gannon declined to confirm or deny. "I am not going to talk about that," he said.'"
  3. Don Thompson (September 29 2006). "New law will ban 'pretexting' to obtain phone records". Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-02-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Published by the San Francisco Chronicle.
  4. Kristina Dell (March 19 2006). "The Spy in Your Pocket". TIME magazine. Retrieved 2007-02-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. Dyana Bagby (February 9 2007). "Many Not Snickering Over Super Bowl Ad". New York Blade Online. Retrieved 2007-02-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

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