Adam Lambert has stated that he believes that there is a double standard at work in the controversy over his performance, and he may be right.
Adam appeared on the CBS Morning Show and in the intro they ran a clip from Britney and Madonna's kiss from the MTV Music Awards back in 2003. Later, they showed a clip of Adam's performance from Sunday night. However, in this case CBS chose to blur out the kiss between himself and his male keyboardist.
I guess it makes sense. I mean, it's ok for them to run a girl on girl kiss because straight guys love that! But a gay kiss? Ew. No way.
*sigh*
This site has screen captures of the two kisses.
(I tagged this as "media" because I wasn't sure which more specific tag was most appropriate)
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I agree with you and I think this double standard highlights just how normalized and validated the male perspective is, and how many women have just accepted it as an undeniable fact not worth arguing over. As if it is just 'natural' to do or see things the male way. Does anyone ever call those guys out for saying they think homosexuality is gross but then they pay for porn that features lots of lesbian activity?
I've also seen this with female friends who, when going to the movies with their husbands or boyfriends, just go ahead and see the action movie the guy wants and save the 'chick flick' for when they go out with their friends. Because it's expected that women will still go to see movies that men like but not necessarily that men will go to see female centered films. A bit off topic, but I resent that movies that feature prominent female characters and rely more on storylines than action/violence are labeled 'chick flicks' and movies that men tend to gravitate towards are accepted as movies that everyone can enjoy. The same thing is done with movies that feature mostly black actors or any cast that doesn't have a caucasian majority.
Agreed. The fact that there are even categories such as "chick lit" and "chick flick", etc just goes to show that the "feminine" is, well, a genre of its own, a specific category to be separated from the masculine norm. The feminine is always the "Other." I suppose that may explain why women can wear pants, or even men's clothes, whereas skirts and makeup are reserved for women.
Sadly, the "male" way IS the "natural" way and it would help if women (and men) didn't just simply accept this, but rather, help to deconstruct these naturalized, "man-made" (gee, I hate this word, but what can I do? I speak in a male tongue as well, unfortunately) ideas.
"I mean, it's ok for them to run a girl on girl kiss because straight guys love that! But a gay kiss? Ew. No way."
You are discounting the difference between MTV, a cable channel and CBS a broadcast channel. They have different standards on what they will show.
But it's not MTV who ran this clip: it was CBS: before the start of their interview with Adam Lambert, the CBS Morning Show played a clip of the Britney and Madonna kiss and later on they played a clip of Adam's kiss which originally ran on ABC.
No matter what network ran the clips originally, it is CBS who is choosing what clips they're showing on their interview and whether or not to blur them out.
*sigh* Things like this, when it all boils down to an irate "How dare you be gay in public?!" make me sad.