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Is it time to unfriend Orbitz?
May 19, 2011
By Adam Bink
The other day Andy wrote about our joint campaign with Equality Matters, GLAAD, and Media Matters’ DropFox campaign to urge Orbitz to stop advertising on Fox News, which has a long history of anti-gay rhetoric by both anchors and guests. The campaign has been covered by the LA Times, The Advocate, The Huffington Post, Passport Magazine, and other media.
In less than 72 hours, over 32,000 people have signed our joint petition. And you ain’t seen nothing yet… some more friends will be joining us very soon.
Today, we’re taking the campaign to the next level. Every day, ordinary customers go to Orbitz’s Facebook page to write about travel problems, participate in special offers and sales, compliment Orbitz on service, and more. That’s why we’re asking those who joined the campaign to write on Orbitz’s wall. As of this post, 582 customers have posted on Orbitz’s wall, pledging not to use Orbitz until they end their support on Fox News.
Here’s a simple message you can leave:
I will not book my travel through Orbitz until you stop advertising on Fox News and supporting their anti-gay message. Orbitz, it’s time to drop Fox! http://www.couragecampaign.org/OrbitzDropFox
An example of messages left (click to enlarge):
Screen shot 2011-05-19 at 1.12.12 PM
We can both put this in front of Orbitz and make sure other customers are made aware that Orbitz is funding anti-gay messages on a major cable network.
Below the fold, you can find the email that just went out to those who signed up for our campaign. If you haven’t signed up yet, you can do so here.
Dear Adam,
In less than 72 hours over 32,000 people, including you, have signed our letter to Orbitz urging them to stop advertising on anti-gay Fox News.
But Orbitz continues to advertise on their network. They just don’t seem to get the message. It’s time to take our campaign to the next level, by making sure that anyone looking to book travel through Orbitz is aware that they are supporting Fox News.
Simply copy and paste this message on their wall, or feel free to write one of your own.
“I will not book my travel through Orbitz until you stop advertising on Fox News and supporting their anti-gay message. Orbitz, it’s time to drop Fox! http://www.couragecampaign.org/OrbitzDropFox”
Every day Fox news hosts and their guests spew anti-gay bigotry over the airwaves. It was O’Reilly who warned that marriage equality could lead to nuptials with goats. It was regular Fox News guest Ann Coulter who said “I don’t think there’s anything offensive about any variation of faggy, faggotry, faggot, fag.”
By continuing to advertise on Fox News, Orbitz is buying the microphone for O’Reilly and Coulter. They need to be stopped.
Click here to send Orbitz a message: drop Fox or lose me as a customer.
Thanks for all you do,
Andy Kelley
New Media Organizer, Courage Campaign
P.S. If you can’t write on Orbitz’s wall, it’s most likely because you have to first click the “Like” thumbs-up button at the very top of the page and then you should be all set. Don’t worry, you can always Unlike them later!
P.P.S. While you’re on Facebook, be sure to stop by Courage Campaign’s page to connect: http://www.facebook.com/CourageCampaign
Filed under: Right-wing
Having technical problems? E-mail prop8trial AT couragecampaign DOT org for assistance!
13 Comments Leave a Comment
1.
Joe | May 19, 2011 at 7:12 am
Umm guys – Every time you fly on an airline, you give money to Orbitz.
Telling them that you wont give them your business if they dont stop advertising on Fox – you would have to stop flying altogether.
2.
Adam Bink | May 19, 2011 at 7:23 am
The people are pledging not to book travel with Orbitz, and use other travel websites or agents. There's a distinction. The other thing is, booking travel flights or packages with Orbitz benefits them a lot more then flying on an airline, which is why that's what people are pledging to do.
3.
tim | May 19, 2011 at 7:32 am
I don't get it – why the obsession with Orbitz? And not the hundreds of other advertisers on Fox News? And why Fox News and not the dozens of other companies owned by News Corporation? I really don't care about Fox News. They found an audience and are exploiting it. Big deal.
I have more of a problem with news organizations completely failing to do their job these days than Huckebee getting a show.
4.
Adam Bink | May 19, 2011 at 7:48 am
It's not complicated.
1. Advertising funds cable shows and their anchors' salaries.
2. Andy's post earlier this week listed many, many examples of Fox's anti-LGBT bias, but if you want more, go here.
3. External pressure has been successful in forcing media outlets to change their behavior. Yesterday. FOX removed an extremely homophobia story about Chaz Bono. Fox did not drop Glenn Beck for no reason and CNN did not drop Lou Dobbs for no reason. Over 300 advertisers voluntarily chose not to advertise on Beck's show after Color of Change, Media Matters, and other organizations asked them not to. Beck's ratings cratered earlier this year and he brought in significantly less money because ad revenue dried up. So he was dumped. This is all documented and pretty clear.
4. In fact, hundreds of other advertisers were targeted in previous campaigns to not air on Fox, and many are. But with respect to Orbitz, Orbitz is a strong supporter of the LGBT community and a good candidate to keep standing with us. There are many others as well.
5. Re your comment:
"I really don't care about Fox News. They found an audience and are exploiting it. Big deal."
Let's make sure to remember that next time a dad tells his gay son that homosexuality is like drug addiction after watching Huckabee, or that gay marriage could lead to marriage with animals after watching O'Reilly. There is a reason that 88% of Fox viewers voted Bush in 2004, a higher clip than self-identified religious voters, gun owners, or any other demographic. If you think television doesn't influence its viewers, or that it doesn't matter if it does, I'd think again, my friend.
5.
Adam Bink | May 19, 2011 at 8:07 am
More evidence that this matters, April 6 in the NYTimes:
The negotiations that led Glenn Beck to announce his departure from the Fox News Channel on Wednesday ended with an expression of "let's part as friends," according to several people with knowledge of the talks. But behind that moment was a torrent of acrimony that underscored just how fractious the relationship between Mr. Beck and the network had become during his three-year run on Fox.
[...]
Beck supporters presented a picture of constant sniping, planted stories about his declining ratings, and discomfort with his ability to build a career for himself outside the Fox News brand.
From Fox's perspective, the facts about Mr. Beck's run on the network have been public and indisputable. Among those were the refusal of hundreds of Fox advertisers to allow their commercials to be placed on Mr. Beck's program, and a history of incendiary comments that attracted harsh backlash, including one where the host called President Obama a racist and another where he compared Reform Judaism to radical Islam. (He later apologized for both comments.)
Mr. Ailes suggested in the interview Wednesday that he was happy with the departure being characterized as either a cancellation or a decision by Mr. Beck to quit. Fox has retained all its other high-rated hosts in the past, but they didn't come under the intense scrutiny that Mr. Beck has faced, nor the mass opposition from advertisers.
[...]
At times, Mr. Beck and his managers said they sensed that Fox was retaliating in public, although they did not prove it.
6.
Trish | May 19, 2011 at 8:32 am
Does this mean I'm also supposed to stop watching Glee?
7.
Mark Mead-Brewer | May 19, 2011 at 8:44 am
Glee is not controlled by Fox news
8.
Maggie4NoH8 | May 19, 2011 at 8:47 am
@4 Adam Bink… RE: story about Chaz
Adam,
I was able to access via this link:
http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/national/foxnews/…
Is this the same? OR yet *another* example? Note the author is a member of the "Fox Medical A-Team"! Really?
9.
Rhie | May 19, 2011 at 9:52 am
Adam – well said! I agree, visual media is powerful. One of my friends is pushing for more GOOD LGBT characters on TV and in movies for that reason. The more heroes LGBT kids can find, they better off they will be.
Tish — 1) unless you are a Nielsen ratings customer they don't track what you do or don't watch.
2) From what I hear, Glee's actually attempting to deal with LGBT in a good way so punishing them for that would be counter productive. That's the time when you would call the local syndicate (which is different from Fox news) and praise them every time they have a good character. Write and tell them to keep it on the air, if you like it.
Praise and blame in equal measures to get the change you want.
10.
Rhie | May 19, 2011 at 9:55 am
Oh, my apologies. Trish, not Tish.
11.
Adam Bink | May 19, 2011 at 11:08 am
@Maggie It is this piece:
http://dropfox.com/blog/201105180031
12.
Adam Bink | May 19, 2011 at 11:09 am
Fox and Fox News are very different. Fox actually often pokes fun at conservatives and conservative causes. You see that on The Simpsons a lot. Fox News is also different from your local Fox affiliate who do their evening news often with no slant or bias. The "mothership" is the problem.
13.
Sam | May 20, 2011 at 3:38 am
I'm going to be honest. I'm not going to get bent out of shape if Orbitz does advertising on Fox News. I would be more concerned if they were support FRC or NOM.
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