The Advocate got a lot of attention last year for making Pope Francis its Person of the Year on the wispiest of arguments (actually, just five words: “Who am I to judge?”). This year, the magazine has gone from heaven to hell: it’s chosen Vladimir Putin as its Person of the Year. Putin graces the magazine cover with this new title cutely arranged as a Hitler-type mustache.
Apparently, Adolf was unavailable this year.
“Driving the governmental, religious, and popular disdain for gays and lesbians, the Russian president became the single greatest threat to LGBTs in the world in 2014,” the magazine proclaims.
You can’t argue that Putin is one of the most despicable creatures on the face of the earth. But at this point you have to wonder if The Advocate is just trolling us by picking the most outrageous person it can imagine.
How about we take this to the next level?
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The stated criteria for being the Person of the Year is being that special someone who was “most influential on LGBT lives during 2014.” The nine other finalists are a celebrity-heavy list (Neil Patrick Harris, Laverne Cox, Robin Roberts, Anna Paquin, Ellen Page), with one congregation–the United Church of Christ–as the stand-in for marriage equality.
Which raises the question: can’t The Advocate find any actual activists?
This isn’t to badmouth any of the finalists, although two of them, Tim Cook and Robin Roberts, have previously served as spokesmodels for the glass closet. But there are a lot of people who aren’t Oscar winners, multi-millionaires, or Tony hosts who have done a lot for their community too.
How about Mark Zmuda, who was fired from his job at a Catholic high school and sued, because the school found out he got married? Or John Abdallah Wambere, who faced death by being an out gay man in Uganda?
Or how about the activists in Russia who risk their lives to fight for their rights? You know, the people actually standing up to Putin.
The Advocate is clearly trying to emulate Time, whose person of the year is chosen based on who most influenced the news. But Time doesn’t pretend to represent the interests of an entire community the way The Advocate does. Moreover, The Advocate’s did have a long-standing tradition of choosing as Person of the Year someone who advanced the goals and visibility of the LGBT movement, like fighting the religious right or being one of the heroes of September 11.
Now, of course, it’s about getting clicks by being as outrageous as possible. Vladimir Putin will be hard to top (no jokes, please). But Phil Robertson is still available. Imagine the clicks The Advocate would get from that.
jason smeds
Is The Advocate even owned by gay people? Methinks it’s owned by straights.
You have to worry about the gay media these days. Almost all of it is owned by straights who think they know what’s best for us.
Milk
The Advocate will do anything to stay alive like a has been reality contestant.
Kieran
Ever since Putin refused to roll over and support the neocon plans to bomb and destabilize Syria there has been a not so thinly veiled effort to demonize him as “the new Hitler”. We all know the Advocate is notorious for having their own political agenda outside of supporting gay civil and human rights.
Homophobia in Russia is hardly a new phenomenon. We need to ask WHY has it become such an issue all of a sudden? Why aren’t we focusing on the homophobia of leaders in places like Egypt, Saudi Arabia or Jordan?
Aromaeus
@Kieran: because that only affects gay men of color and we know the broader gay rights movement doesn’t give a sh!t about us.
The Advocate is as irrelevant as GLAAD.
Ummmm Yeah
What part of they put a Hitler mustache on him and that’s the worst thing you can possibly do to a Russian, unless you take their vodka away or make them take a bath, is it that the rest of the world isn’t getting? I get it. Why don’t you?
Desert Boy
Apparently, the Advocate thinks controversy will create buzz and readers will go to their stupid website, watch a 60 second advertisement and then read this appalling piece of dreck. Fuck you, Advocate.
Saint Law
@Kieran: Yes, because if there’s one thing Putin is interested in it’s promoting stability. Just ask any of Russia’s former satellites.
And the idea that this barbaric ex-secret police man and kleptocrat represents some kind of moral counterpoint to the neo-cons is truly lamentable.
Russian gays and lesbians are the canaries in the mine. Your country and much of western Europe will be at war with this murderer’s regime in the not too distant future.
For once the Advocate got it right.
Milk
The only way to destabilize Russia is to freeze Putin’s foreign bank accounts.
BJ McFrisky
Putin is a fan of Charlie Chaplin?
AtticusBennett
I’m not surprised Vladimir Putin was named not just Advocate’s “person of the year”, but the most powerful person in the world by Forbes. Here’s a man whose country’s appalling atrocities against human rights got massive worldwide attention, and nothing remotely resembling a boycott. A man whose Stalin-esque politics and affronts to human equality didn’t seem to faze many from the “civilized nations” who attended the Sochi olympics, including Team Canada, who are a national embarrassment as they pathetically fawned over him to take “selfies”. as another writer aptly put it, “Hitler threw a circus, and you bought a balloon.”
then we had an invasion into another land, reports of planes being shot down, and the “mighty world leaders” have sat like chumps and done next to nothing. of course he’s the person of the year. and he became one due to the profound spinelessness of so many supposed leaders who chose to kiss his ass.
it’s a perfect choice, having him as Person of the Year. look at how the world licked his boots while he insulted humanity.
Kieran
All the warmongering neocons who want to start a new Cold War with Russia should form a militia and go over to the Ukraine to help fight the “Russkies”. I’ll take up a collection to buy you helmets, uniforms and boots. Just leave the rest of us in America alone. We have enough problems to dfeal with right here.
Cy
The Advocate certainly doesn’t speak for me, or any other gay person I know. They can choose whoever they want to grace the cover of their magazines, but it still won’t get me to buy one. When they were a porn mag, they at least put out some quality stuff, but I haven’t spent a dime on them since then, and never will.
scotshot
No mention from anyone of Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, or the dozens of American “religious” figures who have advised him and other leaders on the evils of homosexuality. No mention of political figures – not surprisingly GOTP – who would prefer us dead than have our guaranteed civil rights.
Why not compile a list.
IvanPH
Nothing wrong with picking Putin as person of the year. Influential does not necessarily mean it should be someone who advances LGBT causes.
A top CEO coming out is admirable, however, it hardly makes Tim Cook as person of the year.
Laverne Cox? Oh puhleeease.
NJjoe
I love the front cover. It says everything about Putin. The Hitler moustache “person of the year” is priceless…Making the point.
sanfranca1
“Person” of the Year should be someone who has done something good for the world. “Despicable Person” of the Year would be more suitable for Putin.
I’ve cancelled my subscription to OUT/Advocate.