While I do agree with the notion that this is his image, and that he should have a say as to how he is represented, I voted as I know it to be legally sound - he did allow the shots to be taken and entered into verbal contracts with both the photographer and his publicists to have said photos shown and published on his behalf. What sickens me is that he refused to complain when similar photos garnered heterosexual attention (at other venues) but now that he has been a popular attraction with homosexual men, he is selecting to have his popularity limited. Had he been lucrative enough, I am sure that he would have little to say about the matter.

A few other points:

- Please do not understand this to be a common attitude {homophobia} among UCF students and their alumni.

- Please also understand that as a community (whose collusiveness is constantly being challenged) we do have ways of responding to this negative, unwanted attitude. We need to boycott him. He is doing a fine job on his own in alienating himself from the market - in that I doubt many other photographers would wish to work with him, both in fear of retribution from our community and further in direct fear from a lawsuit when his image is published in a manner that is not to his liking. But perhaps we, as a community need to be more pro-active and more vocal in our disappointment.

I just don't get how these models can be so homophobic. Models are surrounded by gay people in the industry and if done right being a gay ally can help, not hurt ones career.

Dave, WGB

Before everyone passes judgement, i would verify if he actually signed a release. i dont imagine that if someone had signed a release, that they purse legal action. I'm gay but would understand someone getting upset seeing their photo next to a an ad for lube, if they didnt grant unconditional rights use. if he didnt sign a release, this isnt a reflection of homophobia, its an act of exploitation by the photographer. genre should be like any other legit publication and require releases instead of acting like a rag and just putting anyones photos in there regardless of signed releases etc.

IF he did not sign a release agreement with the photographer, then he MAY have a case with regard to his images being used without his permission.

If he did not, then he has no such case. The law states that photographs are the property of the photographer, not the model, and the photographer has the right to publish those photos wherever he wishes without the model's say-so.

In neither circumstance does he have any case with regard to harassment. If he can't handle attention from gay men, after he makes his money from taking his clothes off, then he's in the wrong business.

And if he didn't want near-naked pictures of him to be seen by anyone, why did he agree to have them taken in the first place?

It's like celebrities complaining when their sex tapes get released to the public - "it was for private consumption." If you don't want it to be seen by anyone, don't make the film in the first place. That's just basic common sense. Otherwise, you deserve whatever you get.

This guy sought out the one photographer in the industry who only photographs for gay publications, has cocktail table books of half naked gay models. This sounds like a real set-up.

What a shame to learn that there is still such homophobia in the younger generation. Aren't the youth of today were past that? The lines between gay and straight have been blurred with so many straight celebrities being shot for gay publications and gay personalities being shot for covers of straight publications. what a shame that this homophobic, money grubbing guy has to take a dump on the very audience —that he dresses-up in Abercrombie — to target. What he will do is piss many gay designers, advertisers, agents, stylists, industry professionals and editors off. I would think that in a creative industry you'd want to embrace all audiences. This kid is getting bad advice that will back-fire and black-ball him in the very industry that he aspires to be part of. The fashion world is small. Do you think that when Calvin Klein find out that a model is homophobic and is ashamed of being seen in a popular gay magazine (one that I am sure Calvin Klein advertises in) that the kid will be Calvin's first choice to represent a men's line that targets all men — gay and straight. My mother once said, don't bite the hand that feeds ya.

Ben should better get used to the "Gay Stuff" because that is probably the only place he is going to get.

He might win this case. It is Floriduh after all.

You know, the Land of Sunshine…and no gay adoption, boycotting Disney over Gay Pride, repealing gay rights ordinances, Pat Robertson's 700 Club, and all that other good stuff.

Why is it whenever there is something crazy and fucked up and makes you want to scratch your head and say "huh"? it happens in Florida? Maybe there is a reason why its the lowest state in the country, all the human waste just seems to flow down there.

My guess is he knew exactly where the pictures would end up, but when friends of his saw them and started calling him a homo, he freaked out and said it was done against his will. Gutless and sad, yeah. Malicious homophobia, maybe not. Maybe he's just so scared of being seen as gay. Does it excuse him, definitely not. But at his age, I guess I can understand a bit. Still, I'm boycotting him.

Het models, you don't want gay attention…FINE

NEXT model, NEXT model, NEXT model

you have a shelf life of 5 years, do you really think it's smart to shorten that to 5 minutes?

btw…models

the folks who selected you, the folks who dressed you, the folks who did your body make up, the folks who photographed you, and the art directors of magazines that feature your pics…ALL QUEERS

models if you don't want gays looking at your photos…..I recommend a career in waste disposal, I never look at the guys who drive my garbage truck.

Ben Massing: Enforcing the stereotype that models are idiots, one photo at a time.

As other people have said though, he should instead be happy the gays like him because frankly he can easily be replaced by an equally hot guy with no problem getting some queer attention in the space of about 30 seconds.

What a douche bag. (A sexy lookin' douche bag, but nonetheless.)

Seems like a closet-case to me. Fighting the battle on the outside cause he's fighting it on the inside.

Makes as much sense as a gay model claiming invasion of privacy because of the attention received from straight women (for crying out loud, man!)

Strictly from a "it's the right thing to do perspective", I feel it would be appropriate for Genre, or any other publication, to ask for the model's consent to publish his or her likeness.

Queer models ONLY…works for me

If he did sign a release then I think basically he is an opportunist
looking for an easy payoff. The fuckhead lives in Florida and he is
handsome, I am sure he has gotten hit on shit loads. I hope the magazine does not roll over and play dead on this one. But boys,
these have been good lessons for us all in that just cause a guy is pretty, and is willing to take his clothes off for photos does not mean his insides are. Frankly, the minute I hear about these shitty
attitudes they all the sudden look very unattractive to me.

Idiot, or advised by idiots, which is just as bad.

Do male models have problems with the kind of eating-disorder issues that plague women in the business? I mean, I like a well set-up young man just as much as the next homo, but he looks just this side of a medical illustration.

Eat a bagel, Benji-Boy, have a nice glass of wine, and relax. Or, since you've already screwed your short-shelf-life career in any case, just let yourself go with a sixpack. We surely don't care…

I'm an attorney. I can't fathom a photographer not having him sign a full release. If the photographer did, he has no case. He should pull his pretty head out of his ass long enough to realize that. And he should demand the return of any sums he has already paid to his money-grubbing plaintiffs' attorneys who should have known better than to file a frivolous lawsuit.

A model suing for "invasion of privacy?" You've got to be kidding. I agree with Paul (comment #21) that the real outrage is that any lawyer filed this frivolous lawsuit. Someone should take it up with the Bar Association.

I'm a former Queerty contributor. Even though I have the utmost respect for Mr. Belonsky, his account of the proceedings is one-sided.

After you follow the links to the New York Daily News' Web site, journalist Jose Martinez writes, "The sizzling snapshot listed his first name, where he lives and provided viewers an online avenue to reach Massing - subjecting him, the lawsuit says, to advances from strangers who "solicit him for homosexual sex."

It's not the photographer's fault to control the objectification by homosexual men. But ultimately, the photographer should not have knowingly leaked the images online if they were solely for his portfolio.

Also, keep in mind, that Mr. Massing is a 20-year-old kid. We all made wrong-headed decisions in the past. And hopefully, it's a lesson learned on his part.

I think the blame lies in the irresponsible placement on the part of Genre editors. It's shoddy journalism at best.

So the suit is not over the use of the photos, but over providing his personal contact info without his consent? What was the contact info? If it was just "Ben, Miami" then I still don't think he has a case, but if it was more like "Ben, 101 Shady Lane, modelguy@aol.com" then I think he has a case that the magazine was setting him up for harassment.

I never have quite as much attention as I'd like from men, but even I'd be pretty pissed off if a magazine printed my contact info next to my photo, in underwear or out of it.

I agree with #23. It is an invasion of privacy to publish contact information and opens his person up to not only gay sexual admirers, but every straight homophobic crackpot out to get queers, assuming he is gay because of the poses. He probably has a case.

I say, spread his contact information far and wide and let EVERYONE send him "we love you" messages until he cries. Post those pictures on every gay website, right next to (as someone said) the advertisement for Lube. Heck, vote for him for President, he can't be any worse that the Republicans.

I have no idea who this guy is, though he is pretty and it would seem petty! These guys who think that they'll make some cash off their looks are doing what female models have done for years. But lets face it no one really knows or cares about male modles. It sounds to me that this is someone who thinks they can make a name for themselves by filing a ridiculous law suit. If he really has a problem he should think about only do fully clothed ads, oh, but wait the more versital you the more money you make.

Just one last thought PRETTY boys gay or straight are a dime a dozen. As a gay man I don't want to waste anymore time on this petty prick!

Poor little model has to deal with unwanted advances from men. It's fine when women have to put up with it, but no man should have to put up with it.

This is the real John chiming in. I think that if you pose for nudies you're asking for trouble. Some young men are very naive and some photographers are real pervs, so I think there is some gray area here. If someone asks that their nudes not be used on a website, I think they should be removed. Josh Peters reaction made me go from thinking of him as "deliciously narrow-hipped" to "boney-assed" and his homophobia's not gonna get him a lot of jobs –he's not that hot.

As for the guy here, I think he might be suing because he didn't see any (additional) money from the publications of his images. If he really thought his nudies would remain private, he should be reminded of the old adage that one should never do anything one would not want one's grandmother to read about in the newspaper.

Its too bad our society raises some young men in this way. They drool over and ogle women, but have these outsized overreactions of "gay panic" when they are turned into the sex objects.

Ben, could you pull the briefs down just a little more? Pu-leeze. As of this date and time, Benny's MySpace page is up for review. He's really concerned about privacy, then goes on to list his location as NYC and Orlando. Comment #24 is right on.

Why do gay men continually admire and people solely for their looks; clearly he doesn't want to be admired by anyone gay.

The guy is a MODEL!!! His whole job is about looking good. And why is it a crime for a gay man to look at a good looking guy?! How fucking insane is that?! And last time I checked, straight guys don't check out Carmen Electra because of her damn brains.

This model is pissed because he doesn't want anyone (especially his buddies and the women out there) to think he's a fag. It's that simple, people. It's the same thing with that whole Josh Peters crap. They are pissed because to them, being gay is still an awful thing. Sure they don't mind working with fags, but they clearly want you all to know that they are not one of them. Do you honestly think any of these homophobes would make a stink if their pics were used on a "straight" site or magazine? What if Ben Massing was featured in Cosmo instead of Genre? What if instead of gay men, it were women making vulgar comments or sexual advances towards him? Do you honestly think he would sue the magazine? Get real.

In what I've read online about this, his lawyer keeps saying he's upset because "he's not gay". That phrase resonates in my mind, because everytime I go service my 22 year old Marine friend, he texts me later that day with the words: "I'm NOT gay".

Does it matter?

I think this is a frivolous lawsuit. I understand that he probably has not seen a penny from the use of his photo in genre, and that is somehow not right, but if he agreed to be photographed in his underwear and gave over the copyright, i.e. signed a release, I don't think he's going to be able to demonstrate that he's suffered any damages whatsoever for purposes of a lawsuit. This probably won't survive the demurrer.

Also, since he has his myspace/facebook pages up and open to the public I don't really see how he can claim that genre gave the public access to his email or something. BTW, you can change those email addresses.

If you like rough trade, you'll love male model gay panic.

Thanks to poster #23.

You guys really need to read the actually news article. Queerty has twisted it somewhat.

Here's an excerpt from the Daily news article:
[The sizzling snapshot listed his first name, where he lives and provided viewers an online avenue to reach Massing - subjecting him, the lawsuit says, to advances from strangers who "solicit him for homosexual sex."

"He's not [gay]," said lawyer Liah Catanese.

…Massing, an aspiring actor majoring in micro-molecular biology at the University of Central Florida, was pictured in the March/April issue of Genre magazine on a page filled with ads for gay chat lines and sex toys.

"It's definitely put him in a class where he's going to have difficulty obtaining contracts for family-related shows," Catanese said. ]

I'm behind this model dude a 100%, if what was stated in that news article is true. Putting his contact info is messed up and an invasion of privacy. And it will make it harder for him to get family jobs.

His myspace page is so cute. He lists his occupation as "winning". Getting not paid for having your picture in Genre and filing this lawsuit to let everyone know that sure makes him a "winner". He also lists his income as more than $250K so that's why he can afford to sue when he's displeased.

I think he should pay his lawyer to draw up an agreement between future photogs and him that specifies in which outlets his photos may/may not be used. I think that might make getting work difficult, but if he wants to do it his way.

I'll get back to you guys if I uncover anything else.

Queerty twisting something? Hmmm now THAT is just shocking… *smirk*

What's funny is that most people posting here seem to think that having your photos published means you deserve or should expect "unwanted attention." One poster even goes so far to say that women get it all the time and can't sue for it.

The sad thing is none of these posters seems to realize it the "unwanted attention" regardless of who does it or who is the victim of it, is the wrong part of this equation.

What is it with guys who think, unprovoked, they should solicit anybody for sex? Seriously, ever been approached by someone at a bar that you don't know, made no signals of interest, and had them ask you for sex? Now magnify that by 1000 fold, still great? Seriously WTF is with you people.

If Genre posted his photo and contact info, without consent, then they deserve a serious court thumping.

oh gawd, not again. When will these male models learn that gay men are the ones that can make or break a male models career?

I do think this one is different from the Josh Peters incident though.

I don't know about the legalities, or if his contact info was posted. So I won't comment about that. But the "He's not gay" thing does bother me. That implies if he was, then he would want to be solicited for sex. I don't think that most gay men want to be solicited for sex from strangers either.

I do think that photographers and magazines will shy away from him now, simply because he filed a lawsuit. They won't want to take that risk.

I will want to know what happens with this one.

Um… those photos above, especially numbers 2 and 3, are primarily intended to grab the interest of straight women?

Surely someone still has that issue of Genre and can inspect it to tell us what the photo really contains with regard to this name/location/contact info business.

If it says Ben/Orlando/his myspace, I don't see how he has any legal case at all. All of that information is public record if his myspace profile is visible to everyone.

I'm not buying that Genre is liable. When have you ever… EVER… seen a gay news or style magazine showing the personal contact information (email or otherwise) for the models in their commercial modeling spreads? It listed his name, he got some name-recognition from the gays (who probably saw his MySpace and Facebook profiles as well), and he freaked.

Modeling is a business, like anything else. He is clearly too immature to be part of that industry, despite his pretty outsides. Just dismiss the suit, and move on to the next guy who's trying to make it in a tough business.

he might not be homophobic but rather a smart guy who knows being seen as a "gay model" limits his opportunities. he was probably hoping for a modelling career and if he is preceived as gay then many doors won't be open to him. everyone has a right to protect their careers and ability to support themselves.

Ummmmm he really isnt that good looking! I see guys 11000000 times better looking than his boring ass EVERY DAY here in New York. He needs to get over himself. And NOBODY CARES about male models anyways! its the female models that make the cash. What a total loser hahahahahahaha

He should get a REAL job.

This narcissist has worked his body into shape, prostituted that body to raise money for his education and is now upset at who is seeing his body. Give me a break and a violin to play.

Reminds me of the time, here in Florida, I was in line to pay for my CDs and there was this guy and his girlfriend in the next line, obviously fresh from the gym. He was wearing short shorts tight enough for me to see he was circumsized and a cut off tank top that covered nothing below his nipples. Naturally I looked (as one does with a thing of beauty) and when he noticed me said "What are you looking at faggot." When I replied "You" he attacked me right there in a crowd of people. Luckily I wasn't hurt but when he had been restrained I screamed at him that "If you don't want to be looked at don't go out in public looking like a two-bit hustler."

I think many of the posters have got the story right. If you want privacy don't pose three-quarters naked. There are fifty hotter guys on every block in South Beach, Key West, Fort Lauderdale, Gainesville, West Palm Beach and Jacksonville than this dude. Let him go back to his frat house which is probably empty because the rest of the "straight" frat boys are busy f**king for Corbin Fisher, Sean Cody, Brokestraightboys.com or a hundred other straight boy gay porn sites.

To paraphrase poster #16 John - Methinks the lady doth protest too much.

I agree with all the comments so far that this guy probably doesn't have a legal case….

As to the being "limited" by being identified as a "Gay" model - lots of guys have been in Gay roles in the movies (who are straight) and modeling - and it hasn't limited their careers one bit.

This guy must be extremely insecure - it is only modeling photos - why would anyone assume he is Gay? This is 2008, not 1958.

I agree that his claim of cruelty and vulgarity about the shots he agreed to reeks of homophobia, and his lawsuit should be thrown away.
Having said that I do think that his claims of harassment from Gay men does sound plausible, remember the San Diego firemen? Obnoxious attackers, is this the new image we have now in the publics eye? I guess its better than the revolting pedophile tag they always label us with. There's a fine line btwn paying a compliment, admiring a male beauty and being unpleasant and considered as a threat to the point of sexual harassment. I know that's an alien concept to people of some groups who visit Queerty but to all other GLBT people it should be a no brainer.

He's majoring in "micro-molecular biology"? If he's so bright to pursue a degree in that field, he should maybe just focus on getting that done! Unless it's all bogus…

no. 6 Phototo don't forget that Calvin Klein isn't out and one of his most succesful models of the 1990s was Marky Mark (aka Mark Wahlberg) who made anti gay remarks. Doesn't seem to have prevented Mr. Wahlberg from being a success. The same gay audience that he slurred now fawns over him.

re: toto,

Hopefully things have changed since then. One of the things that has is the internet is more widely used and accessible now, so something said or done publicly in a moment of anger, can spread like wildfire.

I suggest that those who feel as strongly as I do, post on all the blogs, message boards, etc that they have access to whenever something homophobic or hatefilled is said.

As for Mr. Wahlburg, I don't think he would have escaped as unscathed today, as he did back then.

p.s. I NEVER watch a movie or support any business that actors, producers etc, have an anti-gay past or agenda once I find out about it.

no. 46 Churchill I think the new image that is being presented to straight America is that gays are predators after straight men. Did you see Bravo's WANNA BE A SUPER MODEL where Ronnie lusted the entire season after a straight guy? Why? He is straight. Then last week SURVIVOR premiered and I wanted to crawl under my couch when the gay, Charlie continued to drool over the straight guy knowing he was straight. He came off as a junior high school girl crazed over the latest boy band. Charlie is a 30something lawyer from NYC who should know better. The message being sent is that gays are predators going after the straight men which straight men have always feared.

Well, um — hate to be politically incorrect. But we do lust after straight men - often, just because they are straight - I guess it's the challenge. Not all of us, but I'd wager, most. And every man is predatory - straight or gay - and as long as it's an adult you're after, I think that's kinda okay.

He's pissed cause when his photo's came out everyones gadydar
went ding ding! He knows, that we know, exactly what he is and he never thought about that happening. He's been outed before he probably has even outed himself to himself and he is a freaking cause his whole identity is crumbling. When I was in my early 20's and not out yet, anytime a guy would hit on me, anytime anyone would even remotely imply that I was gay I would fly into a fit of rage and anger and had I been in an industry that could be highly affected by that, then I would probably have pulled the same shit this kid is. Welcome to Oz Dorothy cause you ain't in Kansas anymore baby!

Hate to be politically incorrect Dan, but you sound like a rapist.

The moment he has signed a release form, he has given approval and permission to global use of his pictures, regardless of sort or status…..

SUGGESTION
let the guy cook in his own juices, and ban the guy from pages!
And demand from shows to ban him also, the gay community is strong and powerfull enough to make fashion listen!

Guess Benjamin missed the SEX IN THE CITY episode when Samantha's boyfriend Jerry complains his Absolut Hunk/Absolut Vodka ad campaign only succeeded in portraying him as gay. Samantha wisely replied, first the gays, then the gals. Jerry's career soon went through the stratosphere.

No. 55 Mike …and god knows SEX AND THE CITY was gospel. If that show had an ounce of reality Carrie would have never gotten the guys she got with that face. Oh the fantasy world of TV.

The hilarity is that somehow the Genre spread, Morning Goods appearance, etc., gives rise to a need to "undo the damage".

Really.

These outlets are in all reality free focus groups and the reaction they get (especially the wildly positive feedback on Mr. Massing) likely speed their rise to fame and fortune.

Translation: Hey, asshats! The gay attention is working out pretty well for Chad White and Kerry Degman. Take note.

They listed his on-line contact? Gee, Benjamin, I guess you'll have to change your e-mail address.

sweetie, you're not even hot

total butterface

Um, can I sue for lack of gay attention?

(sigh) agree with you Sam!

Methinks the lady doth protest too much…

"Adams HE; Wright LW Jr; Lohr BA. Is homophobia associated with homosexual arousal? J Abnorm Psychol 1996 Aug;105(3):440(c)445.

Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens 30602(c)3013, USA.

The authors investigated the role of homosexual arousal in exclusively heterosexual men who admitted negative affect toward homosexual individuals. Participants consisted of a group of homophobic men (n = 35) and a group of nonhomophobic men (n = 29); they were assigned to groups on the basis of their scores on the Index of Homophobia (W. W. Hudson & W. A. Ricketts, 1980). The men were exposed to sexually explicit erotic stimuli consisting of heterosexual, male homosexual, and lesbian videotapes, and changes in penile circumference were monitored. They also completed an Aggression Questionnaire (A. H. Buss & M. Perry, 1992). Both groups exhibited increases in penile circumference to the heterosexual and female homosexual videos. Only the homophobic men showed an increase in penile erection to male homosexual stimuli. The groups did not differ in aggression. Homophobia is apparently associated with homosexual arousal that the homophobic individual is either unaware of or denies.

Amazing - most of my straight friends would love the attention -

Ousted Genre editor Chris Ciompi's BF Patrick Huguenin works for the Daily News. Any reason that this dumb story would be given any ink?

thanks George #62- I am very impressed that you pulled some real research out to back up what the 12 steppers have been saying for decades. "You only hate in another what you hate in yourself". It is such a simple truth. Come on out of the closet Ben, there's light out here.

This has all been blown way out of proportion. Ben Massing is NOT A HOMOPHOBE… I personally know Ben very well and consider him one of my best friends. He is one of the nicest, most caring people I know… Honestly… I came out to Ben about a year ago, and he has been so supportive of me (more supportive than I have been of myself at times.)

Say what you want about the law suit, but I can assure you that he is far from a homophobe. The original photo had been altered to make him look fully nude, when in fact, the original was much different. The fact that his picture was used without his permission and cropped to make him look nude would piss me off too! As a gay male who knows Ben, I am really ashamed at some of the things being said about him.

Re: UCFKid

I would be interested in knowing more of the facts about this situation, as I am sure many others do. I do note that there has not been one derogatory comment about the GLBT community attributed to your friend. My issue is mostly with his lawyers statement, "he's not gay", if that is indeed what he said. It implies that if he WERE gay, then he would want those unwanted advancements and harrassment….that bother's me alot. Just because a man is bi or gay, does NOT mean that he wants to be innundated with unwanted advances.

His lawyer should have issued a press release saying the issue wasn't because it was a gay publication, but that it was done without his permission, and altered from it's original to appear to be something it wasn't, and if it does contain private information that is not in the public domain, as a reason for this lawsuit.

THAT would have been a good way, to do what he feels is right, without appearing to offend by the GLBT community.

I do think you are probably right about him not being a homophobe, but we must stand up and say enough, when a situation like this makes it appear to be directed at the GLBT community.

As for the negative comments about him personally. Alot of them are extreme, but extreme is what it takes to get people's attention quite often.

BillyBob

I understand what you're saying and I agree that nobody would want that kind of harassment, whether gay or straight. I can't speak on behalf of his lawyers, but everyone knows how words can be skewed and interviews can be "edited" to reflect a specific point of view. I find it interesting that the the original statement from Ben's lawyer said "He's not [gay]" meaning she didn't directly say those words.

Like I said, since I know Ben so well, I'm able to have some insider information into his personality, and I know that he would never think that gay people want that type of attention an harassment.

He's a good guy and doesn't deserve to be targeted like this… :(

"Jai
Hate to be politically incorrect Dan, but you sound like a rapist."

Well, Jai — you sound like a tight ass. And not in a good way. :)

inaccurate grammar, 2nd to the last line. He's a bottom . . .

hummm, fishy, I went to Ben Massing's Myspace page and the person he has listed as his number two friend is Gerry Rich who happens to be the President of Marketing for Paramount/Dreamworks
google him. I have heard from several sources that Gerry is openly gay in Hollywood. Sounds like Little Ben has a sugar daddy. Gerry is probably paying for his laywers

Considering how much these models make on nothing more than their good looks (can anyone call modeling "work"?) I think this handsome young man should shut up and grow a pair. If he's going to allow himself to be photographed for money, he should count his blessings and suck it up.

"Well, Jai — you sound like a tight ass. And not in a good way. :)"

Honey, I prefer that your pathetic lil' 2 incher stays as far away from my tight ass as possible. =D

Funny.. i know Ben and he is a total closet case. I've overheard him talking to his gay friends about going home to a cream cheese party… what's that all about?

At first I thought you were taking about Maxwell Zagorski who also was an A&F poster boy and recent Genre cover boy. Is he gay too?

Whenever people are standing on a pile of dirt yelling about something, you can be sure that buried below that dirt is exactly what they are yelling about. Read the body language, too.

He's young, dumb, and full of shit.

I am actually a friend with Ben and KNOW for a fact that he is NOT homophobic AT ALL. I was told that the pictures were released without him signing a consent form. ALSO, the image was cropped and made to look more sexual than intended.

Cropping a picture makes your pants drop and underwear sag, how? What about his myspace page, where he posted those pics? Cmon.

As one page put it, he's either a homophobe, a scumbag looking for easy money, or both.

no 78 Dave: LOL. I've heard that from another A & F model whom I know personally. I nearly fell off my chair when he said it. Are they that naive? (And, if any of them are reading this, that was rhetorical.)

As far as the model in question is concerned, he needs to grow up, chill out, and remember, the gay communu#ity can make or break you baby!