CNN reported that an ISIS flag had been spotted at London’s Gay Pride Parade, based on video filmed by a flabbergasted bystander at the event. But fear not! The gays are not joining the terrorist factions of the world. It turns out the flag was a symbol of butt plug and dildo awareness.
https://youtu.be/k7lfxgMLhNE
First, let’s offer our condolences to this news anchor who presumably spent several years in college working on her journalism degree, only to show up to work and broadcast this butt plug story. More importantly, let’s acknowledge the fact that none of the characters in the Arabic alphabet look like a penis and testicles, which are clearly among the shapes of toys printed on that flag.
National panic: averted. Although to be fair, there are some scary butt plugs out there.
jag4313
It does look very similar to the Isis flag but if you look closer… Dildos. haha
Ken Spragg
It’s a “sex toy flag” deliberately and specifically designed to look like the ISIS flag (I assume in a sophomoric attempt at being provocative). Viewed from a distance, in motion, it probably confused and fooled a *lot* of people. And lord knows I don’t recognize a lot of those sex toy silhouettes– a number of them look so wildly impractical that it would never occur to me that they *were* sex toys until I understood the context.
So combine all of that with the fact that it appears they were doing a live phone interview, with footage they may or may not have had time to examine and fact-check closely, AND the fact that such intemperate haste in modern journalism is driven largely by *consumer/audience demand* for immediacy, and I find all of the “look how dumb they are” sneering to be insufferably smug. I’d be inclined to say so even if it were FOX News coverage.
You want a public that’s *truly* made smarter by the news (instead of just made to ‘feel’ smarter *than* the news)? Well, for that we need to be willing to wait a few minutes for them to do the time-consuming *work* of actually getting to the bottom of things, instead of demanding to know *right now* whatever someone thinks they saw or heard.
And here’s an idea, maybe we need to give it a rest all of the setting of little ‘satire traps’– the hoax reports and the fake headlines that it seems, lately, are being cast out constantly just to see which media amplifier will “bite.” Because I’m hearing a lot of those nowadays– total bullshit fabricated just to see who’s gullible enough to fall for it, in a media environment where we know damned well that fact-checking is being cut for savings and the deadline to post content was always five minutes ago. It’s fucking obnoxious, and no wonder people’s heads are increasingly full of nonsense.
Matthew Pfeiffer
I wish ISIS could see that flag 🙂
Cam
Of COURSE CNN would report this. Not only do they never fact check stories or guests, they are the network that consistently brings on anti-gay hate group’s to speak on any gay story. They tie with FOX for that so no wonder they would believe and report this.
Kieran
Ah CNN, the Corporate News Network that constantly seeks to exploit fear and division between and among Americans in order to distract attention from the fact that 1% of the population of the US has more wealth then 90% of Americans combined.
BJ McFrisky
An ISIS flag made of dildos? How funny!
When do we make a swastika out of rainbows? That’ll be HYSTERICAL! Especially since ISIS celebrated the SCOTUS ruling by tossing three more gay men from rooftops, head-first. Adorable!
Arcamenel
Yeah I’m more annoyed someone thought making what really does look like the ISIS flag out of sex toys. ISIS is killing people, this isn’t funny.
SeeingAll
@BJ McFrisky: Maybe it was meant to mock ISIS ? (I don’t know how to feel about this one).
BJ McFrisky
@SeeingAll: Doubtful it was meant to mock.
Mocking ISIS gets one beheaded.
And wouldn’t such mockery alienate gay Muslims?
Nicki Carter
Fact checking is paramount in journalistic integrity.
Obviously seriously lacking in this “piece”.
broadshoulder
I was in that crowd on Saturday at Picadilly Circus. When Isis appeared there was widespread booing. It echoed from the rooftops. Then we caught a glimpse of the Isis flag….and erupted in mirth..
This Lucy Pawle truly is an idiot. Reporting it by phone was stupid as she doesn’t get the facts. She should hide her face in shame – especially the sneaking off to CNN. She thought she was getting a “gay boyz support Isis”. Instead its flashed around the world for the wrong reasons
SeeingAll
@BJ McFrisky: I don’t know enough about what was going on there. I do know that Muslim terrorists killed a lot of civilians in France and Tunisia over the past week.
SeeingAll
@broadshoulder: I don’t know what it’s like in London, but in NYC I can tell you the gay ghetto bends over backwards to excuse and ignore general Muslim homophobia, but even THEY don’t seem to have any good words for ISIS.
Cam
@BJ McFrisky: said… “Doubtful it was meant to mock.
Mocking ISIS gets one beheaded.
And wouldn’t such mockery alienate gay Muslims?”
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I love it when BJ feigns outrage. Let’s go through his comment.
1. Mocking Isis gets you beheaded? In London? Really? Well then, since England is one of the nations fighting against ISIS isn’t it weird that every single citizen there hasn’t been beheaded.
2. Alienate gay muslims? Only if they happen to be members of Isis. That is kind of like saying won’t mocking the KKK offend gay southerners.
But I understand BJ, you have to pretend that anything that gays do is evil and terrible so that maybe the people in your parents country club won’t kick you out, they’ll just talk about how BJ, the “Confirmed Bachelor” just hasn’t met the right woman yet, and isn’t it nice that he heads up all of those young republican camping trips.
Cam
@SeeingAll: said… “@BJ McFrisky: I don’t know enough about what was going on there. I do know that Muslim terrorists killed a lot of civilians in France and Tunisia over the past week.”
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It’s funny when BJ pretends that two of his screenames are different people and talk to each other.
SeeingAll
@Cam: Uh huh. I’m probably Cam too.
sportyguy1983
What exactly does a flag of dildos have to do with “pride”?
David Anas
stupid
Vince Bayard
Giancarlo85
@BJ McFrisky: You’re such a conservative bigot! Did you realize your republican party created ISIS by leaving Iraq and the middle east such a big fucking mess? How adorable! You truly are a mess!
Giancarlo85
@SeeingAll: You’re still spouting off garbage I see? You really have no clue.
SeeingAll
@Giancarlo85: You’re just still mad because they crowned me Miss Columbia and you had to stand to the side as a runner-up.
Giancarlo85
@SeeingAll: You can’t even write the name of the country right. You’re just too stupid. Must be a mental problem.
SeeingAll
@Giancarlo85: That’s how they spelled it on my sash.
Cam
@SeeingAll: Wow, BJ, you are really using this screen Nam a LOT!
SeeingAll
@Cam: Thanks. You too.