Just about 24 hours ago, Nico Hines (pictured) became the Internet’s most hated man, and the fury shows no signs of dying down anytime soon.
Related: Everyone’s Pissed At This Straight Journalist Who Used Grindr To Out Gay Athletes In Rio
Hines, who is white, straight and married with a kid, has been in Rio covering the Olympics for The Daily Beast. As part of his reporting, he thought it would be hilarious to create a fake Grindr profile and bait closeted gay athletes then write all about it. Apparently, his editors thought this would be hilarious, too, because they signed off on it.
Related: Newspaper Claims Two Male Olympians Hugging Is Unmanly; Internet Goes Bananas
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Well, very shortly after the article was published Thursday morning, a backlash ensued. The Daily Beast quickly updated the story and issued an apology (it has since been removed from the site entirely), and Hines went radio silent on Twitter. But people are still infuriated, and understandably so.
Check out what they’ve have been saying…
shame on @NicoHines/@thedailybeast. LGBTQ+ people deserve respect. we are not your zoo animals. so infuriating. https://t.co/wgCXgTtFyU
— Tyler Oakley (@tyleroakley) August 11, 2016
Straight dude cruises Grindr in Rio, then all but outs gay athletes. Who at @thedailybeast OK'd this crap? https://t.co/YYtrq0Ch1l
— Adam Goldenberg (@adamgoldenberg) August 11, 2016
Hey @NicoHines, I don't think the purpose of your press badge & access to Olympic village was to endanger the safety of closeted Olympians.
— Shawn Ahmed (@uncultured) August 11, 2016
i fixed this @NicoHines pic.twitter.com/KDIGTuUvmC
— Bec Shaw (@Brocklesnitch) August 11, 2016
Heard @NicoHines is curious about why gay guys use hookup apps. Just a guess, but maybe it's to evade attention and exposure.
— MattBaume (@MattBaume) August 11, 2016
to be fair, @NicoHines & @thedailybeast were only trying to *mock* LGBT ppl, not *out* them. totally not the very definition of homophobia.
— jeffrey?cranor (@happierman) August 11, 2016
Straight journalist joins Grindr to bait gay Olympic athletes, compromises identities, says “I didn’t lie to anyone.”https://t.co/PRXGbaI9ED
— Heidi N Moore (@moorehn) August 11, 2016
I assume it's fair game to peek in @NicoHines's windows and comment publicly on his sexual practices with his wife now?
— Adam McMahon (@adammc123) August 11, 2016
What in the hell was @thedailybeast thinking? @mjs_DC, on its gay-baiting Grindr story that outed Olympic athletes. https://t.co/PgU24UoGW9
— Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) August 11, 2016
That white middle-aged Daily Beast reporter allegedly scored three Grindr dates with Olympians and I can't get someone to take me to Nando's
— JuanPa (@jpbrammer) August 11, 2016
Dear @Olympics,
Yank this guy's press credentials.https://t.co/4LlHZ75uzl
— Dan Savage (@fakedansavage) August 11, 2016
jdboston617
Everyone should be disgusted. Unprofessional, live threatening, and immoral.
I recommend everyone email the editor of the Daily Beast. The email address is posted on their website. Here’s a short cut. [email protected]
barkomatic
This article was obviously a very poor judgment call on the part of the author and the editor who should have recognized the danger of its publication. I think sometimes people get mentally caught in a western centric bubble and forget that in other countries gay people face serious consequences for simply existing.
Did the author include information revealed in private conversations in the apps? If so that’s even more serious, since although these are public profiles I think it’s reasonable to expect that a one to one conversation in these apps would be private.
ChappySmith
What an a$$hole. I hope someone treats you the way you have treated these people…you prick
redcarpet30
It’s a sad reminder that Grindr/Growlr/Scruff/Hornet/Daddy hunt/Jacked are PUBLIC! Something like this was bound to happen eventually.
Paco
This guy basically wrote a how to guide for anti-gay people looking to damage the lives of closeted men who have profiles on a public site that has no legal protections in place for privacy.
DCguy
It was even worse because he made SUCH a point to tell everybody that he wasn’t gay.
NateOcean
Sadly, this is what passes for “journalism” these days.
————-
And I can’t help but wonder about the description of the reporter: “Hines is white, straight and married with a kid…”
Such a phrase is usually followed weeks later with the lurid details when he’s caught grabbing some “under-stall action” in an airport restroom.
Stay tuned on this one.
captainburrito
Hope no one suffers too much and the journalist and editor need some disciplining.
James
What a useless creep. He should be banned from journalism. The editor of the daily beast should resign.
jheryn
The Daily Beast’s apology means nothing. The damage is already done. Saying “We’re sorry” doesn’t change the fact that people thought this sort of thing was OK, to begin with.
Removing the article after it went viral is like a judge telling a jury, “Disregard the last statement of the witness.” Are you kidding me? No one is going to forget or disregard anything.
Both the journalist (a term used very lightly in this jerk’s case) and the approving editors at The Beast should be fired.
Paco
@NateOcean: Well he certainly knows the right words to use in his profile to quickly find some action on Grindr. “White, Straight, and Married”. So, yeah let’s stay tuned.
chuck
WHO CARES…
Mo Bro
Have to admit, I’d’ve gone for it.
In a heartbeat.
calpoidog
Must have also used someone else’s photos. That face wouldn’t get too many bites.
BriBri
If there was a gold medal for slutty behaviour, we gays would win 24/7.
itzallan
It’s predatory journalism making money from ruining other people’s lives.
BillSam
“Straight?” Because he has a wife and kid? Sounds like this self-hating homo may have had another motive for singing up for Grindr!
BillSam
If there are actually gay men out there who want a [supposedly} straight married guy, shame on them! Get over your self-hatred!
VampDC
I hate this man and that article with a passion!
However him being white has NOTHING to do with anything. So queerty don’t fight with racism.
Mack
While some of you are attacking the gays who “advertise” on Grinder, think of it this way. You’re living in a country that will tolerate some gay dating where those who were on there in Rio, have to hide who they are in their home country in fear of being killed. This would have been the problem in the US 30 years ago had we had the internet as it is today. No one has the right to out any one. If one of these guys are killed when they get home hopefully there will be repercussions for the reporter.
Paco
@Mack: If some idiot reporter can lure these guys so easily, it would stand to reason that repressive elements in anti-gay governments could easily do the same. Not condoning what he did at all. It was sleazy. But if these athletes he tempted are really in that much danger, then they need to rethink their participation with Grindr and who they offer information to through the app.
CWM85
Hines, who is white, straight and married with a kid, has been in Rio covering the Olympics for The Daily Beast. As part of his reporting, he thought it would be hilarious to create a fake Grindr profile and bait closeted gay athletes then write all about it. Apparently, his editors thought this would be hilarious, too, because they signed off on it.
My only question is what does his skin color, sexual orientation have to do what he did? Many other races and gay males have done the same thing. The anti white or white shaming on this site is beyond overboard…
ErikO
@redcarpet30: Exactly why are people angry?
@CWM85: Very true. I know tons of gay white men who are married to men who they stopped having sex with years ago but they stay with them since they own a house together and the husband makes more money than they do, and they make up fake profiles on sites just to collect pics and hook up with random men.
Chuck
Has Nico Hines been fired? It’s the least that the Daily Beast could do!
Brian
It’s hilarious listening to queens and their enablers on this. All the fake outrage is a sight to behold.
Listen – you’re a community based on hypocrisy. You go around telling everybody that they must be out and yet here you are expressing fake outrage at a hilarious stunt. Don’t your mouths ever get tired from moving?
By the way, how do you know that Nico Hines doesn’t have homosexual fantasies?
Bryguyf69
@CWM85: While you make a valid point, also valid is the issue of privilege. Being “white, straight and married with a kid” does confer certain privileges that might make it hard for him to identify with the plight of closeted gays. Indeed, his reckless approach to the article would confirm that. What does race have to do with this? People who have read the original article implied that the subjects come from countries where homosexuality is illegal or severely oppressed. That suggests African or Islamic countries (including Malaysia and Indonesia), and I guess, Russia. So yes, being white might be relevant.
Bryguyf69
I am a Johnny-cum-lately… Does anyone have a link to the article, especially the the original “uncensored” version? Thanks.
Heywood Jablowme
@Paco: Right. The athletes were bragging on Grindr about being Olympic athletes. How else would he know they were Olympic athletes? (And maybe some were just pretending!) Shows poor judgment on the athletes’ part, if they are from places where being out is dangerous.
It was a sh*tty thing for the reporter to do, but a reporter from a unapologetically homophobic site – from Russia for instance, or even from Fox News or a Christian group in the US – could easily have caused them a lot more trouble than what actually happened. In that case, the site would NOT have apologized and the stuff would remain on the internet permanently.
Anyone who uses Grindr is taking a risk. (From the serial killers too but that’s a whole other story!)
scotshot
@Brian:
Closet queen attempts to school red blooded gay guys. Fails.
tricky ricky
@CWM85: listen up miss nancy prissy pants THE REPORTER HIMSELF SAID HE WAS WHITE MARRIED AND HAD A KID. so get off your high horse miss thing. try reading the damn articles all the way through.
blawrence
@Heywood Jablowme: You’ve GOT to be kidding!!! What an arrogant and slut-shaming to say! You disgust me!!
blawrence
So, this is my opinion right now…
I honestly don’t think this issue should be dropped until this journalist, and his editor cohorts, are fired. Mistakes like this cannot simply be fixed by taking down an article. The damage was done the moment the article was published, and the Internet is infamous for having a very long memory. Several of these people’s lives and livelihoods are now at significant risk. They’re only lucky right now to be protected by an artificial bubble that the Olympics can provide for the next couple of weeks, but once they return to their normal lives in their respective home countries, it is highly likely that the ramifications will only then truly start to manifest themselves.
The Daily Beast MUST be held fully accountable in the longer term. They MUST be forced to provide the necessary means to ensure the safety and financial livelihoods of the people they so recklessly put at significant risk. They cannot be allowed to simply walk away and say “oops”. In legal terms, I would consider them liable from “reckless endangerment” and need to be held legally responsible for their reprehensible actions.
Maybe an online petition or fundraising to ensure that that the company is held responsible, and at a minimum, the LGBT community helps arrange for some type of financial assistance should any of the affected athletes lose sponsorships, or fund possible moves or immigrations from countries who would, without hesitation, prosecute them for being gay. We as a global LGBT community demonstrated just how we can come together in a time of need for the victims of the Pulse massacre, and feel that we owe it to our Olympians to help them through this personal crisis at this time as well as a sign of solitary and support.
Journalistic organizations MUST be held accountable for the potentially devastating consequences of their actions otherwise this will not be the last time someone does this. Life has consequences and organizations / staff must be ready to face them. And the impacts to these athletes who have sacrificed so much to reach the Olympics may be severe, including the very potential for violence against them. This is not an “oops” issue. Peoples very lives may be at stake here. We cannot let that happen. At minimum I think we need to ensure that regardless of their public status, they are still very much part of our community and deserve the love, caring, championing, and protection that we can provide them.
OzJosh
Yes, it was a tacky article, and both the reporter and The Daily Beast are irresponsible for not thinking or caring about the personal consequences. But the outrage is still a bit disingenuous. Grindr is not a discrete gay bar down a secluded alley; it’s a public forum. Anyone who posts profiles that identify themselves is essentially coming out, even if they’re too dim to fully realise it.
cabe
This reporter is a jackass. There was no point in this article other than to threaten the lives of gay athletes from third world countries. I would urge everyone to sign the petition to yank this guy’s press credentials at change.org
cabe
@Brian:
You are a tool. No one in the gay community would drag a closeted gay person in Iran or Iraq out of the closet in order to put his/her life in danger. They may, however, drag an ultra-conservative politician who fights against gay rights out of the closet for obvious reasons.He/she is destroying the lives of his fellow gay people.
These athletes target in the article are not guilty of anything and should not be called out so their lives can be put in danger when they return home.
These are two very different scenarios and if you don’t get it then you are an idiot.
Brian
Again, let me ask the question: how do you know that Nico Hines does not have homosexual fantasies? Tell me – come on, tell me.
The reason you can’t tell me is because you can’t. You’re a community built on the fraud of “being out”. You oppose people being outed but then you go along with outing if it works in your favor. You can’t have it both ends, sweethearts.
By the way, you know that your “gay scene” is not really about being out, don’t you?. It’s actually about being segregated, isn’t it? You actually don’t want to be integrated, and you oppose it with every fiber of your sex-seeking bodies.
This is why you find it threatening when a straight-identifying man dares to dabble on Grindr.
lcandela123
Why is it relevant that this shithead has a wife and has fathered a kid? Does that somehow make him a more legitimate person? He is a fucking douchebag.
lcandela123
@OzJosh: Are you insane? You are blaming the victims here. Or, are you always a moralizing Victorian prig with no sense of the actual world around you?
Brian
@cabe: By the way, how do you know that the athletes on Grindr were gay-identifying? Aren’t you contributing to the problem by calling them “gay” despite knowing virtually nothing about them?
When the gay community imposes the politics of the gay identity onto any man who seeks sexual activity with men, it is contributing to the danger for these men. Gay identity politics makes male homosexual desire stand out in a way that increases the risk for these men.
Dave Downunder
@Brian: It amuses me the way your refer to others as queens like you are not one of them yourself and how you distance yourself from the gay scene yet you seem to know all about it. If you don’t identify with the gay scene or as gay then why do you care so much and why are you on this site harassing others?
Brian
@Dave Downunder: Don’t you have more pressing issues to worry about – such as Australia’s lack of gay marriage?
Dave Downunder
@Brian: I declared gay marriage legal last week but nobody listened. Still working on it though so keep paying attention. Moron.
Mo Bro
@tricky ricky: The reporter never identified himself as “white.” It’s purely a liberal construct to imply whiteness as evil. And Queerty is constructed purely of liberals.
Brian
@Dave Downunder: It must be hard when you can’t even get legally married. Look at how much progress other countries have made in comparison.
Chris
Calling Mr. Peter Thiel: we have another sleazy site for you to help shut down.
Heywood Jablowme
@blawrence: Apparently these guys couldn’t get laid just by telling the truth about their bodies? – that they are young, fit and in awesome physical condition?
No – they had to BRAG on Grindr about being Olympians. Just so they could get laid! They had to literally drape themselves in Olympic regalia and post the photos on their Grindr profiles in the desperate hope of getting laid. Because if they didn’t do that nobody on Grindr would want to have sex with them? LOL. WTF.
Seems awfully insecure. Millennials are so weird. At least most of these guys don’t have tattoos? (yet).
Solinv311
Maybe what the reporter did wasn’t professional but if you have your your face pic on a social media sites like Grindr you are setting yourself up for possible embarrassment.
dwes09
@Brian: “By the way, you know that your “gay scene” is not really about being out, don’t you?. It’s actually about being segregated, isn’t it? You actually don’t want to be integrated, and you oppose it with every fiber of your sex-seeking bodies.
This is why you find it threatening when a straight-identifying man dares to dabble on Grindr.”
You really don’t know much about anything, do you?
Try getting to know some gay people rather than sitting in front of your computer like the bitter old man you seem to be. We are all very familiar with the stereotypes you cling to, and with the self hatred that colors your vision of both yourself and us. Anf we have had more than enough of it, thank you very much.
the crux of this article is as much that the author and editorial staff seems to think of gay people as existing for their own amusement rather than as fully human individuals. not dissimilar to the way in which women were seen by the media as more fodder for the male gaze than as fully formed individual until the advent of modern feminism. Or the way black people were seen prior to the civil rights movement; not deserving of the same kind of respect as white people by the media.
Of course I suspect you in particular are unable to understand the comparisons, driven as you are by (if nothing else) your pathological misogyny and self absorption.
There have been any number of articles in the past regarding the high levels of sexual activity that go on among athletes at the olympics. But in those articles that I have seen \from the past, they went to great lengths to protect identities of participants rather than indulging in the titillation of subtly outing them. Again, this is a difference in tone you would be unlikely to notice or care about.
RCrystalWolfeB
@blawrence: I agree with how you completely put this into context …. we as a community should stick together like we have done on so many other issues … this is just another way for us as an LGBTQ community to show how all we want is equality
Kangol
@jdboston617: Thanks for the link! This straight, white “hetero” creep demonstrated clueless privilege and entitlement in writing that article. He clearly did not think about the ramifications for the guys he outed. Absolutely disgusting!
@dwes09: Keep in mind that “Brian” is a right-wing, misogynistic troll that always tries to disrupt these threads by posting outrageously hom0phobic and often anti-women and anti-trans posts.
Atomicrob
Lets find out what Nico likes to do in bed and publish all over the internet. No difference. I’m certain he would be outraged.
baal61
Unethical’ I think this hairy faced twat; should lose his card’ and be sued; by every athlete outed’ and well everyone’ suspected for now on!
Curtispsf
@Brian: I’d call you a nasty douche bag, but that would be an insult to all douche bags.
martinbakman
@Brian: All kind of guys, even a guy like you, are apt to fantasize about a random hook up with another guy. It happens. So why does a journalist treat these particular Olympians seeking another male like zoo animals, when ALL Olympians are hooking up such frequency that the Olympic village provides abundant condoms for everyone. I’d like to hear his answer. Apparently Daily Beast found this story a reasonable idea, but to me it is creepy and dangerous.
batesnight
This story again? I thought all was well. What’s the problem exactly?
Brian
@martinbakman: It’s because liberals fear the power of male homosexual desire; Daily Beast, to my knowledge, is a largely liberal web site.
Why do liberals fear the power of male homosexual desire? Because it challenges the first love of liberals – ie feminism. Male homosexual desire offends feminists, basically. When male homosexual desire becomes shameless and “out there”, it threatens the power of feminism.
What do I mean by male homosexual desire? I’m not talking about the safely segregated desires of feminized queens that dominate the gay scene these days. These queens are safe and separated. As such, they cannot interfere with a woman’s marketing strategy to men.
What I’m talking about is the male homosexual urge – this primal, animalistic instinct that exists in all men in the form of their desire to fu@k anything they find good-looking. It is this primal instinct which liberals – including feminists – find offensive.
notevenwrong
An article mocking only Western gay men wouldn’t have been okay either. I do find it strange that Olympian athletes (and yes, Heywood, they are probably bragging douchebag queens, but that does not excuse the journalist) would want to have sex with this loser, so I wonder whose pictures he stole for his catfishing.