BBC defends DJ's 'gay' jibe(Filed: 06/06/2006)
The BBC's Board of Governors has ruled that the word "gay" now means "lame" or "rubbish" among young people and may be used in a pejorative sense without insulting homosexuals.
The Boad rejected a complaint against Radio 1 presenter Chris Moyles after he dismissed a ring tone by saying "I don't want that one, it's gay".
The word "gay", in addition to being used to mean "homosexual" or "carefree", was often now used to mean "lame" or "rubbish", the committee said.
This is widespread current usage of the word among young people, they said.
In broadcasting on Radio 1's flagship Breakfast Show, the committee said, the presenter would have been using expressions or words which the listeners used themselves.
"The committee acknowledged that this use of the word 'gay' could cause offence to some listeners," it said.
"However, the committee believed that Chris Moyles, when using the word, had meant no offence to gay people.
"He was not being homophobic in his use of the word."
But the committee added that it would be "advisable" to think more carefully about using the word "gay" in its derogatory sense in the future, given the multiple meanings of the word in modern usage and the potential to cause "unintended offence".
Last month, the actress Halle Berry accused Moyles of "racism" live on air, after he impersonated a "big, fat black guy".
Moyles said: "Put your hands up in the air! I'm a black American guy. A big, fat black guy. Put you hands up in the air. I don't wanna be shooting yo ass!"
Berry replied, "Are we having a racist moment here?"
The DJ denied that his remark was racist.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/06/ugay.xml&sSheet=/news/2006/06/06/ixnews.htmlOK, well now we know, thanks for telling us, shall we ask permission before getting offended next time? :eyes:
I understand the notion of multiple meanings, if somebody were to talk about faggots in the context of discussing food it would make perfect sense - but this use of the term gay among the young is obviously because of the connotations of homosexuality.