By Rob Salerno:

In just over two years, Grindr has gone from upstart hookup site to a premier gay networking site with more than 2.3 million users in 192 countries. The genius of Grindr is in the way it combines a smartphone’s GPS with photo and text messaging to help users connect with nearby gay guys wherever they go.
Grindr creator Joel Simkhai says his creation has taken gay cruising mobile again.
(courtesy Grindr.com)

But the app’s success has sparked criticism from some quarters: those who say it censors profile pictures using a standard of morality that would make Victorian England chuckle.

As the company gets ready to launch a straight version of Grindr later this summer, Xtra spoke with company creator and CEO Joel Simkhai…

Xtra: How did you come up with the idea for Grindr?

Joel Simkhai: I always wondered who’s gay around me, and I’ve always wanted to find a way to figure that out. That’s largely what’s driven it. As a second piece to it, I’ve also used online dating sites throughout my whole life, and location isn’t quite a priority on them. You go in, put in a mile or kilometre, and that’s quite far. I always look: who are the guys in my building, in my block, right around me? That’s always been the nagging question for me. I looked for a way to solve that and it just wasn’t there. The second generation iPhone comes in with GPS and the app store and the ability to write native applications, and then it just became a race to get the app out as quickly as possible.

Xtra: But it is an app for cruising, isn’t it?

Simkhai: I would disagree with that. It’s an app for guys meeting guys. Some are for sex, some are just to meet people. From our own research, the number one thing people are looking for is friendship. Eighty-five percent of users have made a friend off of it. I’m less concerned with how people are using it. We’re quite comfortable with our users using the app in any way that’s lawful and safe. If they are going to have sex, I just hope it’s safe sex.

READ THE FULL STORY @ XTRA.CA

By Jeremy Kinser for THE ADVOCATE:

Dolly Parton has issued an apology to the lesbian couple who felt discriminated against at Dollywood last month, saying she’s sorry for “the hurt or embarrassment,” reports ABC News.

As The Advocate reported July 20, Olivier Odom and Jennifer Tipton and the children of a friend were stopped at the entrance to Parton’s popular Tennessee theme park when a gatekeeper noticed Odom wearing a T-shirt that read “Marriage Is So Gay.” Odom was instructed to turn the shirt inside out before her party could enter Dollywood.

Parton’s statement reads: “I am truly sorry for the hurt or embarrassment regarding the gay and lesbian t-shirt incident at Dollywood’s Splash Country recently. Everyone knows of my personal support of the gay and lesbian community. Dollywood is a family park and all families are welcome.” Parton adds that the policies on clothing or signs with profanity or controversial messages are in place to protect the person wearing the shirt and keep disturbances at the park to a minimum. Parton adds, “I am looking further into the incident and hope and believe it was more policy than insensitivity. I am very sorry it happened at all.”

Parton, a longtime advocate for equality and civil rights, is currently on tour to promote her latest album Better Day.

JOE MY GOD:

The full 1965 documentary. Interestingly, twenty years after this film’s release, famed newsman (and narrator) George Putnam came out publicly in support of gay rights. This movie was financed by Charles Keating, who later went to federal prison for orchestrating the infamous savings & loan scandal of the early 90’s.

Perversion for Profit is a 1965 propaganda film financed by Charles Keating and narrated by news reporter George Putnam. A vehement diatribe against pornography, the film attempts to link explicit portrayals of human sexuality to the subversion of American civilization, and briefly draws a parallel between pornography and the Communist conspiracy. The film is in the public domain, and it has become a popular download from the Prelinger Archives. Perversion for Profit illustrates its claims with still images taken from various soft core pornography magazines of the period, though with some portions of human anatomy obscured by colored rectangles.