The one-eyed leading the blind

Came across this on the BBC website. It's interesting to me not so much for the response to the individual himself – bigoted reaction to a person like him is hardly that surprising; there are regrettably too many people about with too much time on their hands, too much ignorance in their heads and too much hate in them to be able to not care about something like his gender orientation. Indifference is, for me, the only rational response to something like this. Why should you care about the gender orientation of somebody you've never met and are not likely to, dancing on a show you've doubtless never watched before and probably won't anyway? I don't understand what people get worked up about stuff like this for, I really don't.

I do though, I think, understand what TV producers get worked up about, and that's what did interest me about this – the way that the company who make this show is clearly using some 'conservative' (hmmm) reactions to him to further its own ends. They are, by extension, using him as well, and he either can't see that or (I hope) can see it but doesn't care, and is a knowing participant in this little circus, using them to further his own 'career' as a celebrity.

This bit is quite a telling example of what I'm on about: 

Dan Gainor, of the Culture and Media Institute, called Bono's casting "a ridiculous, agenda-driven move" by the show's producers. "This is the latest example of the networks trying to push a sexual agenda on American families," he said.

Mr Gainor is quite right that it's agenda driven, but it's certainly not for what he thinks. The only agendum driving the producers is the gimlet-eyed focus on viewing figures and, by extension, profit. They know the value, quite literally, of a bit of controversy and its attendant publicity, and must be absolutely delighted with the fuss that's been caused. This also gives the lie to this bit:

However, Dancing With The Stars' executive producer Conrad Green… added the show had no agenda other than entertainment and was seeking to represent a range of people.

What a load of sanctimonious bollocks that is. They're seeking to get as many people as possible to watch the show and all other considerations are secondary. I bet they all had a bit of a giggle in the production office when he worded that statement.

So this reflects, basically, poorly on both sides, as is often the case. You know that you've got a media circus when the person coming out of it with most credit, playing the defensive mother's role perfectly, is Cher, for fucks' sake.