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Loading ...Visibility Matters: Lindsay Lohan and the New Definition of “Out”
Last year, pop star Lance Bass confirmed he was gay to People magazine, after a series of photos of him with his then-boyfriend Reichen Lehmkuhl were first published on gossip sites online, then referenced in mainstream media outlets. In this situation, Bass was clearly outed, because the photos were taken without his knowledge and consent, so AfterElton.com did not write about him as openly gay prior to his statement in People.
Portia de Rossi was outed in tabloids in 2003 much the same way, but did not come out until much later. We did publish an article on AfterEllen.com back then about the outing of de Rossi, but primarily in order to explore what we saw as the beginnings of the sea change that has now occurred.In contrast, couples like Lohan and Ronson, and Jones and Paulson, and of course, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, have all willingly allowed their relationship to be captured by the public, albeit to varying degrees.
DeGeneres and de Rossi’s wedding in Aug. 2008
It’s a fine line sometimes, I’ll admit, but one that is increasingly possible — and necessary — to draw.
Straight celebrities don’t announce their heterosexuality, we just make assumptions from their behavior. In the past, we haven’t been able to makes the same conclusions about celebrities in same-sex relationships, because their day-to-day behavior was not widely reported on, so an announcement was necessary to counter the prevailing assumption of heterosexuality.
That’s not so true anymore.
OUT AND INSPIRING
One of the most encouraging aspects to Lohan’s story is the positive influence it may have on those young women who have followed her life and career over the last several years.
Not only will they see a very popular (if controversial) young woman living openly in a lesbian relationship, but the press is giving her girlfriend credit for helping Lohan get her life back on track.
In July, L.A. police Chief William Bratton said at a press conference that he had less problems with the paparazzi since Lohan had "gone gay," adding that Lohan’s relationship with Ronson had "quieted her down" (Lohan’s response was to chastise Bratton publicly by saying, "Police chiefs shouldn’t get involved in everyone else’s business when it comes to their personal life. It’s inappropriate.")
In the Marie Claire interview, the reporter asked Lohan outright whether Samantha is responsible for the positive changes in her life, to which Lohan replied, "[Samantha's] a great person. And she’s a great influence on people around her. But I think that anything that’s changed in my life is because of me. I’ve gone through it and I’ve had to deal with it and I’ve made the decision to move forward."
While I believe Lohan is right to take most of the credit herself, the fact that the mainstream media is attributing her positive turnaround in part to a romantic relationship with Ronson is something we never would have seen even five years ago.
This can’t help but make things just a little bit easier for teenagers struggling with their sexuality.
“I’m sure there are a lot of girls out there who are so much more comfortable because they love Mean Girls and Lindsay’s dating a girl," actress Kirsten Dunst recently told Harper’s Bazaar. "I think that couldn’t be better."
Lohan and Ronson at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week
I agree, and moving forward, we’ll begin covering women like Lohan on AfterEllen.com more — women who are "out" in their actions, if not in their words. It’s going to be a little murkier from an editorial standpoint, and require more subjective judgment calls, but that’s just the reality of the entertainment landscape today.
I still reserve the right not to write about young female celebrities who represent all the wrong things, though. I’ll just call it the "No Britney, Paris or Tila" rule now.
I’m glad that you’ve made this decision, Sarah. The fact that you don’t necessarily have to flat-out state “I’m Gay!” is a sign of progression, and it’s good that AE is able to adjust with the times.
This same stuff has been reported so much better by Grrlplanet…I like that site better – it’s more fun, more interesting, and cooler.
Now if only we can get that misogynist, lesbian hating PerezHilton to stop making repugnant remarks about Linsay and Samantha.
This does kind of represent the goal, doesn’t it? Like 365gay.com, the marriage equality movement, librals in generals really, we all want people to truly treat same-sex relationships the same as different-sex relationships and announcing “Yeah, we’re lesbians” would be like Brad and Angelina going “Yeah, we’re straight”… it just sounds stupid. MAYBE the reason they didn’t say it is because they’re trying to point out that it doesn’t matter?
I’m glad for Lohan and Ronson. They both have to battle the media AND their careers while putting smiley faces on themselves. If I could make a suggestion to them: I don’t think either woman has completed their education. Now would be the time to enroll in a college and get a degree. It doesn’t have to be so intense that it would jeopardize their careers. Lindsey could experiment with different roles. She’s at the point in her career that people would approve and just want to see how she handles them.
“Around that time on AfterEllen.com, I instituted what I only semi-jokingly referred to as the “no Britney, Paris, or Lindsay” rule, which was intended to keep our writers from covering these topics (and others like them) on the site. Not only because they’re boring, annoying, and repetitive, but because I don’t take pleasure from reading or writing about young women self-destructing.”
Like naturally the only thing one can do is to make fun and hate-on someone when they fall. Like when these women were self-destructing, that that’s ALL they were ever doing or capable of, that that defined them. And they just deserved to be consigned to the scrap-heap. That they did not need support in their hour of darkness, and did not deserve best wishes spoken aloud more than ever. Like for example, when Paris was sent to jail for three weeks and practically the whole world was howling with derision, she couldn’t use any words of charity in letters sent to her from friends and fans like me.
“I still reserve the right not to write about young female celebrities who represent all the wrong things, though. I’ll just call it the “No Britney, Paris or Tila” rule now.”
The writer says because Lindsay has turned her life around, with a little help from her friend, apparently a gay partner, and that it’s is a good thing. So Lindsay is off the s*** list and can now be written about again. Paris and Britney have turned their lives around as well, but apparently they still deserve to be kept down. And since Lindsay’s reserved spot in infamy is now freed up, let’s just damn another woman to hell.
I have been not been a fan of Tila Tequila… until now, that is. Thanks afterellen.com, for showing this fighter of lost causes, which way the hate blows most.
As a French journalist in the LGBT press (about to launch Yagg, a new website for French-speaking gays and lesbians, and anyone else who wants to come), I can only agree with you, Sarah. The line between out and closeted isn’t as easy to define as it used to be, which is both good news and making our job more difficult. But that’s part of the challenges – and excitement – of being a journalist, and not simply a way for celebs and politicians to publish their press releases.