Association of Lesbian and Gay Journalists

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The federal Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (BLSJ) is an association of lesbian journalists and gay journalist based in Cologne .

He is particularly involved on two levels:

  • On the one hand, he stands up for the rights and interests of lesbian journalists and for a prejudice-free atmosphere in the editorial offices and documents cases of discrimination in the workplace.
  • On the other hand, he advocates fair and realistic reporting on lesbians and gays and is active against homophobic media reports, as the media play a decisive role in breaking down prejudice. In the reporting, the diversity of lesbian and gay worlds should be depicted beyond clichés.

It was founded on April 19, 1997 in Berlin . It operates nationwide and has regional groups in Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Frankfurt / Main and Munich. The board consists of Axel Bach, H. Marie Breer and Falk Steinborn. Martin Rosenberg (1962–2010) has been honorary chairman since July 17, 2010. Members are represented in many leading German media companies. According to its own information, the BLSJ is the third largest interest group of lesbian journalists in the world after the USA and Canada .

activities

In its appeal in Cologne on September 22, 2001, the BLSJ urged lesbian, gay and bisexual public figures not to keep their sexual orientation secret. This should contribute to a relaxed and natural approach. The association demands that journalists and the media remove taboos. Sexual orientation should be mentioned when it was necessary to understand a message or story, or to assess a person's credibility. In reporting on people in public life, a distinction should be made between sexual orientation and private life, and all people should be treated equally.

The BLSJ observes the media coverage. In several cases, the association drew the German Press Council's attention to anti-lesbian and gay-hostile newspaper reports and prompted them to reprimand them accordingly.

In the course of reporting on Rudolph Moshammer , who was murdered on January 14, 2005, some well-known media used the term homosexual milieu , which is also connected pejoratively with filthy associations through reporting from earlier decades . The BLSJ then set up the website www.homosexuellen-milieu.de, criticized the colleagues in two press releases and explained the term to them. Among other things, this triggered a short discussion in blogs, print and radio media about the term, which was also referred to as an unword and was proposed on January 18 by the Tagesspiegel as the future unword of the year 2005. Although the term was used less often in subsequent reporting, it still appears again and again in the media. The BLSJ regularly takes up this and documents these cases.

The activity is taken up by some German newspapers in their print editions and online portals.

Waldschlösschen roll call

On the initiative of the federal government, an appeal against the trivialization of defamation hostile to homosexuality has been launched: In the Waldschlösschen appeal , the initiators warn of "increased hostility that disparages homosexuality if many media continue to trivialize attacks on the dignity and human rights of homosexuals as part of the legitimate spectrum of opinion" . As statements made by the above According to classification, sayings are called such as that homosexuality is still unnatural or a decision. The fact that homosexuality is considered curable or that homosexuals could infect young people are also denounced. Journalists should clearly brand such and similar statements as discriminatory hostility.

The appeal was co-initiated by Johannes Kram and published in the Tagesspiegel .

Science Journalism Section

Within the federal government, a group of science journalists founded a “Science Journalism Section” on March 10, 2000 in Cologne, which has been officially recognized by the BLSJ since the federal conference in 2002. This is also where contacts to Africa, such as South Africa and Southeast Asia, are maintained. In 2001, the specialist group announced the Queen Christine Science Journalist Prize for the first time . On September 1, 2002, the Queen Christine Society was founded, and three members of the BLSJ are among its seven founding members. This awarded the prize for the year 2002. There has been no evidence of any further activity by the specialist group since then.

Felix Rexhausen Prize

Award ceremony 2018 at Cologne Pride . Middle: Johannes Nichelmann

The annual Felix Rexhausen Prize recognizes journalistic commitment in reporting on lesbians and gays. The jury consists of seven members. A separate website is operated for the price. It is named after the self-confident gay journalist and co-founder of the German section of Amnesty International Felix Rexhausen , who - still at the time of Section 175 and the criminal prosecution of homosexuality - addressed the living conditions of gay men "insistently, but also ironically and self-critically" ( Quote according to BLSJ). In 2014, the award was increased from € 500 to € 1,000 .

Award winners

  • 1998: Thomas Rombach and Jürgen Kolb for the radio report Der Süddeutsche Sängerkrieg or Heidelberger Rosa Kehlchen versus Badischer Sängerbund on RadioX in Frankfurt
  • 1999: Karin Jurschick for There is nothing we cannot talk about in the Cologne StadtRevue and Detlef Grumbach for his portrait of Martin Dannecker on Deutschlandfunk : Citizens against Will - the gay movement between revolt and integration
  • 2000: Lesbian-Gay Press Review Berlin, which from 1982 to 2001 published a monthly commented selection of articles from the German hetero press on the subject of homosexuality
  • 2001: Martina Keller for I love you, Daddy! about homosexuality in Namibia, on Deutschlandfunk
  • 2002: Rosvita Krausz for Farewell to my heart's beauties - Obituary for a gay love , Sender Free Berlin (SFB)
  • 2003: Valentin Thurn for the ZDF film My Papa Loves a Man
  • 2004: Lorenz Wagner for his report Goldrausch in Gelsenkirchen in the Financial Times Deutschland
  • 2005: Hatice Ayten for her television documentary Out of Istanbul at arte
  • 2006: Martin Reichert for his article Adieu Habibi in the taz
  • 2007: Ted Anspach for his television documentary Homosexuality - Genetic? at arte ; Kerstin Kilanowski receives for her three-hour radio feature Tanz auf der Grenz - What is a man, what is a woman? in WDR 3 an undoped special price.
  • 2008: Aljoscha break for his television report The great taboo - homosexuality and football on German sports television (DSF)
  • 2009: Christine Schön for her radio collage Nachhall - Young lesbians are looking for their story (Radio SWR2 , April 15, 2009) and Frank Stocker for his article If love only brings financial disadvantages ( Welt am Sonntag , February 22, 2009) .; Andreas Völlinger receives an undoped special award for his two articles Gay Rabbits and Real Girls and Full Gay Superheroes in the Internet magazine Comicgate .
  • 2010: Günter Frorath, Michael Lohse and Roger Willemsen for their radio show Er sucht him - Männerliebe literary (Radio WDR 5 , SpielArt , February 14, 2010); Sarah Stricker receives an undoped special award for her article They want to finish me off (Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, August 30, 2009).
  • 2011: Steffi Illinger for her film Tradition-conscious, homely, gay - a completely normal Bavarian folk dance group (Bavarian TV, On Location - Die Reportage , October 5, 2010)
  • 2012: Jobst Knigge for his television documentary The Aids War ( Das Erste , November 16, 2012); undoped special price for the team of the show Ich bin schwul - Tobi likes boys ( nine and a half - Das Check-Eins-Nachrichtenmagazin), broadcast on October 15, 2011 in the first
  • 2013: Claus Bredenbrock for the documentary Des Emperor's dirty laundry (ZDF / Arte 2013); Undoped special prize for Stefanie Fetz and Max Muth for their contribution Die Geisterspiele ( Franz Josef - Magazine of the German School of Journalism, September 2012)
  • 2014: Monika Mengel for her radio feature "And we take our rights" - 40 years of the new lesbian movement (broadcast on January 14, 2014 on WDR 5); undoped special award for Thomas Pfaff for his radio report September 19, 1963: broadcast of the WDR gloss "Living with Bavaria" by Felix Rexhausen ( Zeitzeichen - WDR 5, September 19, 2013)
  • 2015: Charlotte Funke and Anne Bohlmann for their radio report "Homework is gay!" - Sexual diversity in schools (broadcast on October 18, 2014 on Kulturradio RBB); Undoped special prize for YouTube portrait series Queer through Germany - How young lesbians, gays, bisexuals and trans * people grow up today
  • 2016: Peter Gerhardt for his television feature Same love, false love?!? - Homophobia in Europe (broadcast on Arte on May 12, 2015 ); Undoped special price for Steffen Jan Seibel and Tania Witte for their Zeit-Online column on Andersrum is no better either
  • 2017: Laura Döing and Olga Kapustina for their radio feature "Fight and Flight - The Story of Kirill and Jonathan " (May 30, 2016 in SWR 2 - Tandem)
  • 2018: Johannes Nichelmann for his radio report " Taboo topic bisexuality: The stigma of being into women and men " (February 1, 2018 in Deutschlandfunk Kultur - Zeitfragen)

Queen Christine Prize

The award was named after Christina of Sweden , who is said to have had a relationship with her lady-in-waiting and who promoted science. It should promote scientific topics in reporting on gays, lesbians and transgender people. The prize, donated by the Science Journalism Section in 2000, was awarded twice, the second time by the closely related Queen Christine Society :

  • 2001 Herbert Cerutti from Switzerland for his various contributions on the subject of homosexuality in the animal kingdom
  • 2002 Volkart Wildermuth for his radio feature Do genes gay? on WDR 5

Debate about Rexhausen as namesake

In the late summer of 2013 there was a discussion within the BLSJ about indications that a work by Rexhausen had played down pedophilia. On March 1, 2014, an extraordinary general meeting decided to keep the name Felix Rexhausen Prize . The board subsequently resigned. On March 27, 2014, the Cologne City Center District Council decided to name a square at Cologne Central Station after Felix Rexhausen. The inauguration planned for May 2015 was suspended after the journalist and theologian David Berger had expressed the opinion in an online article that Rexhausen glorified pedophilia in the diary novel Touchings from 1969 . The BLSJ contradicted Berger's account in detail. The Cologne Green politician Volker Beck called for an investigation into the allegations against Rexhausen without knowing the book. The city center district council examined the allegations during the summer break. According to the mayor of the district, Andreas Hupke, they were not confirmed, so Felix-Rexhausen-Platz was inaugurated on December 10, 2015.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.blsj.de/impressum/
  2. ↑ http://www.blsj.de/der-blsj/vorstand/ehrenvorsitzender/
  3. ↑ a b Axel Krämer: How out is Outing? , taz, September 15, 2001; Prehistory; with mention of the South Germans
  4. ↑ Cologne Appeal , June 12, 2019.
  5. ↑ a b Sammy Shamdin: "Kölner Appell" by gay and lesbian journalists to the media , Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, September 2001; at rainbow.at on September 24, 2001.
  6. ^ Felix Blech: "Cologne Appeal" adopted by gay and lesbian journalists , Queer.de, at rainbow.at on September 23, 2001.
  7. ↑ www.homosexuellen-milieu.de
  8. ↑ Norbert Blech: Media environment exaggerates Mosi-Mord  ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Queer.de, February 7, 2006.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.queer.de  
  9. ↑ a b BLSJ criticizes media , Queer.de, January 16, 2005.
  10. ↑ a b In a word - Today the unword of the year is announced , Tagesspiegel Online , January 18, 2005.
  11. ↑ Gay Milieu - Archive Page. In: blsj.de. BLSJ eV, accessed on May 25, 2020 (German).
  12. ↑ Dirk von Gehlen : Conceptual confusion in the Moshammer case , now.sueddeutsche.de, January 19, 2005.
  13. ^ Brigitte Maser: Gay in Istanbul - Media Prize, Stadtrevue Cologne , 2005.
  14. ↑ The Waldschlösschen roll call. Association of Lesbian and Gay Journalists, accessed April 20, 2019 .
  15. ↑ Norbert Blech: The Waldschlösschen Appell - against undisputed homophobia in the media , Queer.de, June 9, 2013.
  16. ↑ Information on blogger and blog. In: Nollendorfblog. Accessed April 20, 2019 (German).
  17. ↑ Sandra Maischberger and the "Waldschlösschen-Appell" in full. Retrieved April 20, 2019 .
  18. ↑ www.felix-rexhausen-preis.de
  19. ↑ BLSJ doubles the endowment for its Felix Rexhausen Prize! In: victory column from July 21, 2014
  20. ↑ a b c d e f g h felix-rexhausen-preis.de “Previous award winners” , January 28, 2008.
  21. ↑ felix-rexhausen-preis.de "Prize Winner 2014"
  22. ↑ felix-rexhausen-preis.de "Prize Winners 2015"
  23. ↑ felix-rexhausen-preis.de "Prize Winner 2016"
  24. ↑ felix-rexhausen-preis.de "Prize Winners 2017"
  25. ↑ Radio report on the subject of bisexuality wins Felix Rexhausen Prize 2018. Accessed on August 14, 2018 .
  26. ↑ District Representation City Center Cologne, Az BV1 / 0055/2014, Agenda Item 7.13
  27. ^ Opinion on the discussion about Felix Rexhausen and materials for forming opinions blsj.de from September 13, 2015
  28. ↑ Bettina Janecek: Whirlwind of pedophilia allegations against Felix Rexhausen . Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger from May 6, 2015
  29. ↑ Norbert Blech: Cologne: Rexhausen-Platz is now inaugurated . queer.de from September 11, 2015