Today on the Signorile Show

Guest / 2:30pm EST - Yesterday, we spoke to Kurt Opsahl, senior staff attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, who is bringing a lawsuit against Righthaven, a group that has been trolling the blogosphere and suing blogs for copyright infringement when using photo's and articles first published by Stephens Media. EFF had found that the agreement allowing Righthaven to sue these sites on behalf of Stephens Media was bogus. Pam Spaulding of Pam's House Blend returns to the show today to share her own experiences in dealing with Righthaven.

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Tomorrow, Spelman College in Atlanta, GA will be holding a summit, Facilitating Campus Climates of Pluralism, Inclusivity, and Progressive Change at HBCU's. The summit will examine strategies and best practices that can be adopted at the schools to build bridges with the LGBT community. Dr. Jacqui Alexander, a moderator for the event, joins us today to talk about it.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - Everyone can run, but why would someone decide to want to run a marathon... or beyond? Robin Harvie, author of The Lure Of Long Distances: Why We Run, has been running marathons since 2000, but after not being able to beat his personal best, he wondered how far could he run before he couldn't anymore. He joins us this afternoon.

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Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today on the Signorile Show...

Guest / 3:30pm EST - There are a number of court cases we've been following on the program dealing with LGBT rights, from DOMA to Prop 8 to custody cases. Today, Arthur Leonard, legal columnist with Gay City News joins us to update us on several cases he's been covering.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - Few companies have had the success that Google, and has been looked to by many as something that cannot be duplicated. So, how does Google do it? Steven Levy, author of In The Plex: How Google Thinks, Works and Shapes Our Lives, joins us to explain this afternoon.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Conversation with a Birther

This call to the show from Winston in Alabama confirms why the birther conspiracy will never go away, a fascinating look at why crazy beliefs endure. Even after all the facts were explained to Winston, and after he appeared to agree that the facts were right, he still held doubts that President Obama was born in this country. What's clear to me is that birthers have other reasons for which they dislike the president, even hate him -- and some of those reasons are too ugly, perhaps, for them to even admit to themselves. Hence, they cling to this conspiracy even after it's disproved.

Queer Pollen

This is my interview from last week with the author (and my partner) David Gerstner on his new book, Queer Pollen: White Seduction, Black Male Homosexuality and the Cinematic.

Today on the Signorile Show

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Earlier this month, reports and reviews focused on Joseph Lelyveld's latest book, Great Soul: Mahatma Gandhi and His Struggle With India. In Great Soul, Lelyveld stacks the man up against the myth, discussing Gandhi's less palatable tendencies -- shameless self-promotion, often impenetrable sexual mores, and an oftern narrow and ethnically specific application of his evolving political tenets. Joseph Lelyveld joins us today to discuss the man who was Mahatma Gandhi.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - A story that had gotten a lot of attention a few years ago is back in the spotlight, this time with an arrest being made. In 2009, Lisa Miller had disappeared with daughter Isabella, after a Vermont family court had awarded custody to Miller's former partner, Janet Jenkins. Miller wanted to keep her daughter as far away from the "homosexual lifestyle." Now, the FBI has arrested Timothy Miller (no relation to Lisa) for helping Lisa Miller flee the country. Andrew Harmon of The Advocate joins us this afternoon to talk about the arrest.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today on the Signorile Show

Guest / 3:30pm EST - David Gerstner, (my partner!) author of Queer Pollen: White Seduction, Black Male Homosexuality, and the Cinematic, returns to the show to talk about three notable black queer twentieth century artists he covers in the book -- painter and writer Richard Bruce Nugent, author James Baldwin, and filmmaker Marlon Riggs -- and and how they each contributed to breaking racial and sexual barriers in their works.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - We just saw a battle in Washington over the budgets and as those fights wind down, another is just beginning, and that is whether or not to raise the debt ceiling. If it isn't raised, could it be as catastrophic as Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner has said? Annie Lowrey, economic writer for Slate, joins us to explain.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today on the Signorile Show

Republicans in the House passed the radical Paul Ryan budget, showing that the Tea Party now controls the leadership completely. Sarah Palin and Donald Trump spoke at Tea Party rallies for tax day, taking the GOP even further into nutbag territory. Karl Rove is now now finally speaking out! We'll play it all for you. John Boehner has found a lawyer to defend DOMA. We'll let you know who it is. Should the retirement age be raised to 70 from 65 to receive social security, as some Republicans want to do? We'll take your calls.

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Former United Methodist pastor Jimmy Creech joins us this afternoon to talk about his new book, Adam's Gift: A Memoir Of A Pastor's Calling To Defy The Church's Persecution Of Lesbians And Gays, in which he talk about his transformation and becoming an activist for gay rights in the church.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - A new study surveying nearly 32,000 teens from 2006-2008 was released and shows that suicide attempts by gay teens is more common in politically conservative areas. Mark Hatzenbuehler, Ph.D., author of the study, joins us this afternoon to discuss the results of the study.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

NOM Legal Threat Against Marinelli

Former National Organization for Marriage organizer Louis Marinelli, who defected from the group the week before last and spoke with me that Friday, came back on the show on Friday of last week to tell us more about NOM.

Specifically, he said that NOM president Brian Brown (photo, left) has privately been using intimidation tactics and legal threats against him since he left, demanding he remove some of his critical blog posts (even though NOM, in its damage control of the defection, has tried to claim Marinelli was not very influential in their organization, which is obviously a lie.)

“…I’ve received a message or two from Brian, who basically has – he’s trying to intimidate me to stop talking. He’s saying that if I don’t remove the posts I’ve posted on my site and I don’t stop telling the truth about who they are he may pursue legal action…I considered it an intimidation tactic…On two occasions he wrote me a message saying if I don’t comply with his wish that I remove certain posts from the site…that he would have no option but to pass it on to his attorneys and pursue legal action...”

Marinelli also discussed NOM's "propaganda teams" to do dirty work of smearing opponents but distancing it from NOM. We talked as well about NOM's true religious agenda though the the grou tries to claim it is not driven by religious ideology on homosexuality, NOM's funding sources and the lack of enthusiasm on NOM's side among supporters. Below is a short clip of the discussion of Brian Brown's threats as well as a clip of the full interview.




Marinelli on Brown legal threat



Full interview

Today on the Signorile Show

Guest / 2:30pm EST - Rhode Island is one of several states this year expected to vote on marriage equality, which is supported by it's newest Governor, Lincon Chafee(I). Some think that it may not pass this year, due to a lack of support in the House and Senate. Stephen Beale, who has been following the debate for GoLocalProv, joins us this afternoon to talk about where marriage equality stands in Rhode Island.

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Urbanization is changing the way we live in the 21st century, with more people living in cities than in rural areas. How is this shift effecting the population as we move from agriculture to city life? Douglas Saunders, author of Arrival City: How The Largest Migration In History Is Reshaping Our World, joins us today to explain.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - Last week, we spoke with Louis Marinelli, who had worked with the National Organization For Marriage for five years, helping to organize last years "Summer Of Marriage Tour." In a dramatic 180, he has now come out in support of marriage equality and has been letting the community know some of the harmful tactics NOM's used to push their agenda. He returns today to discuss these tactics as well as some of the legal threats he's received from NOM.

It's Friday! We'll be giving out our "Angel, Turkey, Gassy & Climax of the Week" Awards!

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today on the Signorile Show

More details emerge on the budget deal, and it's worse than we thought -- as the President now plans to release a deficit reduction plan, making progressives even more nervous. Fukushima is now officially at the number 7, the Chernobyl rating. What does it mean?Michele Bachmann in Iowa laid out her agenda with a full-scale assault on gays -- and with lots of distortions about DOMA and the history of marriage between people of the same sex. We'll fact-check her. And we'll take your calls. NATO is under attack -- from France and Britain for not moving more forcefully against Quaddafi, while many are wondering if Libya is a new U.S. quagmire. J.Crew comes under fire showing a mom who paints her boy's toenails pink, because it's his favorite color, as religious zealots claim they're pushing gender confusion and transgenderism. We'll take your calls!

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Next Thursday, April 21, Joey Arias is headlining the famous Town Hall Theater in New York City. The show is slated to be an evening filled with, "music, humor, and a little bit of scandal." The scandalous Joey Arias joins us today in studio to talk about Joey Arias: Live At Town Hall!

Guest / 4:30pm EST - A few weeks ago, veteran hip hop producer and DJ at New Yorks Hot 97, Mister Cee, was arrested for misdemeanor public lewdness and indecent exposure, accused of performing a sex act with a 20-year-old male in a car. This has sent shock waves throughout the hip hop community, with some DJ's making homophobic criticisms about Mister Cee. But 50 Cent, who has been very controversial in the past, is coming out in his defense, and saying that being anti-gay in hip hop doesn't pay. Kenyon Farrow, who has written about the controversy in his article, 50 Cent's New Pocketbook Value: Anti-Gay Won't Pay, Even For Hip Hop, join us to talk about it.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today On The Signorile Show

Once again President Obama and the Democrats have capitulated to republicans, this time claiming a win. After the cave in on tax cuts last fall and the reversal on military tribunals last week, it was hugely dispiriting though not shocking to see the cave in on the budget. But to see the president and Harry Reid boasting about having made history by passing the biggest spending cuts ever was a gut punch. Just a month ago Reid was calling the budget Draconian and the president was pushing for more spending, rightly understanding that in an economic downturn government stimulus is the only way out. But now looking toward his reelection and moving to the center he ran from a fight. And that’s allowed Republicans to win the larger debate, claiming that slashing programs is the way to go. Democrats lost both the battle and the war. We'll get into the entire debate and the process, and we'll look at what lots of people are saying. We'll also look at the latest in the Trump birther madness, as Sarah Palin backs him big time. And a plan for a hearing on Defense of Marriage Act defense in the House has been announced. Also, the French burka ban goes into effect. Is this right? We'll take your calls.


Guest / 3:30pm EST - Last week, the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law released news estimates of LGBT adults in the United States, based on several surveys conducted from 2004. According to their estimates, 9 million Americans are LGBT, which equals 3.8% of the population, "equivalent to the population of New Jersey." Gary Gates, distinguished scholar with The Williams Institute, returns to the show to talk about this research.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - Justin Elzie wanted to make a difference and followed the Marines rules of integrity by coming out publicly on ABC in January 1993 and becoming the first Marine discharged under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. He joins us this afternoon to talk about his book, Playing By The Rules, in which he writes about his own life experiences growing up in Wyoming and joining the Marines, finding an underground gay subculture within the military.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Interview with NOM Defector Louis Marinelli

Last week saw the great scoop by Jeremy Hooper at Good As You that Louis Marinelli, formerly the mastermind behind the National Organization for Marriage's bus tour, had resigned and now supports marriage equality.I interviewed him on Friday.

Today on the Signorile Show

Lots to get into from the possible government shutdown and 737s with cracks to Obama's military tribunal reversal and more on GE's tax-dodging. And we're going to focus in on the newest theology gaining traction in the religious right footsoldiers (like Janet Porter, to the left) and among its political leaders, like Mike Huckabee: Seven Mountains Dominionism.

Guest / 3:30pm EST - Last year, Janet Folger Porter, our favorite right wing radio host, lost her radio program, "Faith 2 Action," due to her beliefs in Dominionism. There is a slow rise in this belief, known also as "Seven Mountains Dominionism," which is advocated by historical revisionist David Barton. This is also being pushed by potential 2012 presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, who said last week that "all American's should be forced, forced -- at gun point no less -- to every David Barton message." Kyle Mantyla of Right Wing Watch joins us this afternoon to discuss the push of Seven Mountains into the mainstream.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, who is best known as the "Ten Commandments Judge" after he was removed from his position for refusing to remove the Ten Commandments from the courthouse, returns to the show to talk about his intentions to explore a bid for president in 2012.

Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.

Today on the Signorile Show

With no top-tier Republican candidates having announced a presidential run, Donald Trump, Michele Bachmann and other long-shot and lesser known individuals, like Herman Cain (the former Godfather Pizza CEO who announced an exploratory committee), are shaping the issues early. And of course we're seeing, with Trump, the Obama birth certificate conspiracy theory, pulled into the mainstream of the party. As Ben Smith at Politic points out, Republicans are being dragged in the birther rabbit-hole, including Chris Barron of the gay Republican group GOProud who, like others, doesn't want to offend the birthers -- or Trump -- while even though the issue is radioactive. We'll get into it all on the show, and I'll replay in the first hour of the show my interview from 2007 with Judge Roy Moore, the "ten commandments" judge, who has announced he is explouring a run for president -- and obviously, as an early, less-known candidate with popularity in the based, will be shaping the issues for the rest.


Guest / 3:30pm EST - Jackson county and city in Michigan have hired Crystal Dixon, former associate vice president of human resources with the University of Toledo. Equality Michigan is calling for Dixon to be removed from this position because of her anti-gay past, writing a piece in the Toledo Free Press calling homosexuality a choice and not wanting gay rights to be compared to civil rights, which got her fired from the university. Roland Leggett of Equality Michigan joins us today to talk about their efforts to remove Dixon.

Guest / 4:30pm EST - For LGBT youth, their teen years could be quite challenging, facing harassment, discrimination and rejection from their peers. But those years could also be fun and enlightening when they are comfortable with who they are. Author Kelly Huegel joins us this afternoon to speak about the re-release of her book, GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Question Teens, about helping teens to discover who they are.

It's Friday! We'll be giving out our "Angel, Turkey, Gassy and Climax of the Week" Award!


Don't forget, you can follow me on Twitter and Facebook!


Listen to The Michelangelo Signorile Show weekdays live from 2-6 pm ET on Sirius XM's OutQ: Sirius 109, XM 98 and on the Sirius XM iPhone app. Not a subscriber? Not a problem! Listen online any time with a free seven-day pass or, if you have an iPhone or Blackberry, go to the app store and download Sirius XM for free, for a 7-day trial, and listen on your phone.