I'd be surprised to meet a gay man who hasn't been shot down as a 'fucking poofter' at some stage in his life. That possibly explains the sense of disgust gay men are expressing at a ruling by the Broadcasting Standards Authority today, not to uphold a complaint against a More FM breakfast show where the term "poofter" was used. Here's the exchange from the 21st of May show, where the hosts were discussing a winter pool jump: A female host said, "So you've got to grin and bear it, suck it up. Don't be a wuss." A male host said he had been talking to his dad about it, because he had done a winter swim before. He said: "And he was going, 'oh yeah no what you do is you draw your legs up there and you wrap your arms around you'. I'm going, 'Dad, I'm not a poofter mate, come on'." Another man was on the phone and the male host said, "Come to my defence". The man replied, "How can I come to your defence when you're talking about pulling your knees up and acting like a poofter?" The host replied, "well you're a blimmin' great help, aren't you." The BSA refused to uphold Tauranga man Jonny Williams' complaint about the broadcast on the grounds of denigration/discrimination. "We accept the complainant's assertion that "poofter" is generally considered to be a derogatory term for homosexual men. We also accept, given the context in which the term was used, that it was intended in this instance to mean "wuss" or "wimp" rather than a term of abuse directed at homosexuals." "While we are of the view that broadcasters need to be aware of the negative connotations of terms such as this, and take appropriate care in their usage, we consider that it was part of a brief, light-hearted exchange, and was clearly not uttered in an abusive or vitriolic manner. Accordingly, we do not consider that its use on this occasion reached the high threshold for a breach of this standard." So the BSA has ruled on the term poofter can mean "wuss" or "wimp" and is not a term of abuse directed at gay men, in this context. Yet do you find it offensive? Do you think it's an example of denigration and discrimination that should not be on the New Zealand airwaves? Below is a selection of the Oxford English Dictionary's take on the definition and origin of the terms poofter and poof, some examples of its usage through history and some of the terms which have sprung from it. Make up your own mind. From the Oxford English Dictionary poofter slang (orig. Austral), derogatory. A homosexual man; an effeminate or affected man. Often used as a general term of abuse to a man. 1889 in Photogr. Descr. Darlinghurst (Sydney) Gaol 1888-9 (State Records, Kingswood, New S. Wales) 160. No. 4408, Carrie Swann, the female impersonator. Said to be a Pouftah. Slang 1900-10 (typescript), Pouf or poufter, a sodomite or effeminate man. 1953 T. A. G. HUNGERFORD Riverslake iii. 49 He hawked disgustingly and spat on the floor between his feet. ‘They want men in the unions, not poofters!' 1961 P WHITE Riders in Chariot IV. xi. 392 ‘They will tell you,' she said, ‘that Norman is a pufter... Norm could not impress a woman even if he tried.' 1973 A.B. ROINOWSKI Take One Ambassador v. 53 The feller's a bloody poofter. Queer's a four pound note. 1988 B. LEVIN in Times 22 Aug. 10/7 Come to think of it, Tchaikovsky was a long-haired poofdah. 2003 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 7 Nov. 32 The southern pooftahs have also switched the rules to touch rugby. COMPOUNDS poofter bashing n. Austral. slang aggression, esp. physical assault, against male homosexuals. poofter rorter n.[see RORTER n.] Austral. slang (now rare) a person who procures sexual partners for homosexual men. poofter N.Z. A person who talks incessantly; a blowhard. Also: an intellectually pretentious person. 1916 Hutt Valley Independent 15 Apr. 4 He's a puny poofter. 1952 Here an affected or effeminate man. 1833 Proc. Old Bailey 11 Apr. 378/2 Marchell began..by saying there was a gentleman who gave a great deal of money for boys..he said, there was a gentleman in the City, too, that was one of these poofs, as he called them... I never heard the word poofs before. ?1855 Yokel's Perceptor 5 These monsters in the shape of men, commonly designated Margeries, Pooffs, andc. 1962 Private Eye 30 Nov. 15/3, I may be a poove but I'm a terrific engineer. 2003 N. SLATER Toast 220, ‘What are you, a fuckin poof?' snapped Jim. DERIVATIVES poofdom n. rare the state or condition of being a homosexual. 1972 F. RAPHAEL April, June and Nov. 466 He's a late convert to the joys of *poofdom. What do you think?Discuss this story in the GayNZ.com forum Jacqui Stanford - 11th August 2010