Right wing American news network Fox News is refusing to broadcast an advert which calls for the end of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". The a by the pro-repeal Palm Center features Canadian and Australian military leaders saying that lifting their countries' bans on out gay soldiers were a 'non-event' and did not harm the military. In a recording from a panel discussion in Washington last year, Major General Walter Semianiw, chief of military personnel in the Canadian Forces, says: "There is no negative impact of having men and women of any sexual orientation fighting together, be it in Afghanistan, be it in Iraq." Major General Simon Willis, the former head of defence personnel in the Australian Defence Force, added: "The lifting of the homosexual ban is a bit like Y2K. It was a non-event, and it continues to be a non-event." Fox News is apparently unhappy with the ad's opening line which says "As the military prepares to end ‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' our NATO allies have told us what to expect … Business as usual." It claims the statement is untrue as there are no firm plans to repeal the law. Palm Center director Aaron Belkin says it's an important time for input from all sides on this issue, and he hopes Fox will reconsider.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 25th November 2010 - 12:06pm