Technically true, perhaps, but it's the little lie liberals tell to make Falwell look stupid. Falwell was responding to what others had said for almost two years.
It may have started in early 1997, when the BBC, which produced Telletubbies, wanted to fire the human who played Tinky Winky for dancing in the streets wearing only a balloon. Gay groups protested and the Washington Post reported that gay groups have "claimed Tinky Winky as their own". (Washington Post, February 11, 1999, Page C01)
Next, on December 24, 1997, CNN reported that:
The Teletubbies also have a following among the gay community. Tinky Winky, who carts around a red handbag but speaks with a male voice, has become something of a gay icon.
Third, on April 17, 1998, the Village Voice praised the Teletubbies series for their gay Tinky Winky character.
Fourth, on January 1, 1999, in its New Year's IN/OUT list, The Washington Post anointed "Tinky Winky, the gay Teletubby," as next year's Ellen DeGeneres.
Then, in February 1999, after all of that - The National Liberty Journal, edited by Jerry Falwell, wrote an article warning parents that Tinky Tinky may be a gay role model. The article said Tinky Winky had the voice of a boy but carried a purse. Well, that was true. It also said:
He is purple the gay-pride color; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle -- the gay-pride symbol.
I don't know anything about the color purple and gay-pride, but the article was right about the triangle.
So Falwell pointed out what CNN, The Village Voice, and the Washington Post (twice) had already said about Tinky Winky being a gay role model.
And suddenly he was an idiot for suggesting it, while CNN, The Village Voice, and the Washington Post, who had all previously written about TInky Winky's status as a gay role model, probably jumped on the band wagon and made fun of Falwell.
I'm by no means a Falwell fan. Just wanted to set the record straight.
Thank you. I truly admire and appreciate freepers who back up their statements with facts. Like you, I am not a Falwell fan but recognize anyone who addresses such issues only to be set upon by the mainstream media.
Similarly, following the historic vote to legalize ss marriage here in NY, Pat Robertson made an astute statement:
In history there's never been a civilization ever in history that has embraced homosexuality and turned away from traditional fidelity, traditional marriage, traditional child-rearing, and has survived. There isn't one single civilization that has survived that openly embraced homosexuality. So you say, "what's going to happen to America?" Well if history is any guide, the same thing's going to happen to us.
Regardless of how one views Pat Robertson, his statement is totally correct.