I disagree with this article. It is a rumor and the only reason why its still relevant today is because people don´t know or don´t want to read or fact check. People who hate Obama are character assassinating him to make themselves feel better. This rumor comes from a cover of a 2012 issue of Newsweek Magazine ¨authentically depicted then-U.S. President Barack Obama next to a text that said, "THE FIRST GAY PRESIDENT."... Titled "Andrew Sullivan on Barack Obama's Gay Marriage Evolution," the story was published on Newsweek's website on May 13, 2012. Despite the magazine cover's insinuation, the story's text did not call Obama "the first gay president," nor did it make any such claims about his sexuality. The article was published four days after Obama announced his support for legalizing same-sex marriage in an interview with ABC News.”. (https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-newsweek-cover/) Although Snopes is a commercial website, it is used as a a reliable source to check internet rumors and supposed facts presented in internet memes, slogans, and articles. It will find the sources of those memes and simply provides the information needed for readers to check for themselves. The main article of Obama being gay was and still is click bait. People believe what they want and what they see, but if they actually dig deeper and read the original article they would understand that Obama is not gay, just a supporter.
When I encounter claims like this, I want to know who made the claim and what their biases are. Is it a political hit job? Is someone selling a product? Is the rumor based on fact, and if so, what facts? Especially when someone as famous and powerful as Obama is the subject of rumors, it’s important to find out who and why that rumor is being promoted.
The man who wrote the article was a “conservative intellectual” in 2012, and Obama’s embrace of gay marriage was controversial in conservative circles. Andrew Sullivan is a pundit known to other political writers, so i searched in Substack, which is the refuge for many journalists whose platforms declined in recent years as the news industry has imploded. (https://omnivorous.substack.com/p/the-decline-and-fall-of-andrew-sullivan) I found an article written by someone who is critical of Sullivan, and who exposed his biases. Once I found out that Andrew Sullivan was a conservative pundit I wanted to find out more about him and what his motives were.The substack writer gave a history of Sullivan's political ¨hit jobs¨ in their critique of Sullivan.
Then I checked another source, The Nation, which is a left wing magazine, which addressed the Obama rumors. (https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/whats-behind-rights-obama-gay-conspiracy/) That article summarized a series of rumors and conjecture about Obama, whose presidency is still being attacked by Trump and his pals. “These stories have been standard fare in right-wing circles and on right-wing websites for years. Google “Obama gay rumors” and you get—hold on!—15.5 million hits, most of them crackpots like conspiracy theorists.”
