Adolescent Sexuality by Dr. Karen Rayne

The big news in feminist and gay rights circles is that Laura Bush told CNN’s Suzanne Malveaux that she believes condoms are “absolutely necessary” and that she’s fine with getting rid of the abstinence-only provision in PREFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief). This is pleasing news, although hardly extraordinary or radical.

I tried to find the interview on YouTube, but it wasn’t there. I also tried to find it just about anywhere else in mainstream media, and it wasn’t anywhere! The Feminist Daily News (who I linked to above) says one of their sources was CNN. Now, I’ve searched the CNN site relatively thoroughly this morning, and there is not a word about Laura Bush saying anything in support of condoms - just in support of faith-based organizations. It seems highly unlikely to me that the Feminist Daily News would falsify their sources, particularly since, while it is very cool that Laura Bush supports appropriate condom usage, it’s hardly worth lying about. It seems much more likely to me that CNN put the information out there, then realized (or were informed of?) their folly, and removed it. What’s up with that??

While I’ve been getting more and more of my news from bloggers rather than the mainstream media (MSM), and news bloggers are by and large very disillusioned with what the MSM is willing to publish, I haven’t been willing to denigrate the entire profession as being in the back pocket of the White House. My faith is beginning to slide, though.

So restore my faith in MSM! If anyone can find the story of Laura Bush supporting the inclusion of condoms in AIDS prevention on cnn.com, I’ll pay you $5. If you can find a video of an actual interview, I’ll pay you $10.