AP Sues Feds For Clinton Emails

Via the Associated Press:

The Associated Press filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the State Department to force the release of email correspondence and government documents from Hillary Rodham Clinton's tenure as secretary of state. The legal action comes after repeated requests filed under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act have gone unfulfilled. They include one request AP made five years ago and others pending since the summer of 2013.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, comes a day after Clinton broke her silence about her use of a private email account while secretary of state. The FOIA requests and lawsuit seek materials related to her public and private calendars, correspondence involving longtime aides likely to play key roles in her expected campaign for president, and Clinton-related emails about the Osama bin Laden raid and National Security Agency surveillance practices.

"After careful deliberation and exhausting our other options, The Associated Press is taking the necessary legal steps to gain access to these important documents, which will shed light on actions by the State Department and former Secretary Clinton, a presumptive 2016 presidential candidate, during some of the most significant issues of our time," said Karen Kaiser, AP's general counsel.

The State Department says it gets over 19,000 FOIA requests per year and handles those requests in the order in which they are received. Here's what the AP is asking for:

Specifically, AP is seeking copies of Clinton's full schedules and calendars from her four years as secretary of state; documents related to her department's decision to grant a special position to longtime aide Huma Abedin; related correspondence from longtime advisers Philippe Reines and Cheryl Mills, who, like Abedin, are likely to play central roles in a Clinton presidential campaign; documents related to Clinton's and the agency's roles in the Osama bin Laden raid and National Security Agency surveillance practices; and documents related to her role overseeing a major Defense Department contractor. The AP made most of its requests in the summer of 2013, although one was filed in March 2010. AP is also seeking attorney's fees related to the lawsuit.

AP: 57% Say Wedding-Related Busineses Should Be Allowed To Refuse Gays

From the Associated Press:

While finding that Americans narrowly favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry, a new Associated Press-GfK poll also shows most believe wedding-related businesses should be allowed to deny service to same-sex couples for religious reasons. Roughly half the country also thinks local officials and judges with religious objections ought to be exempt from any requirement that they issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples, according to the poll. That view of the same-sex marriage issue echoes that of the Mormon church. Last week, the church called on state legislatures to pass new laws that protect gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination but also to protect the rights of those who assert their religious beliefs. David Kenney, a self-employed Catholic from Novi, Michigan, said he's fine with same-sex marriage being legal. He's among the 57 percent of Americans who said wedding-related businesses — such as florists — should be allowed to refuse service if they have an objection rooted in their religion.

In the same poll, 50% say state officials should be allowed to refuse to issue marriage licenses on the basis of religious beliefs. The poll has already been triumphantly posted to NOM's blog.

See the full poll details.

Vladimir Putin: I'm Not Homophobic, I've Given Awards To Those People

"I assure you that I work with these people. I sometimes award them with state prizes or decorations for their achievements in various fields. We have absolutely normal relations, and I don’t see anything out of the ordinary here. They say that Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a homosexual. Truth be told, we don’t love him because of that, but he was a great musician, and we all love his music. So what?" - Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking to the Associated Press.

Associated Press On Chelsea Manning

The Associated Press has updated its writing guidelines regarding Chelsea Manning.

The Associated Press will henceforth use Pvt. Chelsea E. Manning and female pronouns for the soldier formerly known as Bradley Manning, in accordance with her wishes to live as a woman. Manning announced her wishes last Thursday after being sentenced to 35 years in Fort Leavenworth military prison and a dishonorable discharge from the U.S. Army for revealing U.S. secrets to WikiLeaks, the anti-establishment website. The use of the first name Chelsea and feminine pronouns in Manning’s case is in conformity with the transgender guidance in the AP Stylebook. The guidance calls for using the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.

Reince Priebus: Holder Must Resign

"Freedom of the press is an essential right in a free society. The First Amendment doesn’t request the federal government to respect it; it demands it. Attorney General Eric Holder, in permitting the Justice Department to issue secret subpoenas to spy on Associated Press reporters, has trampled on the First Amendment and failed in his sworn duty to uphold the Constitution. Because Attorney General Holder has so egregiously violated the public trust, the president should ask for his immediate resignation. If President Obama does not, the message will be unmistakable: The President of the United States believes his administration is above the Constitution and does not respect the role of a free press.” - RNC chairman Reince Priebus.

AG Eric Holder Recused Himself From DOJ Plan To Investigate Associated Press

CNN reports:

Attorney General Eric Holder recused himself from the decision to subpoena the phone records of Associated Press reporters, a source told CNN's Jessica Yellin on Tuesday. The approval fell to Deputy Attorney General James Cole, the source said. White House spokesman Jay Carney said Tuesday that the White House had no knowledge of any attempt by the Justice Department "to seek phone records of the Associated Press." "We are not involved with the White House in any decisions made in connection with ongoing criminal investigations as those matters are handled appropriately by the Justice Department independently," Carney told reporters at a news conference.

The right wing has been calling for Holder's head over Fast & Furious for years. Now they may finally get it.

UPDATE: From today's press conference.

Associated Press Hacked On Twitter, False Claim Of White House Bombing Sent, Stock Market Nose-Dives In Reaction

After a long string of highly-publicized cyber attacks on high-profile Twitter accounts, today's was doubtlessly the worst so far.

The AP's communications team quickly tweeted from its own account that the main AP Twitter was compromised, but investors had already panicked. The Dow Jones industrial average immediately plunged by more than 140 points.  And there it is: After years of hacks that typically involved little more than obscene language, Twitter's subpar security measures have now caused serious real-world consequences.  Many hacks happen when account owners use guessable passwords or access Twitter over public Wi-Fi and shared computers. If one person who tweets from a corporate account loses his or her phone, an entire corporation's Twitter account could be at risk.

AP Stylebook Reminder

FRC Cheers Leno Crack

McClusky is a vice president at the Family Research Council.

AP Drops "Illegal Immigrant"

Another change for the Associated Press style book.

Illegal immigration Entering or residing in a country in violation of civil or criminal law. Except in direct quotes essential to the story, use illegal only to refer to an action, not a person: illegal immigration, but not illegal immigrant. Acceptable variations include living in or entering a country illegally or without legal permission.

Except in direct quotations, do not use the terms illegal alien, an illegal, illegals or undocumented. Do not describe people as violating immigration laws without attribution. Specify wherever possible how someone entered the country illegally and from where. Crossed the border? Overstayed a visa? What nationality?

People who were brought into the country as children should not be described as having immigrated illegally. For people granted a temporary right to remain in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, use temporary resident status, with details on the program lower in the story.

Good. This will piss off the wingnuts. Also good.

Tweet Of The Day: Fake AP Stylebook

AP Issues Style Guide On Husband/Wife

For the last week the LGBT blogosphere has been battling the Associated Press over a direction to  their reporters that they should not automatically refer to people in legal same-sex marriages as "husband" or "wife."  I left the story alone because I figured the AP would immediately correct such as obviously wrong position. Today they finally did. Here's the new policy.

husband, wife Regardless of sexual orientation, husband or wife is acceptable in all references to individuals in any legally recognized marriage. Spouse or partner may be used if requested.

The AP adds: "The AP has never had a Stylebook entry on the question of the usage of husband and wife. All the previous conversation was in the absence of such a formal entry. This lays down clear and simple usage. After reviewing existing practice, we are formalizing 'husband, wife' as an entry."

Nathaniel Frank On "Homophobia" Ban: The Associated Press Got It Wrong

"The AP, whose guidelines set news industry standards, defines phobia as an 'irrational, uncontrollable fear, often a form of mental illness.'  But the 'mental illness' part is surely too literal - no one accuses arachnophobes of needing an asylum. The term homophobia was first used in the 1960s when psychologists began to notice how vehement their own colleagues’ reactions were to gay people—far more irrational, it seemed, than feelings around other outsider groups. 'They had no argument, just repugnance,' says George Weinberg, a clinical psychologist who popularized the term in a 1972 book and opposes the AP’s move to drop the word. 'They felt this way even about their own children. I realized this thing is deeply emotional and is based on fear.'

"As Weinberg and others used it, the term meant a dread or fear of close contact with gay people and a strong discomfort with homosexuality. [snip] Not everyone who opposes gay rights has a phobia. At a practical level, it may be wise to throw the term homophobe around less, as calling people names is generally an ineffective way to change their minds. But an important body of evidence suggests that some anti-gay sentiment is a phobia, and this phobia is the basis for anti-gay policy that blocks equality for millions because of irrational fears. In its journalistic effort to appear neutral, the AP risks being part of the problem." - Nathaniel Frank, writing for Salon.

AP Bans Usage Of "Homophobia"

In an update to their style guide for reporters, today the Associated Press officially discouraged the usage of the word "homophobia."  The update reads:

phobia
An irrational, uncontrollable fear, often a form of mental illness. Examples: acrophobia, a fear of heights, and claustrophobia, a fear of being in small, enclosed spaces. Do not use in political or social contexts: homophobia, Islamophobia.

The AP made no suggestion for a replacement term. You have to wonder if our enemies, who detest the word, pressured the AP to take this move.

UPDATE: Politico has interviewed the head of the AP's standards department, who also mentions their new ban on "ethnic cleansing."

"Ethnic cleansing is a euphemism for pretty violent activities, a phobia is a psychiatric or medical term for a severe mental disorder. Those terms have been used quite a bit in the past, and we don't feel that's quite accurate," AP Deputy Standards Editor Dave Minthorn told POLITICO.  "When you break down 'ethnic cleansing,' it's a cover for terrible violent activities. It's a term we certainly don't want to propgate," Minthorn continued. "Homophobia especially -- it's just off the mark. It's ascribing a mental disability to someone, and suggests a knowledge that we don't have. It seems inaccurate. Instead, we would use something more neutral: anti-gay, or some such, if we had reason to believe that was the case."

UPDATE II: George Weinberg, who coined the word "homophobia" in his 1972 book, Society and the Healthy Homosexual, does not approve.

"I just want to go on record as disagreeing with the AP's decision not to use 'homophobia,' the word. I am a psychologist and author who coined the word a long time ago. It made all the difference to City Councils and other people I spoke to. It encapsulates a whole point of view and of feeling. It was a hard-won word, as you can imagine. It brought me some death threats. Is homophobia always based on fear? I thought so and still think so. Maybe envy in some cases. But that's a psychological question. Is every snarling dog afraid? Probably yes. But here it shouldn't matter. We have no other word for what we're talking about, and this one is well established. We use 'freelance' for writers who don't throw lances anymore and who want to get paid for their work. Fowler even allows us to mix what he called dead metaphors. It seems curious that this word is getting such scrutiny while words like triskaidekaphobia (the fear of the number 13) hangs around."

Afternoon View - AP Work Stations

AFA: Still Rewriting AP Headlines

Right Wing Watch notes that the American Family Association is continuing its practice of rewriting Associated Press headlines on the news feed it publishes on OneNewsNow.

Shepard Fairey Settles "Hope" Lawsuit

Shepard Fairey has settled his long-running dispute with the Associated Press over their photograph of Barack Obama, which Fairey turned into his now-iconic "Hope" poster.

In settling the civil lawsuit, “The A.P. and Mr. Fairey have agreed that neither side surrenders its view of the law,” The Associated Press said in a statement Wednesday. “Mr. Fairey has agreed that he will not use another A.P. photo in his work without obtaining a license from The A.P. The two sides have also agreed to work together going forward with the ‘Hope’ image and share the rights to make the posters and merchandise bearing the ‘Hope’ image and to collaborate on a series of images that Fairey will create based on A.P. photographs.” The statement added that the two sides had agreed to “financial terms that will remain confidential.”

Still ongoing is a separate copyright infringement lawsuit over the t-shirt company Fairey launched with the "Hope" image.

American Family Association Twists The AP's "Obama Appointees" Story

Good As You points out the American Family Association's ongoing practice of rewriting of the Associated Press stories they post on their OneNewsNow blog, in which they substitute "gay" for (in their minds) the more damaging "homosexual," insert (in their minds) insulting graphics, and rewrite the headlines themselves. The AFA pays the AP to use their stories, and that usage agreement surely stipulates that the articles not be altered. GAY's Jeremy Hooper:

[D]espite multiple attempts to make the Associated Press care about this by both this site and by GLAAD, nothing seems to have been done. The AFA continues to do this sort of thing on an almost daily basis, changing the entire meaning, context, and intent of AP stories so that outdated terms are made to seem like an acceptable journalistic practice here in America of 2010, and pink White House graphics are made to seem like perfectly kosher choices that any AP photo editor would routinely make. We don't know what else to do. But we do know that the AP's blind eye on this is unfair to the national discourse, to its own stable of writers and editors, to its brand, and to LGBT people who are sick of seeing their lives presented as alleged. We'd care, if we were America's most prominent news wire.

New Associated Press Poll Shows Majority Support Marriage Equality

The is the second national poll to show that a majority of Americans support marriage equality. Stand by for NOM to issue their usual denouncement. The full poll can be viewed here (PDF).

Quote Of The Day - Andrea Lafferty

"We can't allow the lowest common denominator states, like Massachusetts, to set standards for the country." - Andrea Lafferty of the SPLC-certified hate group, the Traditional Values Coalition, as quoted by the Associated Press. We're standing by for the AP to go to the KKK for a quote the next time black civil rights is in the news.