Michael Rogers (publisher) explained

Michael Rogers
Birth Date:12 November 1963
Birth Place:Suffern, New York, U.S.
Occupation:Journalist, fundraiser, activist, blogger
Alma Mater:University of Buffalo

Michael Rogers (born November 12, 1963)[1] is an American fundraiser, blogger and gay rights activist.[2] [3] He is vice chairman of Raw Story Media, Inc.,[4] co-owner of Alternet Media,[5] and founder and Director of Netroots Connect.[6] He is also known for his work in reporting on closeted gay politicians who are anti-gay.[7] He was the subject of the 2009 American documentary film Outrage.[8]

History and education

Rogers was born to a Jewish family, raised in suburban New York City in Rockland County, NY, and attended public schools.[9] Rogers attended Ramapo Senior High School in Spring Valley, NY. He attended Adelphi University (1982) and the University of Buffalo (also known as the State University of New York at Buffalo) (1983-1986), where he majored in political science.[10]

In both 2008 and 2022, Rogers was named to the Out 100, Out Magazine's compilation of the year's most impactful and influential LGBTQ+ people.[11] [12]

Activism

Rogers was the first full-time fundraiser for the Hetrick-Martin Institute and Harvey Milk High School.[13]

After moving to New York City In 1989, Rogers joined the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP!). He, along with fellow Hetrick-Martin Institute employee Ann Northrop, was arrested for participating in ACT UP's "Stop the Church" demonstration at St. Patrick's Cathedral in 1989.[14]

In 2002, Rogers founded Stop The Box, his first internet activism effort. "The 'Box'," referred to a 20 ft. wide, 10 ft. height and 8 ft depth unattended structure that housed a prototype automatic convenience store. The Box was owned by TikTok Easy Shop company. Rogers created a website and organized resistance among residents living near the store. He coordinated protests and education campaigns against it. Rogers also discovered that the internet domain registration and the company were wholly owned by the McDonald's Corporation.[15] [16] [17] [18] Rogers had a letter published in The New York Times relating to the machine.[19] The machine was removed within months of its installation.[20]

In 2008, citizens of California approved Proposition 8, a voter initiative to repeal the state's marriage equality law. Under the law before the passage of Proposition 8, same sex couples were allowed to marry in the state. Because the initiative passed, marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples in the state was repealed. Following the election, Rogers learned that a Subway Franchisee in Merced, California had donated $2,500 to the Yes on 8 campaign. Under threat of a boycott, Rogers made the following demands of Subway:

Subway agreed to the first two[21] [22] and Rogers dropped his demand for the equal gift when the original gift was rescinded. Subway's headquarters wrote to all locations (over 30,000) explaining how the gift was in violation of franchisee policies. The company also explained that the company's non-discrimination policies would now include sexual orientation and gender identity.[23]

Blog

On July 7, 2004, Rogers launched BlogActive, a personal blog.[24] The blog was a focal point for outing closeted gay politicians who actively opposed gay rights. His work was profiled twice by The Washington Post, including a 2007 profile which asked if Rogers was The Most Feared Man On [Capitol] Hill.[25]

Rogers' first major outing report was on US Rep. Edward L. Schrock (R-VA).[26] Rogers published a set of recordings of Schrock[27] [28] using the MegaMates/Mega Phone Line, a service for men to meet other men for the purposes of meeting for sexual encounters.[29] On August 30, 2004, during the Republican National Convention, Schrock ended his reelection campaign.[30]

One year prior to the publishing of emails from US Rep. Mark Foley to a 16-year-old seeking sexual encounters,[31] Rogers reported on Foley on March 4, 2005.[32]

On October 17, 2006, Rogers reported on sexual liaisons between US Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) and unnamed individuals in Washington, DC's Union Station.[33] Rogers uncovered a news story from 1982 that tied Craig to a sex and drug scandal in the US Congress. Rogers reported on more recent activity in various places throughout the nation. Rogers's report prompted Craig to issue a denial.[34] Nine months later, on June 11, 2007, Craig was arrested in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for lewd conduct.[35]

Outrage

Rogers is the subject of the Magnolia Pictures/HBO film Outrage, a 2009 documentary by director Kirby Dick. The film focuses on closeted politicians and senior political staff who work against the LGBT community.[36] Rogers's activities are followed and a number of his cases, including US Rep. Ed Schrock and US Senator Larry Craig are central themes to the film. Rogers also served as a consultant to the filmmakers.

Media

Rogers has been a guest on cable television news channels and his appearances include programs on CNN,[37] MSNBC,[38] Fox News Channel, and Current TV.

In 2004 Rogers appeared on The O'Reilly Factor with Bill O'Reilly. During his appearance Rogers challenged the talk show host because O'Reilly outed a member of the Massachusetts Supreme Court, while attacking Rogers's work. The exchange was reported in the Chicago Tribune.[39]

Rogers has been profiled by GQ magazine,[40] named one of Out magazine's Out 100 and was selected as one of Genre magazine's Men We Love. He has been profiled twice by The Washington Post, both times by writer Jose Antonio Vargas.[41] [42]

Rogers is a guest-host of the Michelangelo Signorile Show on Sirius XM Radio,[43] and The Ed Schultz Show on SiriusXM and national terrestrial radio.[44] [45]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 8,400 days of 'out' . BlogActive . 2009-11-11 . 2013-05-26 . Rogers, Michael.
  2. News: Zremski. Jerry. Ex-Buffalo activist is D.C.'s 'most feared man' Mike Rogers, a founder of Gay Men's Chorus, 'outs' closeted conservatives on his blog . The Buffalo News. September 9, 2007.
  3. News: Schulte. Bret and Oldenberg, Don. Convenience and Controversy in Adams Morgan. 24 November 2013. The Washington Post. August 30, 2002. 30 June 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140630235336/http://pageonenewsmedia.com/stopthebox/washpost.html. dead.
  4. Web site: Raw Story Masthead. The Raw Story. 18 January 2013. 8 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150408052756/http://www.rawstory.com/rs/about-us/masthead/. dead.
  5. Web site: Raw Story Partners Announce Acquisition Of AlterNet.org And The New Civil Rights Movement. PR Newswire. 20 April 2018.
  6. News: Rogers. Michael. Why I Outed Gay Republicans. DCist.com. 2014-06-26.
  7. News: Rogers. Michael. Why I Outed Gay Republicans. 30 August 2014. Politico. 2014-06-26.
  8. News: Alvarez. Fredo. NewsChannel 8's McKelway Threatens Gay Blogger on Live TV. DCist.com. 2009-05-07. 2022-11-10. 2022-11-10. https://web.archive.org/web/20221110034936/https://dcist.com/story/09/05/07/mckelway/. live.
  9. News: Trykowski. Tyler. What Drives Gay Republicans into the Closet?. Vice News. 2016-07-22.
  10. News: Zremski. Jerry. Ex-Buffalo activist is D.C.'s 'most feared man' Mike Rogers, a founder of Gay Men's Chorus, 'outs' closeted conservatives on his blog. DCist.com. 2007-09-09.
  11. News: Out100 2022: 24 LGBTQ+ Titans of Media and Entertainment. DCist.com. 2022-10-26.
  12. News: December 2007 . The Out 100 . Out Magazine . 214.
  13. Web site: Politics and the Pokey . Outweek Archives.
  14. News: Politics, Professions and the Pokey . Outweek . 24 December 1989 . 18 January 2013 . Miller . Andrew . 16.
  15. News: Shopping outside 'the box': new 'monster' vending machine off to a rocky start in Washington . https://web.archive.org/web/20140222031901/http://business.highbeam.com/435424/article-1G1-95120252/shopping-outside-box-new-monster-vending-machine-off . dead . 22 February 2014 . National Post of Canada . 14 September 2002 . 18 January 2013 . Hutchinson . Brian.
  16. News: Tierney. John. Shop Till Eggs, Diapers, Toothpaste Drop. 24 November 2013. The New York Times. August 28, 2002. 2 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131202231701/http://pageonenewsmedia.com/stopthebox/nytimes.html. dead.
  17. News: Schulte. Bret and Oldenberg, Don. Convenience and Controversy in Adams Morgan. 24 November 2013. The Washington Post. August 30, 2002. 30 June 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140630235336/http://pageonenewsmedia.com/stopthebox/washpost.html. dead.
  18. News: Hutchinson. Brian. Shopping Outside 'TheBox'. 24 November 2013. National Post. September 14, 2002. 2 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131202222523/http://pageonenewsmedia.com/stopthebox/natpost.html. dead.
  19. News: Rogers. Michael. Vendor Without a Face. 24 November 2013. The New York Times. September 4, 2012. 2 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131202222641/http://pageonenewsmedia.com/stopthebox/response.html. dead.
  20. Web site: TikTok Easy Stop Big Box, We Hardly Knew Ye.... . 2024-03-07 . www.metafilter.com . en.
  21. Web site: Subway Sandwich Corporation. Our People, Our Communities: Diversity.
  22. News: Subway Franchisee Forced to Recall Prop. 8 Donation . The Wall Street Journal . November 18, 2008 . Flandez . Raymund.
  23. News: International food chain responds to blogger's demands, franchisee retracts gift, job protections added . PageOneQ . November 18, 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081211070434/http://pageoneq.com/news/2008/International_food_chain_111808.html . December 11, 2008.
  24. Web site: Rogers. Michael. You Asked...We Deliver. BlogActive.com.
  25. News: The Most Feared Man on the Hill? . The Washington Post . 4 September 2007 . 18 January 2013 . Vargas . Jose Antonio.
  26. Web site: Michael Rogers blog entry dated August 19, 2004. 18 January 2013.
  27. Web site: Michael Rogers blog entry dated August 30, 2004. 18 January 2013.
  28. Web site: MP3 Recording on Edward Schrock using MegaMates phone service.
  29. News: Rep. Schrock resigns after 'gay phone sex call' surfaces on web . The Raw Story . 18 August 2004 . 18 January 2013 . Byrne . John . 6 June 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130606035129/http://rawstory.com/exclusives/byrne/schrock_resigns_gay_phone_sex_tapes_830.htm . dead .
  30. News: Va. Legislator Ends Bid for 3d term . The Washington Post . 31 August 2004 . 18 January 2013 . Shear . Michael. etal.
  31. Web site: Hudson. Lane. Emails from Congressman Foley to 16 Year Old Page!!!!. Stop Sex Predators.
  32. Web site: Michael Rogers blog entry dated March 4, 2005. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110501081007/http://www.blogactive.com/?p=189. May 1, 2011.
  33. Web site: Michael Rogers blog entry dated October 17, 2006.
  34. News: Idaho Sen. Larry Craig Denies Allegations of Same-Sex Affairs . NewWest Boise . October 17, 2006 . Kuraitis . Jill . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20081208151502/http://www.newwest.net/city/article/idaho_sen_larry_craig_denies_allegations_of_same_sex_affairs/C108/L108/ . December 8, 2008 .
  35. Web site: Karsnia. Dave. Arrest Report: Lewd Conduct by Senator Larry Craig. 12 June 2014 . The Smoking Gun.
  36. Film Reviews: Outrage (Documentary) . https://web.archive.org/web/20120927083352/http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117940124/ . September 27, 2012 . April 25, 2009 . Anderson . John . Variety . April 12, 2013.
  37. News: CNN Newsnight with Aaron Brown . CNN . August 2004 . 2013-02-04 . 2013-05-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130526222943/http://www.proudofwhoweare.org/video3.html . dead .
  38. Web site: Speakers: Michael Rogers, MSNBC's The Practical Futurist. LAI. en. 2019-03-28.
  39. Web site: Cook. John. O'Reilly scolds guest who outed gays, then calls judge a lesbian. Chicago Tribune. 2013-01-27. 2013-05-26. https://web.archive.org/web/20130526214709/http://www.proudofwhoweare.org/media/trib.html. dead.
  40. News: Hot for Gay Republicans . GQ Magazine . April 2005 . Tapper . Jake.
  41. News: The Most Feared Man on the Hill? . The Washington Post . September 4, 2007 . Vargas . Jose Antonio.
  42. News: Capitol Hill Insiders Irked By Campaign To 'Out' Them . The Washington Post . 2004-07-14 . Dana, Rebecca . Varga, Jose Antonio . amp .
  43. Web site: Rogers. Michael. Guest hosting on Signorile's Sirius/XM Show. 23 March 2014.
  44. Web site: Carpenter. Megan. Listen live at noon ET: Raw Story Managing Director Mike Rogers hosts 'The Ed Schultz Show'. 23 March 2014. 23 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140323225730/http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/11/listen-live-at-noon-et-raw-story-managing-director-mike-rogers-hosts-the-ed-schultz-show/. dead.
  45. Web site: Steiger. Kay. Listen: Raw Story co-founder Mike Rogers hosts Ed Schulz show on marriage equality. 23 March 2014. 23 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140323225546/http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/06/26/listen-raw-story-co-founder-mike-rogers-hosts-ed-schulz-show-on-marriage-equality/. dead.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Michael Rogers (publisher)".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.