SAN BRUNO, Calif. — A campaign video by openly gay GOP presidential candidate Fred Karger — that ended with a brief kiss by two men on a California beach, was removed by YouTube late yesterday because it violated YouTube’s community policies.
“I was completely shocked tonight to find out that YouTube had taken down our new California commercial from its web site having deemed it ‘inappropriate,'” Karger posted to Facebook earlier today.
“Sexy Frisbee” had gone viral in less than a day with over 15,000 views since our press release went out late this morning. We had an incredible day of excitement, media coverage and comments.
What is “inappropriate” about our 65 second commercial? It was shot at Venice Beach in Southern California with a dozen men and women having fun at the beach. It ended with friends Andrew and Michael (a couple who have been together 7 years) exchanging a quick kiss. Is that kiss what YouTube considers inappropriate? There are gay kisses on television every day and certainly lots on YouTube and other popular video sharing web sites.
The video, no longer on YouTube, can be seen here:
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A spokesperson for parent company Google declined to comment when contacted by LGBTQ Nation on Wednesday.
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Update: YouTube removed the video on Tuesday, deeming it “inappropriate,” only to reinstate it 11 hours later, with an advisory warning of “explicit content.” The reason for the removal remains unclear, although it has prompted some to wonder whether the content deemed “inappropriate” or “explicit” was the real-life gay couple kissing at the end of the video — the couple being personal friends of Karger.
