Los Angeles California -
A Navy training officer has been discharged after outing himself on the popular Bravo reality series Boy Meets Boy.
Michael Tiner, who went by his middle name Jason on the show, was discharged for violating the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.
"I was ready for it," said the combat systems instructor. "I was comfortable enough with who I am and with my sexuality that I was ready to face the consequences.
As part of Boy Meets Boy's twist, not all of the contestants are gay, and Tiner's sexuality was ambiguous until after he was rejected by the leading man, James. At that time Tiner's sexuality was revealed on the show.
Gay newspaper Southern Voice quotes Tiner as saying he had already alerted his commanding officer by the time the first episode aired on July 29. The move to expel Tiner began immediately and became effective August 19. He received an honorable discharge.
The former Navy man also revealed that all the contestants were required to meet with a psychiatrist in part, he believed, "to make sure everyone was mentally stable, so when they found out there were straight people there nobody went 'postal' on them."
The situation serves as a warning to other gays who want to appear on reality shows like Boy Meets Boy says Scott Seomin, entertainment media director at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation..
"Unfortunately, what [reality show] applicants can learn from this is be careful because your livelihood is at stake," said Seomin.
"The consensus among viewers of Will & Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is that all is well in the world for gay men and lesbians and that is not that case," he said.
Meanwhile, Reichen Lehmkuhl who with his domestic partner Chip Arndt won $1 million in The Amazing Race, is speaking out for gays in the military.
Lehmkuhl, a graduate of the Air Force Academy and a former Air Force officer, will appear in an upcoming documentary that investigates the military's 10-year-old "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, the Washington, D.C.. The documentary is being produced for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.
by Mary Ellen Peterson
365Gay.com Newscenter
Los Angeles Bureau
©365Gay.com® 2003
Michael Tiner, who went by his middle name Jason on the show, was discharged for violating the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.
"I was ready for it," said the combat systems instructor. "I was comfortable enough with who I am and with my sexuality that I was ready to face the consequences.
As part of Boy Meets Boy's twist, not all of the contestants are gay, and Tiner's sexuality was ambiguous until after he was rejected by the leading man, James. At that time Tiner's sexuality was revealed on the show.
Gay newspaper Southern Voice quotes Tiner as saying he had already alerted his commanding officer by the time the first episode aired on July 29. The move to expel Tiner began immediately and became effective August 19. He received an honorable discharge.
The former Navy man also revealed that all the contestants were required to meet with a psychiatrist in part, he believed, "to make sure everyone was mentally stable, so when they found out there were straight people there nobody went 'postal' on them."
The situation serves as a warning to other gays who want to appear on reality shows like Boy Meets Boy says Scott Seomin, entertainment media director at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation..
"Unfortunately, what [reality show] applicants can learn from this is be careful because your livelihood is at stake," said Seomin.
"The consensus among viewers of Will & Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is that all is well in the world for gay men and lesbians and that is not that case," he said.
Meanwhile, Reichen Lehmkuhl who with his domestic partner Chip Arndt won $1 million in The Amazing Race, is speaking out for gays in the military.
Lehmkuhl, a graduate of the Air Force Academy and a former Air Force officer, will appear in an upcoming documentary that investigates the military's 10-year-old "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, the Washington, D.C.. The documentary is being produced for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.
by Mary Ellen Peterson
365Gay.com Newscenter
Los Angeles Bureau
©365Gay.com® 2003
This article originally appeared on 365gay.com. Republished with permission.
