On Dec. 9, 2009, Belhue Press was informed that an ad for the book The Manly Art of Seduction by Perry Brass, after running for a week on FaceBook, had been “disapproved,” and that the site “will not allow the creation of any further FaceBook ads for this product. Ads for this service, product, or site should not be resubmitted.” During its run, the ad was seen for (approximately) 58,000 impressions. It received 183 “clicks” to the Amazon page selling The Manly Art of Seduction. The ad was specifically tailored to be seen by gay men and their friends, and during the creation of the ad, which FaceBook very quickly approved, the site informed Belhue Press that the target audience for the ad would be approximately “13,000 people”; in other words, the ad would not be placed in places where people outside a target audience might see it, although there was nothing in the ad that they deemed offensive at the time of the creation of the ad.

Our main feeling is either that the Christian Right has been screening FaceBook ads and targeting some for their disapproval and possible threats, or that the great, faceless bureaucracy running FaceBook somehow caught up with an ad for a book that it found offensive. The book cover shows nothing that might not be seen on thousands of book covers and hundreds of thousands of FaceBook pages. The copy for the ad, which has to be brief, states, simply: “Frustrated, scared of rejection, alone? The Manly Art of Seduction, a complete guide to emotional and sexual satisfaction with men.”
FaceBook, later, through one of its nameless spokespeople, told Perry Brass that the very word “seduction” set off alarms, and they could not allow any ad with the word “seduction” in it. This would mean that any movie (such as “Alien Seduction”; Lina Wermuller’s “The Seduction of Mimi”; “Anatomy of a Seduction,” a harmless 1979 TV movie; or “The Last Seduction,” a 1997 cult movie so bad it’s good) could never be advertised on FaceBook. Neither could books like The Art of Seduction, by Robert Greene, a primer for poets—in truth, there are hundreds of books with “Seduction” in the title—so what exactly is FaceBook so bothered by?

Why is FaceBook targeting a short book that is simply a guide for gay men who want emotional and sexual satisfaction with each other? If this book had been targeted for heterosexual men and women, there would have been no problems at all. If it had been targeted at dogs and cats, there would be have been no problems. But obviously FaceBook is offended by a book that was written openly to benefit gay men. In this age of gay marriage, of a huge corporate presence in the lives of gay men and lesbians, why is it so offensive to be this candid about something that thousands of gay men want, just like anyone else—emotional and sexual satisfaction? And, this also brings up the question, now that FaceBook has 57 million members all over the world, and many organizations are now using FaceBook as a major source of connecting with their own members and others, what else will FaceBook start banning?

For more information about the FaceBook banning of the The Manly Art of Seduction, please contact Perry Brass at belhuepress@earthlink.net, or reach him at the phone number: 718-884-6606

Listen to the interview we did with author Perry Brass in November on SistersTalk Radio.

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She Said, She Said is a podcast featuring lesbian couple Genia and Andrea. Genia is the host of SistersTalk Radio and Andrea is the assistant producer.

In this segment:

*What’s with our new “offensive material” disclaimer?
*When do you decide it’s time to delete someone from your Facebook friends list?
*Music you might remember from your childhood. What were you doing when these songs were on the radio?
*Featured web sites

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In tonight’s segment, we discuss:

* Baby names – and why you should put more thought into naming your child
* Funny stuff we found on Facebook
* Annoying stuff on Facebook
* U.L.S: U-Haul Lesbian Syndrome (how to recognize the symptoms)
* What happens when one lesbian couple decided to avoid the U-Haul syndrome
* The gay rights equality march in Washington (October 2009)
* The ‘Name my Blackberry’ contest
* Lesbian web site of the week
* Gay web site of the week

Download the podcast now.

Listen to more SistersTalk Radio. Follow SistersTalk on Twitter. Add SistersTalk on Facebook. Contact Genia with comments.

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I heard the “add your social network pages” feature was added to the new and improved CareerBuilder resume builder. I responded the same way: “Hell no.”

For awhile I kept my social network pages very clean, even though I never hid the fact that I was a lesbian. I did, however, avoid using my whole name on any social network since a current or future employer (or that nosey coworker in the cube next to you) can simply Google your name to find out everything about you. If I had a personal photo uploaded to a social network, I used only my first name.

After the last experience I had with corporate America, I decided the following:

1. I will use my whole name on every social network I join – even if I have a picture uploaded.
2. I will be as honest about who I am as possible; no watering down my content.
3. If an employer or potential client doesn’t want me because I’m a mouthy, outspoken, Black lesbian . . . to hell with ‘em.

Now, would I add my Facebook, Twitter, or GayWallet.com profile to a job application? Nope. Why make it easy for an employer to spy on me? That’s something they’ll have to work for.

I told my girlfriend that I realized I was a closet case for a long time. I tried to manipulate search engines to make sure my social network pages didn’t come up when someone Googled my name because I didn’t want them to see the word “lesbian” in print – right there on the internet for the whole world to see. Anyone who’s known me for the last 13 years would be shocked to learn that. I always bragged about being completely out. I wasn’t completely out until I stopped worrying about what people would find when they Googled me.

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