Did Aaron Schock Get Outed On Facebook?

By Kevin Robinson in News on Jan 6, 2014 8:20PM

Peoria-area Republican Congressman Aaron Schock (IL-18) might have been outed over the weekend, in a Facebook post written by journalist (and openly gay man) Itay Hod.

This isn't the first time Schock has been the subject of accusations that he's gay—unfortunately the stereotype of gay men as physically fit and well-dressed persists. In his post, Hod, a freelance journalist who once worked for CBS News, wonders ("hypothetically") if it's wrong to out a politician if they've been on the record as taking positions in opposition to the LBGT community, such as eliminating Don't Ask Don't Tell, and opposing marriage equality.

Hod goes on to speculate if the media has "an OBLIGATION to expose (Schock's) hypocrisy if he had done something so hypocritical and he wasn't gay, wouldn't we demand journalists do their job?" And while Hod doesn't come out and say Schock is the politician he's wondering about, he opens his post with a reference to "a certain GOP congressman, let's just say from Illinois," and concludes by posting a link to Americablog's post collecting "the 7 gayest Aaron Schock Instagram posts of 2013."

This isn't the first time Schock's sexuality has been questioned, although it is the first time someone has made allegations of witnessing Schock engaged in homosexual relations. But the real story here isn't how well dressed Aaron Schock is, or how buff his abs are, or if he follows a gay Olympic diver on Instagram.

The real story is the central question Hod raises in his Facebook post, which is that if we accept the premise that homosexuality isn't a choice, why is outing someone or openly discussing their sexual orientation such a forbidden topic? Does the media have an obligation to report on someone's sexual orientation, especially when it's a politician that takes positions in opposition to said orientation? Does "a journalist for a reputable network" have a duty to report witnessing a congressman having sex with another man? Does TMZ owe it ot the public to publish evidence of a public figure that's opposed LBGT issues patronizing gay bars?