Santorum (neologism)
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Template:Merge to The word santorum Template:IPA-en (distinguished from the name 'Santorum') is a neologism promoted by American advice columnist Dan Savage since 2003 in response to statements regarding the US Supreme Court's decision in Lawrence v. Texas made by Republican U.S. Senator Rick Santorum from Pennsylvania.<ref name="Spikol" /><ref name="medialiteracy">Template:Cite book</ref>
As a way to demonstrate opposition to Rick Santorum in particular and anti-gay politics in general, Savage requested that readers suggest a new definition for 'Santorum' in his column Savage Love, and announced the winning definition to be "the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex".<ref name="valuewar" /> Savage created a website defining the term, which became a prominent search result for "Rick Santorum" and "santorum" on many Web search engines including Google, Yahoo! Search and Bing.<ref name="newyorkmagazine" /><ref name="jasonlinkins" /><ref name="pamelaparker" /> In 2010, Savage offered to remove his website if Rick Santorum would donate US$5 million to a gay rights group, Freedom to Marry, which advocates on behalf of same-sex marriage in the United States.<ref name="santorumacnkowledgesanalsexproblem" /><ref name="mencimer" />
Rick Santorum has publicly addressed the phenomenon in multiple interviews.<ref name="stevepeoples" /><ref name="chrismoody" /><ref name="brianoneill" /> In a February 16, 2011 interview, Santorum stated to Roll Call, "It's one guy. You know who it is. The Internet allows for this type of vulgarity to circulate. It's unfortunate that we have someone who obviously has some issues. But he has an opportunity to speak."<ref name="stevepeoples" /> He stated to The Daily Caller in an April 28, 2011 interview, "I don't see it as a problem at all."<ref name="chrismoody" /> He hoped the issue would "take care of itself over time", with increased media coverage of his political campaign as a candidate in the 2012 United States presidential election, adding, "And if it maintains, it will just show a rather disgusting side of politics, unfortunately."<ref name="chrismoody" /> The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette queried the former Senator about the issue in a May 12, 2011 interview, and Santorum responded, "It's a free country and people can do and say what they want to say."<ref name="brianoneill" /> He asserted in the interview that this methodology was a double standard seen as acceptable by proponents of Left-wing politics, but that activists from the Right politically would not be able to achieve the same impact without critical scrutiny.<ref name="brianoneill" />
Contents |
Background
Template:Details In an April 7, 2003 interview with the Associated Press, Santorum stated, "If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual [gay] sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything. Does that undermine the fabric of our society? I would argue yes, it does."<ref name="sprigg">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="CNN20030422">Template:Cite news</ref> Santorum further stated that he believed consenting adults do not have a constitutional right to privacy with respect to sexual acts.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He stated regarding the concept of marriage within the law, "In every society, the definition of marriage has not ever to my knowledge included homosexuality. That's not to pick on homosexuality. It's not, you know, man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It is one thing."<ref name="exerptfromsantoruminterview">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A representative for Santorum asserted that his comments were relevant specifically to the then-pending case before the Supreme Court of the United States, Lawrence v. Texas.<ref name="gaygroupswant" /> The Associated Press reported Santorum was offered an opportunity to explain his comments prior to the publishing of the interview—he refused to do so and replied, "I can't deny that I said it, and I can't deny that's how I feel."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a follow-up statement released after the Associated Press interview was published, Santorum said some of his remarks were "taken out of context", and defended his comments in the interview asserting "It is simply a reflection of the law."<ref name="santorumdefends">Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview with FOX News, Santorum said he was not going to apologize for his remarks, "I do not need to give an apology based on what I said and what I'm saying now -- I think this is a legitimate public policy discussion. These are not, you know, ridiculous, you know, comments. These are very much a very important point."<ref name="santorumandgays">Template:Cite news</ref>
Democratic politicians responding to Santorum's remarks included Former Governor of Vermont Howard Dean, who called on Santorum, "to resign from his post as Republican Conference chairman."<ref name="santorumdefends" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle remarked that Santorum's comments were "out of step with our country's respect for tolerance".<ref name="CNN20030422" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee demanded that Santorum resign as chairman of the Republican Senate Caucus.<ref name="reckless1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Brad Woodhouse of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee called the comments, "divisive, hurtful and reckless."<ref name="CNN20030422" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Santorum faced criticism for his comments from Republican Senators including Olympia Snowe,<ref name="santorumandgays" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Susan Collins,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Lincoln Chafee,<ref name="santorumandgays" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Gordon H. Smith.<ref name="santorumandgays" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona stated, "I think that he may have been inartful in the way that he described it."<ref name="santorumandgays" /><ref name="msnbcjohnmccain">Template:Cite news</ref>
Critics of the statement included the Log Cabin Republicans,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the Republican Unity Coalition whose members included then-Vice President of the United States Dick Cheney's daughter Mary Cheney and former President Gerald R. Ford.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> LGBT rights groups which condemned the comments by Santorum included the Pennsylvania Gender Rights Coalition, OutFront, the Center for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights,<ref name="gaygroupswant" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the Human Rights Campaign.<ref name="gaygroupswant">Template:Cite news</ref> The conservative Christian group, Concerned Women for America agreed with Santorum's comments in a written statement.<ref name="CNN20030422"/><ref name="jailinggays">Template:Cite news</ref> The group said Santorum was "exactly right" and attributed criticism of Santorum to the "gay thought police".<ref name="CNN20030422" /><ref name="jailinggays" /> Director of Concerned Women for America's Culture and Family Institute, Robert Knight, criticized those Republicans who spoke out against Santorum, "Maybe they ought to think about switching parties. It shows great disloyalty to their party to join the sworn enemies in calling for the head [of Santorum]. They're doing their party a great disservice."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Vice President for Communications at the conservative Family Research Council Genevieve Wood supported Santorum's remarks, and commented, "I think the Republican party would do well to follow Senator Santorum if they want to see pro-family voters show up on Election Day."<ref name="CNN20030422" /> Conservative publications released articles supporting Santorum's comments, including World Net Daily in an article by Joseph Farah,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and National Review with a piece by Robert P. George.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Contest
[[File:Dan Savage Provided.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Dan Savage published the definition on May 29, 2003.<ref name="Savage Love May 29" />]] Dan Savage addressed Santorum's comments in an op-ed published in The New York Times on April 25, 2003.<ref name="gophypocrisy" /> He linked Santorum's comments to the broader agenda of the party, saying "Mr. Santorum, who holds the No. 3 position in the Senate leadership, was only repeating what many Republicans have already said."<ref name="gophypocrisy">Template:Cite news</ref> Savage next handled the matter in his sex-advice column, Savage Love, on May 8, saying: "Striking down an insulting, discriminatory, unconstitutional law will not, as Santorum fears, open the doors to incest, adultery, bigamy, and bestiality. Straight people blew those doors off their hinges long, long ago."<ref name="family ties">Template:Cite news</ref>
Letters on the Santorum controversy began to arrive, "assuming correctly that the incident was right up Savage's sex-politics alley," according to Liz Spikol of the Philadelphia Weekly.<ref name="Spikol">Template:Cite news</ref> As Rick Santorum's anti-gay comments were forgotten by the media, a writer under the pseudonym "Sex and Rick Santorum" urged Savage to organize a reader contest to determine a definition for the word "santorum."<ref name="Savage Love May 15" /> The reader reasoned that since Santorum had invited himself into the bedrooms of homosexuals, they should be "inclusive" and name a gay sex act for him.<ref name="Savage Love May 15" /> Savage agreed, after pointing out that there are no "gay" sex acts, saying: "There's no better way to memorialize the Santorum scandal than by attaching his name to a sex act that would make his big, white teeth fall out of his big, empty head."<ref name="Savage Love May 15" />
Savage noted that the column had previously succeeded in creating a sexual slang word, "pegging", by getting the definition to begin appearing in dictionaries of sexual slang.<ref name="Savage Love May 15">Template:Cite news</ref> "I threw it out there to my readers," Savage later said.<ref name="Spikol" /> Savage published several definitions suggested by readers in subsequent columns.<ref name="Savage Love May 29" /> The winning definition was submitted by "Wipe Up That Santorum, Anal Pokers" in the May 29 column.<ref name="Savage Love May 29">Template:Cite news</ref> The print journal Gay and Lesbian Humanist noted the contest in its Summer 2003 issue, before a definition had been selected.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Votes were collected by e-mail, and the winning definition was announced June 12; Savage concluded by asking for questions about santorum, and urged his readers to get the word out.<ref name="Savage Love June 12">Template:Cite news</ref> Savage said that the winner was a "perfect fit," as there was no prior name for it.<ref name="Spikol" /> Santorum, he explained, is "unwelcome. If you're doing [anal sex] right, it's not gonna happen, and if it happens, it's a bit of a killjoy, which is what it would be if the actual senator strolled into the room."<ref name="Spikol" />
Spreading santorum
Savage set up a website with dual addresses spreadingsantorum.com,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and santorum.com, where the term santorum is defined as "the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex."<ref name="valuewar">Template:Cite book</ref> The site, titled Spreading Santorum, gives the definition of the term "santorum," under which a brown, splattered stain appears on the otherwise-white page. After this splash page, the site features letters to Savage tracking the dissemination of the term. The site includes a video of a person asking Santorum about the term at a town meeting–style forum and a letter that Santorum sent to a man in California outlining his objections to the "obscenity" of the website. Savage considered he had met his goal of "rubbing it in [Santorum's] nose."<ref name="Spikol" /> In an analysis of the website, the book Crazy Dot Hit by Akintomide Akinola posited that the website was a form of search engine optimization relating to the term.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2006 that the website was "the No. 1 hit on a Google search of the senator's name".<ref name="budoff">Template:Cite news</ref> In February 2011, New York Magazine noted that the website was a top result on multiple other Web search engines as well, reporting that it, "featured prominently in Google/Bing/Yahoo searches for 'Rick Santorum' or 'Santorum.'",<ref name="newyorkmagazine">Template:Cite news</ref> and Search Engine Land reported in the same week that the website was the first result in web searches performed on Bing, as well as Google.<ref name="pamelaparker">Template:Cite news</ref> CBS News reported the website remained the number one Google result in May 2011.<ref name="cbsnewswhatare">Template:Cite news</ref>
In 2010, Dan Savage offered to remove his website if Rick Santorum would agree to donate US$5 million to a gay rights group.<ref name="unproblema">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="santorumacnkowledgesanalsexproblem" /> The organization, Freedom to Marry, advocates on behalf of same-sex marriage in the United States.<ref name="santorumacnkowledgesanalsexproblem">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Savage told Mother Jones in 2010, "If Rick Santorum wants to make a $5 million donation to [the gay marriage group] Freedom to Marry, I will take it down. Interest starts accruing now."<ref name="mencimer" /> Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, responded in a statement to Metro Weekly: "Support for Freedom to Marry's national campaign would be welcome—and a good way for Rick Santorum to start cleaning up the discriminatory mess he and his companions have made."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Recognition and usage
At its annual meeting in January 2005, the American Dialect Society selected santorum as the Most Outrageous Word of the Year for 2004.<ref name="dialect2005">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="tausig">Template:Cite book</ref> Lexicographer Jesse Sheidlower later wrote in Slate, "This year the strongest contender was santorum.... We dismissed one potential problem—that newspapers wouldn't print the term if it won—on the grounds that we shouldn't censor ourselves. And indeed... santorum did win, but many newspapers simply skipped this category in their coverage. So much for academic freedom."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Rachel Kranz and Tim Cusick's 2005 book Library in a Book: Gay Rights provides a glossary of terms relevant to the gay rights movement, and in the entry on "Rick Santorum" notes: "His remarks particularly angered gay columnist Dan Savage, who began a campaign to associate Santorum's name with an unpleasant byproduct of anal sex."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The 2006 edition of The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English did not list "santorum", but discussed it in the introduction as an example of "deliberate coining", noting: "An example of deliberate coining is the word 'santorum', purported to mean 'a frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex'. In point of fact, the term is the child of a one-man campaign by syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage to place the term in wide usage. From its appearance in print and especially on the Internet, one would assume, incorrectly, that the term has gained wide usage."<ref name="newpartridge">Template:Cite book</ref>
Google Current reported in 2006 that santorum had inspired punk rock and blues songs, and was listed in Roger's Profanisaurus;<ref name="googlecurrent">Template:Cite news</ref> it was defined in the March 2004 issue of the publication.<ref name="rogers">Template:Cite news</ref> Neologism in the Lexical System of Modern English included it among examples of "neologisms" whilst noting, "The social sphere has given names to the new phenomena that have appeared recently in the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st centuries."<ref name="neologisminthelexical">Template:Cite book</ref> Philadelphia Weekly reported in 2006 that the term's Web-based success had led to its appearance on bumper stickers and t-shirts.<ref name="Spikol" /> In April 2006, Philadelphia Daily News journalist Dan Gross characterized the phenomenon as, "possibly the longest-lasting pop-culture reference to Santorum".<ref name="dangross">Template:Cite news</ref> In a 2006 article published in the journal Text and Performance Quarterly, Joshua Gunn noted in a footnote that "Coincidentally, Dan Savage has dubbed the curiously foul and flowery, 'frothy' substance created by the intermingling of lubricant and fecal matter during anal play santorum, in honor of Senator Rick Santorum."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Publications that have used the neologism include the 2008 book Men on the Edge: Dangerous Erotica<ref name="christopherpierce">Template:Cite book</ref> and the 2007 book Squirms, Screams and Squirts: Going from Great Sex to Extraordinary Sex by educational sociologist Robert J. Rubel, where it occurred in a discussion of safe sex practices: "Be particularly cautious where this santorum goes. As previously noted, you don't want to get any fecal matter in the vaginal area. Bad safety risk."<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Professor and Chair of the Department of Sexual Medicine Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco, California, physician Charles Moser, noted in a 2006 article for the journal Sexuality, Reproduction and Menopause in a discussion of general terms involved in alternative sexual behavior, "The mix of fecal matter and lubricant, a common result of ass play, is santorum."<ref name="charlesmoser2006">Template:Cite journal</ref> Dr. Moser placed the word among "associated slang terms" with "patients' sexual activities".<ref name="charlesmoser2006" /> York University English professor Terry Goldie wrote in the book Queer Sex Life, "While Savage is not known for delicacy in his treatment of sexual matters, he attempted quite a balancing act in trying to be at once in favour of anal sex and against Santorum. Arguably Savage is not actually against santorum, but knows that Santorum would be, and would be livid about the new terminology."<ref name="professorgoldie">Template:Cite book; previous edition: Template:Cite book</ref>
The santorum phenomenon, its history and development was the subject of a paper presented at the 2008 annual meeting of the National Communication Association.<ref name="nca2008">Template:Cite journal</ref> The paper, titled "Natality in the Private, Public, and Political Spheres: When Santorum Becomes santorum", dealt with the impact of new media on various spheres of influence.<ref name="nca2008" /> The paper's abstract noted, "The specific issue used as an example for this analysis is Dan Savage's internet media campaign to transform former Senator, Rick Santorum's name into a new sexualized word, to retaliate against and increase awareness about the senator's issue stances regarding sodomy, other sex acts, and GLTB rights."<ref name="nca2008" /> In his 2009 book And Then There's This: How Stories Live and Die in Viral Culture, author Bill Wasik identified the term as a form of sexual slang, noting, "his surname was turned into a sexual slang word, which a Google search for his last name today - long after he lost his reelection bid - still returns as the number-one result."<ref name="wasik">Template:Cite book</ref> Author Joselin Linder included the term in the 2009 book The Purity Test, as part of a self-assessment tool in the subsection titled, "The Gay Purity Test".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In the 2010 book The Simpsons in the Classroom: Embiggening the Learning Experience with the Wisdom of Springfield, authors Karma Waltonen, Denise Du Vernay cite the santorum phenomenon in addition to "truthiness" as part of an exercise for students where they are encouraged to invent their own words and then experiment with them.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Response by Rick Santorum
[[File:Rick Santorum by Gage Skidmore.jpg|thumb|upright|Rick Santorum responded in 2011 to the phenomenon, in separate interviews with Roll Call,<ref name="stevepeoples" /> The Daily Caller,<ref name="chrismoody" /> and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.<ref name="brianoneill" />]] Philadelphia Weekly reported in 2006 that Santorum, "was forced to acknowledge the word existed."<ref name="Spikol" /> Rick Santorum discussed the santorum phenomenon in a February 2011 interview with the publication Roll Call.<ref name="stevepeoples">Template:Cite news</ref> The former Senator explained to Roll Call, "It's one guy. You know who it is. The Internet allows for this type of vulgarity to circulate. It's unfortunate that we have someone who obviously has some issues. But he has an opportunity to speak."<ref name="stevepeoples" /> He pointed out to Roll Call what he viewed as a double standard regarding the response to the phenomenon, "It's just a sad commentary. You want to talk about incivility. I don't know of anybody on the left who came to my defense for the incivility with respect to those things."<ref name="stevepeoples" />
On April 28, 2011, Rick Santorum said to The Daily Caller about the issue, "I don't see it as a problem at all."<ref name="chrismoody">Template:Cite news</ref> The Daily Caller reported that Santorum's political action committee had paid money for a Google advertisement to appear when individuals input a search term of "Rick Santorum".<ref name="chrismoody" /> Former Senator Santorum commented, "That'll take care of itself over time and if this campaign takes off and we decide to do this my guess is we'll have lots of other things that will transplant things like that. And if it maintains, it will just show a rather disgusting side of politics, unfortunately. What will change, that is if we decide to move forward, I'm sure [the media] will be writing a lot of things and there'll be lots of links to other things that will far supersede some nasty people that are trying to be crude."<ref name="chrismoody" />
In a May 12, 2011 interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, journalist Brian O'Neill observed that the phenomenon is referred to as "Santorum's Google problem".<ref name="brianoneill">Template:Cite news</ref> He described it as a situation "in which web searches of his name turn up a foul term that doesn't pass this newspaper's breakfast test."<ref name="brianoneill" /> Rick Santorum commented to O'Neill, "It's a free country and people can do and say what they want to say."<ref name="brianoneill" /> He went on to assert that this type of strategy is something acceptable among proponents of Left-wing politics and not to be tolerated by supporters of Right-wing politics.<ref name="brianoneill" />
Political impact
United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 2006
The Economist noted in January 2006 that "gay activists use [Santorum's] name to denote something indescribable in a family newspaper."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Onion AV Club">Template:Cite news</ref> In April 2006, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the "disgusting" definition was "spreading like kudzu on the internet."<ref name="kudzu" /> The Inquirer described the Savage coinage and other references to Santorum in The Sopranos and Veronica Mars as illustrating his name's evolution into "cultural shorthand ... for social conservatism."<ref name="kudzu">Template:Cite news</ref> The regional gay newspaper Bay Windows said in August 2006 that Savage had "succeeded in turning [Santorum's name] into an oft-Googled slang term."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to the Philadelphia Weekly, writing in October 2006, the term "gained real traction" and "found its way into salacious dictionaries—and books published on actual paper," with Savage admitting that he "worked pretty hard" to get it out there.<ref name="Spikol" />
The Human Rights Campaign included the full definition in a reprint of an item from Gay City News.<ref name="andyhumm" /> Savage donated $2,100 to the campaign of Santorum's challenger in the 2006 election, Bob Casey.<ref name="andyhumm">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to the Scranton Times-Tribune, Casey returned the money after hearing of Savage's promulgated definition of santorum, saying that Savage had gone "over the line" demarking political civility.<ref name="overtheline" /> The Washington Post reported that Savage informed the newspaper Casey's campaign had initially accepted the political donation, and subsequently returned it.<ref name="reliablesource">Template:Cite news</ref> Savage gave the money instead to an anti-Santorum political action committee.<ref name="overtheline">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="reliablesource" /> Dan Savage noted, "The Casey campaign was grateful for my support. The day my check arrived ... I was personally invited to come meet Casey and get my picture taken with the candidate."<ref name="realbob">Template:Cite news</ref> According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the Casey campaign's finance director Jake Perry informed Savage that the funds would be returned to him, and suggested other groups critical of Santorum that would be assisted by the financing.<ref name="realbob" /> "That way Casey could benefit from my money without having to, you know, associate himself with the likes of me," explained Savage.<ref name="realbob" /> Ray Murphy who headed the organization Philadelphians Against Santorum told the Philadelphia Daily News his group had accepted the check from Dan Savage, and stated, "We're proud to accept Dan Savage's contribution".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In October 2006, Savage appeared at a fundraiser for the organization, and encouraged young people to vote in the election.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview explaining his motivation for campaigning against Santorum in the election, Savage commented, "Bob Casey is not entirely about Bob Casey, [because] if the Democrats control the Senate in part because Casey is there, it's going to empower a lot of Democratic politicians who I agree with, more than I agree with Casey on issues like choice and gay marriage and other social values issues."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Savage stated in an interview at a political fundraiser prior to the election, "from his perch in the Senate (Santorum has) waged a war against gays and lesbians, and we have returned the fire."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Casey defeated Santorum in the 2006 election for a U.S. Senate seat from the state of Pennsylvania.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A California weekly suggested that the campaign's "ripples were felt strongly by the outgoing senator himself in the recent midterm elections",<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Mark Morford of the San Francisco Chronicle declared that "Dan Savage helped kill Rick Santorum".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Savage himself stated of its effects, "you can't really measure impact."<ref name="Onion AV Club" /> In a celebratory column, Savage wrote: "While Santorum would have been defeated even without a filthy, lowercase definition of his last name floating around out there, having a name that can barely be mentioned in polite company anymore didn't help.... We helped to make Rick Santorum into a national laughingstock—with an invaluable assist from Rick Santorum, of course."<ref name="Savage Love November 16">Template:Cite news</ref> Savage pointed to Kathryn Jean Lopez, conservative columnist and editor of the National Review Online, as an example of his success.<ref name="Savage Love November 16" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In her election day column, Lopez described Santorum as "the politician most successfully victimized by nasty Internet political tactics" and predicted that "some angry people will get the chance to celebrate ... I don't mean people who disagree with him on a federal marriage amendment. I mean people who think it's pretty funny that when you Google the senator's name, you get a repulsive lower-case version of his last name."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In commenting on the phenomenon in his 2007 book Value War, author Paul Ryan Brewer noted, "Santorum's strongly worded signal on same-sex marriage likewise put his political fortunes at risk, as the Pennsylvania senator learned the hard way that ordinary citizens can send signals of their own."<ref name="valuewar" />
United States presidential election, 2012
Whilst Santorum was contemplating a campaign for the Republican nomination for President in 2012, the high Web search engine ranking of Savage's site in searches for his name was seen as a potential roadblock.<ref name="mencimer" /> CEO of ReputationDefender Michael Fertik who specializes in helping individuals with such issues commented, "It's devastating. This is one of the more creative and salient Google issues I've ever seen."<ref name="mencimer">Template:Cite news</ref> New York Magazine noted in September 2010, "Santorum's ... campaign site only has 5,000 inbound links, compared to the 13,000 that SpreadingSantorum has."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In February 2011, the political newspaper Roll Call wrote an article on his "Longtime Google Problem"<ref name="stevepeoples" /> and Maureen O'Connor of media blog Gawker commented, "The question is whether you can actually get over something like that. You know, it's one thing to try to bury a negative article about you, but it's something different to bury your name when you're getting Googled."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In February 2011, Politico reported Dan Savage had declared his intention to renew efforts regarding the santorum phenomenon, due to the former Senator stating to Roll Call that Savage is "someone who obviously has some issues".<ref name="santorumsgoogleto">Template:Cite news</ref> Savage commented, "I do have issues—I have lots of issues—but I take particular issue with politicians who compare loving, stable same-sex relationships to ‘man on dog' sex, as Santorum has done, or who would ban same-sex marriage and adoptions by same-sex couples, as Santorum has promised to do if he gets elected president."<ref name="santorumsgoogleto" /> He informed his readers: "We will be relaunching the site in the next few weeks."<ref name="santorumsgoogleto" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a February 2011 piece analyzing Santorum's political chances in a presidential election, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer commented, "Like Savage's methods or not, they were successful and arguably had an impact on Santorum's ultimate defeat. ... If Santorum actually thinks he has a shot at president, his opponents will surely dredge this bit of dirty silliness from his past and use it to make him appear like a joke candidate."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dan Savage appeared as a featured speaker during Pride Week at the University of Pittsburgh on March 30, 2011.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview with Pittsburgh City Paper at the event, Savage remarked on his hesitation to update the Spreading Santorum website.<ref name="mcnulty331">Template:Cite news</ref> He asserted that Santorum's campaign was an attempt to obtain a more lucrative contract with FOX News.<ref name="mcnulty331" /> Savage commented, "I'm a little conflicted because he's trying to play the Sarah Palin victim card and saying [in weepy voice] 'Look how they attacked me. I'm just a poor defenseless US Senator who was trying to take this man's child from him, and make sure gay sex and straight masturbation remain illegal ... and they made fun of me.' So I'm a little hesitant to get that going again. And his 'Google problem' remains whether I write another blog post about him or not."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a May 2011 interview with The Huffington Post Savage responded to the statement that the phenomenon was "actually wreaking havoc with [Santorum's] potential run for the presidency" by stating, "Well, thank you. That was the plan. And did you see, he [is] now turning it into a feather in his cap. 'Oh, the gays are after me and have hurt my feelings.' He is definitely running for president though. Not that he'll win, or even that he thinks he'll win. Obama's going to wipe the floor with this Republican field. Santorum's campaign, just like the rest of them, is for four more years of Fox News commentator."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The New Republic's Bradford Plumer commented Santorum was a "reasonable candidate" on paper, except for the phenomenon,<ref name="bradfordplumer">Template:Cite news</ref> and Jack Stuef of online magazine Wonkette suggested it was up to Santorum to "do something relevant for the first time" since the controversy that would attract enough coverage to displace his top Google result.<ref name="jackstuef">Template:Cite news</ref> CBS News discussed the santorum phenomenon in its report on the former Senator's plan to formally begin his campaign for President of the United States in June 2011.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Tim McNulty of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette commented in an article on May 31, 2011: "... it looks like that problem might be getting further help from the good people at Google – as of this morning typing in the ex Senator's name brings up the latest news stories on him at the top of the screen, not something unfit for young political wonks."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Media analysis
In a 2004 article, The New York Times commented, "... recent Google bombs have sought to associate President Bush, Senator Clinton and Senator Rick Santorum, a Pennsylvania Republican, with various unprintable phrases."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Savage's campaign and the resulting neologism were referenced in college newspapers of Harvard University,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the University of Calgary,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and the University of Michigan,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and in a music review in the alternative weekly, Montreal Mirror.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Pittsburgh Tribune-Review columnist Dimitri Vassilaros wrote critically about the term's formation in a March 2006 article, and characterized it as "hate content" and "too vile to print in most newspapers".<ref name="googleshaterelativism">Template:Cite news</ref> Vassilaros wrote of Savage, "It was created by a very liberal advice columnist in the alternative media who does not hide his hatred for Mr. Santorum."<ref name="googleshaterelativism" /> Tucson Weekly movie reviewer Jim Nintzel wrote in a satirical piece in April 2006 that he introduced the word to comedian Rob Corddry of the satirical news program The Daily Show, noting that "Despite his high-ranking position as a member of the media elite, Corddry wasn't aware of this important linguistic development."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Daily Show referenced the term in its July 12, 2006,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> December 11, 2006,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and May 9, 2011 episodes;<ref name="earlyreturns">Template:Cite news</ref> and Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report called attention to the term in a February 21, 2011 broadcast,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="colbertfeb2011">Template:Cite news</ref> and subsequently in an April 25, 2011 episode.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a June 2008 piece for the The Antioch Review, contributor Catey Sullivan likened Dan Savage's activism regarding the santorum phenomenon to that of advice columnist Ann Landers.<ref name="cateysullivan">Template:Cite news</ref>
Writing for The Huffington Post, Jason Linkins pointed out that the santorum phenomenon as a high result in web-searches was not limited to Google, but was evident in searches at Yahoo! Search and the Bing search engine, as well.<ref name="jasonlinkins">Template:Cite news</ref> Linkins commented critically regarding the nature of the activism by Savage, "as far as malicious internet pranks go, Savage's was a pretty effective one. What's not discussed is that its overall cultural importance peaked years ago".<ref name="jasonlinkins" /> Steve Peoples of Roll Call wrote, "Dan Savage sought to mock Santorum’s comments on homosexuality."<ref name="stevepeoples" /> In a February 2011 article, Stephanie Mencimer of Mother Jones magazine characterized the activism by Savage in coining the word as an act of "revenge".<ref name="santorumacnkowledgesanalsexproblem" /> Juli Weiner characterized the former Senator as "Google bomb victim Rick Santorum", in a March 2011 article for Vanity Fair.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Salon journalist Tracy Clark-Flory wrote of Savage in March 2011, "Rest assured, he is still the same delightfully droll and impudent man who brought us the term 'santorum.'"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On May 9, 2011, Jon Stewart of The Daily Show mentioned the term without defining it and then told the puzzled portion of his viewers to google it.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> When guest Keira Knightley appeared for her interview, she admitted she had googled it backstage and now felt "like [her] innocence has been taken away."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Jon Stewart's mention of santorum on his May 9, 2011 program caused the word to be one of the most queried search terms on Google the following day.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Michael Grunwald of TIME magazine commented, "you may have noticed that Santorum has a hilariously obscene Google problem, created by gay activists who objected to his anti-gay comments."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Marcia Segelstein wrote critically of the phenomenon in a piece for the Christian news magazine World.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
See also
- Conversion (linguistics)
- LGBT community
- LGBT rights in the United States
- Savage Love Neologisms
- Semantic change
- Word formation
References
References will be visible on Wikipedia pages, but the template doesn't work on dkosopedia yet.
Further reading
External links
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