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Gaydar (website)
Encyclopedia
Gaydar is a worldwide, profile-based dating website for gay
and bisexual men, women and couples over the age of 18. Although many of the individual profiles are publicly accessible on the Internet, to gain more functionality and interact with other users, a registration is required and a guest profile must be created.
It was founded in 1999 in Cape Town, South Africa by London
-based South Africa
ns Gary Frisch
and his partner Henry Badenhorst
, after a friend complained that he was too busy to look for a new boyfriend. The initial idea was based upon a then current concept of a corporate intranet that was in development under the codename "RADAR" (Rapid Access And Deployment Resource) for a prominent South African Advertising Conglomerate by programmers Ian V/S and S/H. The site was launched in November 1999.
Gaydar and similar sites are widely regarded as having had a major impact on gay communities in many parts of the world. Gaydar allows users to display and receive more detailed and intimate information in many personal areas than is possible in live venues. Some people speculate that internet dating sites may have played a part in shifting the emphasis from cruising grounds — both outdoors and in sex-on-premises venues — to the Internet. Gaydar is popular in South Africa
, the United Kingdom
, Australia
, Ireland
and to a lesser extent in North America
and continental Europe
.
In May 2007 Henry Badenhorst was named by the Independent on Sunday Pink List as the fourth most influential gay person in Britain, down from third place the previous year.
s, which — except for the Australian and Irish chat rooms — tend to be dominated by UK users. Users can upgrade from 'guest' to 'member' status by paying a subscription that allows access to all the site's functionality. Members may add more photos into an 'album' attached to their profile that are viewable by other members. Guests face other site restrictions, such as a daily limit of about 10 messages that they can send and 25 profiles that they can view, and a limit on number of chat rooms accessible at the same time. Guests cannot view archives of sent messages, and cannot use the friends list and do not have access to all search options. About a third of users are members.
study described sites including Gaydar as contributing to clusters
of sexually transmitted infections. Other critics allege that it facilitates barebacking
(anal intercourse without a condom).
Media attention was drawn in 2003 when the website was used by Labour Party
MP Chris Bryant
, and in 2006, when married Liberal Democrat
leadership candidate Mark Oaten
used it to find gay sexual partners.
In February 2007, a newspaper revealed that a high-ranking officer of the Greek military had a profile on Gaydar. He was prosecuted, and an MP brought the matter in the Parliament of Greece, accusing the Minister for National Defence
of allowing "inappropriate promotions" in the armed forces. Greek LGBT
community protested, but the officer claimed the profile was not his.
In 2011, Gaydar re-introduced "filtering" in chat rooms and member-to-member private messages, where lines containing competitors' brand names would appear to be sent but would not be delivered..
died unexpectedly at his home in London on 11 February 2007, aged 38 years. A verdict
of misadventure was recorded by Dr Paul Knapman
, the coroner
at the inquest. A pathologist
, Dr Peter Wilkins, said raised levels of
ketamine
were found in Mr Frisch's blood and liver.
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
and bisexual men, women and couples over the age of 18. Although many of the individual profiles are publicly accessible on the Internet, to gain more functionality and interact with other users, a registration is required and a guest profile must be created.
It was founded in 1999 in Cape Town, South Africa by London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-based South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
ns Gary Frisch
Gary Frisch
Gary Frisch was co-founder of the Gaydar website. He was one of the UK's leading gay businessmen.Frisch was born in South Africa. His father, Eric, worked in engineering, and his mother, Rona, was an accountant...
and his partner Henry Badenhorst
Henry Badenhorst
Henry Badenhorst is the co-founder of the Gaydar Radio website. In May, 2007, Badenhorst was named by the Independent on Sunday Pink List the fourth most influential gay person in the United Kingdom, down from the 3rd place the previous year....
, after a friend complained that he was too busy to look for a new boyfriend. The initial idea was based upon a then current concept of a corporate intranet that was in development under the codename "RADAR" (Rapid Access And Deployment Resource) for a prominent South African Advertising Conglomerate by programmers Ian V/S and S/H. The site was launched in November 1999.
Gaydar and similar sites are widely regarded as having had a major impact on gay communities in many parts of the world. Gaydar allows users to display and receive more detailed and intimate information in many personal areas than is possible in live venues. Some people speculate that internet dating sites may have played a part in shifting the emphasis from cruising grounds — both outdoors and in sex-on-premises venues — to the Internet. Gaydar is popular in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and to a lesser extent in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and continental Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
In May 2007 Henry Badenhorst was named by the Independent on Sunday Pink List as the fourth most influential gay person in Britain, down from third place the previous year.
Registration
Registered users are able to browse through online lists of users who are logged into the site at that time, or through lists of all active profiles. Users can send messages to each other and participate in chat roomChat room
The term chat room, or chatroom, is primarily used by mass media to describe any form of synchronous conferencing, occasionally even asynchronous conferencing...
s, which — except for the Australian and Irish chat rooms — tend to be dominated by UK users. Users can upgrade from 'guest' to 'member' status by paying a subscription that allows access to all the site's functionality. Members may add more photos into an 'album' attached to their profile that are viewable by other members. Guests face other site restrictions, such as a daily limit of about 10 messages that they can send and 25 profiles that they can view, and a limit on number of chat rooms accessible at the same time. Guests cannot view archives of sent messages, and cannot use the friends list and do not have access to all search options. About a third of users are members.
Profiles
Profiles typically include standard information on age, location, physical features, sexual predilections, hobbies, and pastimes. Profiles usually include a free format description about their owner and what they seek in a partner. There is provision for profile owners to upload a number of photographs, typically of themselves — one as the 'main photo', several as 'secondary photos', and several more as 'private photos' that can be sent as attachments to private messages. Photographs may be sexually explicit. Only paying members may view the sexually explicit images. Images that are not sexually explicit may be viewed by both members and guests. All uploaded images are first screened by a staff member at gaydar for legality.Controversy and criticisms
A July 2000 Centers for Disease Control and PreventionCenters for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services headquartered in Druid Hills, unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, in Greater Atlanta...
study described sites including Gaydar as contributing to clusters
Cluster (epidemiology)
A cluster refers to a grouping of health-related events that are related temporally and in proximity. Typically, when clusters are recognized, they are reported to public health departments in the local area. The 1854 cholera outbreak which occurred in London is a classical example of a cluster...
of sexually transmitted infections. Other critics allege that it facilitates barebacking
Barebacking
Bareback is a slang term to describe acts of sexual penetration without the use of a condom.The term comes from the equestrian term bareback, which refers to the practice of riding a horse without a saddle...
(anal intercourse without a condom).
Media attention was drawn in 2003 when the website was used by Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MP Chris Bryant
Chris Bryant
Christopher John Bryant is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Rhondda since 2001...
, and in 2006, when married Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
leadership candidate Mark Oaten
Mark Oaten
Mark Oaten is a former British Liberal Democrat politician. He served as the Member of Parliament for Winchester from 1997 to 2010, and was his party's Home Affairs spokesperson from 2003 to 2006...
used it to find gay sexual partners.
In February 2007, a newspaper revealed that a high-ranking officer of the Greek military had a profile on Gaydar. He was prosecuted, and an MP brought the matter in the Parliament of Greece, accusing the Minister for National Defence
Minister for National Defence (Greece)
The Minister for National Defence of Greece is a government minister responsible for the running of the Ministry of National Defence. The current minister is Dimitris Avramopoulos.-Recent Ministers for National Defence:-External links:*...
of allowing "inappropriate promotions" in the armed forces. Greek LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
community protested, but the officer claimed the profile was not his.
In 2011, Gaydar re-introduced "filtering" in chat rooms and member-to-member private messages, where lines containing competitors' brand names would appear to be sent but would not be delivered..
Death of co-founder
The chairman and co-founder of Gaydar, Gary FrischGary Frisch
Gary Frisch was co-founder of the Gaydar website. He was one of the UK's leading gay businessmen.Frisch was born in South Africa. His father, Eric, worked in engineering, and his mother, Rona, was an accountant...
died unexpectedly at his home in London on 11 February 2007, aged 38 years. A verdict
Verdict
In law, a verdict is the formal finding of fact made by a jury on matters or questions submitted to the jury by a judge. The term, from the Latin veredictum, literally means "to say the truth" and is derived from Middle English verdit, from Anglo-Norman: a compound of ver and dit In law, a verdict...
of misadventure was recorded by Dr Paul Knapman
Paul Knapman
Dr Paul Knapman was Her Majesty’s Coroner for the central London Borough of Westminster, from 1980 to 2011. He was made Deputy Lieutenant of Greater London in 2008...
, the coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
at the inquest. A pathologist
Pathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
, Dr Peter Wilkins, said raised levels of
ketamine
Ketamine
Ketamine is a drug used in human and veterinary medicine. Its hydrochloride salt is sold as Ketanest, Ketaset, and Ketalar. Pharmacologically, ketamine is classified as an NMDA receptor antagonist...
were found in Mr Frisch's blood and liver.
External links
- Gaydar UK, for men, the original URL
- Gaydar US for men
- Gaydar Girls
- Gaydar to receive £2m investment boost, Intellagencia, 16 February 2007
- The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 28 June 2009, Under the Gaydar