Why a Podcast Host Deleted His Own Interview With a Gay Couple
When a popular podcast host in Indonesia invited two men onto his show who were married to each other, they had a polite on-air conversation about gay life and identity.
But in a Muslim-majority nation where gay rights are under threat, the show provoked an intense backlash from conservative fans and religious authorities.
So the host, Deddy Corbuzier, deleted the interview from his social media pages and uploaded a fresh interview with an Islamic cleric in which he apologized for “causing a ruckus.” Mr.
Corbuzier’s 180-degree turn this week highlights a tension in the country that has the world’s largest Muslim population. Even as more gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people in Indonesia assert themselves and gain acceptance from their families and communities, a conservative movement is trying — with help from social media — to portray such sexual identities as a threat to national harmony. “There is hostility on online platforms, and it amplifies negative public discourse surrounding homosexuality,” said Hendri Yulius Wijaya, the author of “Intimate Assemblages: The Politics of Queer Identities and Sexualities in Indonesia.” “But we need to be very careful to not conflate what happens in the public discourse with our daily life,” he added. “Violence, stigma, negative perception: All of these things we encounter.
