Mike Ananny commits two sins in his endless opinion piece on why Grindr gets lumped in with sex-offender apps on Android (where open is always better!).
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He recapitulates the lie oft repeated by Grindr’s inventor, Joel Simkhai, that the app is really just about getting to know people. (Ananny: “Grindr describes itself as a ‘simple, fast, fun and free way to find and meet gay, bi, and curious guys for dating, socializing and friendship.’ It’s… targeted at gay men looking to socialize, where ‘socialize’ can mean a wide variety of things, including chatting, hooking up to have sex, or developing a friendship.”) Grindr’s sole purpose is to find nearby guys to fuck.
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Ananny complains about the Android Marketplace’s and even Apple’s categorization of Grindr and sex-offender apps, and especially about Android’s presenting both categories together. But he did not contact either firm for a comment. (I asked him why not and he didn’t respond.) It must be stated that Apple responds to almost no press inquiries, and my own meta-inquiry to Google Press – “Who handles media inquiries for the Android Marketplace?” – was ignored.
The point here is that, even in an opinion piece, factual statements have to be verified, and named parties you accuse of something have to be given a chance to respond.