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The Role of Internet Newsgroups in the Coming-Out Process of Gay Male Youth: An Israeli Case Study

The Role of Internet Newsgroups in the Coming-Out Process of Gay Male Youth: An Israeli Case Study

Avi Marciano
Copyright: © 2011 |Pages: 20
ISBN13: 9781609602093|ISBN10: 1609602099|EISBN13: 9781609602116
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-60960-209-3.ch013
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MLA

Marciano, Avi. "The Role of Internet Newsgroups in the Coming-Out Process of Gay Male Youth: An Israeli Case Study." Youth Culture and Net Culture: Online Social Practices, edited by Elza Dunkels, et al., IGI Global, 2011, pp. 222-241. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60960-209-3.ch013

APA

Marciano, A. (2011). The Role of Internet Newsgroups in the Coming-Out Process of Gay Male Youth: An Israeli Case Study. In E. Dunkels, G. Franberg, & C. Hallgren (Eds.), Youth Culture and Net Culture: Online Social Practices (pp. 222-241). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60960-209-3.ch013

Chicago

Marciano, Avi. "The Role of Internet Newsgroups in the Coming-Out Process of Gay Male Youth: An Israeli Case Study." In Youth Culture and Net Culture: Online Social Practices, edited by Elza Dunkels, Gun-Marie Franberg, and Camilla Hallgren, 222-241. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2011. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60960-209-3.ch013

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Abstract

The study examines internet newsgroups as a potential mitigating tool in the complex coming-out process of gay male youth. Employing a qualitative discourse analysis of the newsgroup’s messages, the chapter focuses on an Israeli newsgroup that appeals to GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) youth and operates within the most popular UGC (user-generated content) portal in Israel. The findings indicate that the researched newsgroup functions as a social arena that offers its participants an embracing milieu, where for the first time in their lives they are free of moral judgment of their sexuality. Through four distinct yet interrelated ways, the newsgroup helps its participants to cope with one of the most significant milestones in a gay person’s life – the coming-out process: (1) refuting prevalent stereotypes of homosexuality; (2) facilitating the acceptance of one’s sexual orientation; (3) prompting its disclosure; and (4) creating social relations within and outside the virtual environment.

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