Petrelis Files

(Media moguls Craig Newmark and Arthur Sulzberger Jr.)

Craigslist Lies About Gay Syphilis in SF;
Newmark Bullied by SF DPH?

No matter what your gender or sexual orientation is, if you want to use Craigslist's vast personals section to find a platonic or romantic companion, or sexual playmates, you first have to get past this warning:

"Choosing safer sex for you and your partner greatly reduces the risk of contracting STDs including HIV -- you can get answers to your safer sex questions, courtesy of staff members at the SF city clinic."

My initial thought about the warning questioned why only an STD message was necessary, and not something that also mentions pregnancy, abortion or adoption, potential outcomes of heterosexual sex hook ups initiated through Craigslist. Or maybe warnings related to drinking and eating, two highly desirable activities much sought after in platonic personals. Bad things can result not just from sexual liaisons arranged through Craigslist, but they don't warrant messaging on the popular site.

That warning, by the way, appears on the opening page of every Craigslist personals section. Looking for a platonic dining date in Philadelphia? Curious about a woman seeking a woman for sexual interludes in Dallas? Are you a man looking for cock to suck in Chicago? You'll first have to get past that warning from the SF Department of Public Health's message, before cruising Craigslist.

Some will argue that there have been cases of STD transmission from meeting a sexual partner on Craigslist, and a reminder about safer sex is a good thing for prevention efforts. First, is there proof the warnings are having an impact on epidemiology? Second, why does Craigslist link only San Francisco's health department? I think if the site is going to carry such messaging, then it ought to be geographically localized.

If someone is concerned about STDs and has questions, it would be better to link them to their nearest STD bureau in their local area, not the bureau in San Francisco. Who at Craigslist elected San Francisco's health department to be the only go-to agency through the site for STD concerns?

Very odd, that instead of linking to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention page for STD info, Craigslist is tied to a one local health agency.

The other thing is, from the San Francisco of this city resident, why is our local health department's funding, which is being cut for San Francisco citizens, being used by the STD control bureau to deliver online services to people from around the nation?

No matter what city you're in, if you click on the link to Craigslist's safer sex forum in the warning, you'll find the right side of the page is devoted to messages from only the SF DPH. Again, this raises the matter of why and how Craigslist has given exclusive rights to this one agency to deal with STD matters, and receive dedicated space on the site.

What is some of what the Craigslist/SF DPH safe sex forum tells you. Is it true? They say:

"Did you know: There is currently a syphilis epidemic in San Francisco among men who have unprotected sex with men."

Why should this stigmatizing statistic be of concern to cruisers in any other city? Is SF DPH yet again invoking the demonizing image of the STD-ridden homosexual to instill fear about all sexual activities? Is the Pope Benedict a bigot?

Those matters aside, the Craigslist/SF DPH claim is not verifiable. Here is what SF DPH reported in a preliminary year-end report from February:

"In 2007, declines were noted for all reportable STDs in San Francisco. Reported gonorrhea declined 19% from 2006 to 2007 from 2469 cases to 2008. Rectal gonorrhea among men also declined from 557 cases to 489 -- a 12% decline.

"Declines in syphilis were also found. Primary and secondary syphilis declined 17% in 2007 from 243 to 202; all early syphilis also declined by 16% in 2007."

Sounds to me like STDs, including syphilis, are on the decline in San Francisco, especially gay rectal gonorrhea, but don't expect to learn this from Craigslist. It's too busy giving up its valuable web site space to stigmatizing lies by SF DPH, an agency all too-dedicated to never saying anything positive about gay male health.

Hey, Craig Newmark, have you been bullied by SF DPH and the STD control workers in their quest to be the (unelected) safe sex nannies of the web? You might want to consider SF DPH's monopoly on a big part of Craigslist, ending the monopoly and letting users decide if safe sex messaging is necessary and effective.

If Craigslist users decide such messaging is what they want, then maybe the site should allow addition local health departments or the CDC to deliver the messages on the site.