Bisexual celebrities, the media, and trusting women

Azealia Banks, an up and coming rapper, recently came out of the closet as bisexual:

"Ms. Banks considers herself bisexual, but, she said: "I'm not trying to be, like, the bisexual, lesbian rapper. I don't live on other people's terms.'"

Add her to a growing list of celebrities who have revealed themselves to be bisexual: Nicki Minaj, Ke$ha, Lady GaGa, and Amber Rose, to name a few. What has fascinated me is the lack of media coverage these popular artists' coming out stories have received, compared to those of gay or bisexual male counterparts. What is going on?

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An optimist might argue that, in an increasingly accepting America, there's just no need for these stories to achieve that much fame. I kind of hope that's true: some artists are gay or bisexual, but it's not really the shocking story that it was even a decade ago. People are just more accepting.

And, while I'm sure a part of that is true, I doubt that it's the full story.

Bisexuality is still controversial with a lot of otherwise-accepting heterosexual and, yes, gay folks. It may have been scientifically proven, but a lot of people still consider it to be a "phase" where a straight or gay person transitions into a new sexual orientation. Some consider bisexuality to be a call for attention. None of these myths have any evidence to substantiate them.

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Others have suggested that there is a certain "bisexual chic" today, where women will be incentivized to identify as bisexual or show attraction in other women for the enjoyment of men. A lot of celebrities commentators have alluded that this explains why a lot of female celebrities will come out of the closet. Furthermore, since bisexuality allows for women to still "get with" men, heterosexuals pretending to be bisexual can easily get away with it.

If that is the case, it is deeply problematic. However, how do you prove that someone is faking it? 

Remember Tila Tequila's MTV show? It was a dating reality show where Ms. Tequila, a bisexual woman, had straight men and gay women competing for her heart. Many critics charged that she was faking her bisexuality. What evidence did they have to demonstrate this? None, whatsoever.

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While there probably are some people who fake being gay or bisexual, I doubt the numbers are terribly large. However, the key here is that one can never prove that another individual is telling the truth about her or his sexual orientation. It's just a factor that you have to take someone's word on.

The media reports surrounding these female celebrities' bisexual identities is admittedly sparse because they do not necessarily trust that these women are really bisexual. All of these female bisexual celebrities are generally seen still going for men. And while that does not "disprove" their bisexuality, news would likely be bigger if stories of romantic or sexual encounters with other women were to break. It's a sad reality.