Benjamin Cohen founded PinkNews.co.uk in 2005 and was editor until 2006. He was technology correspondent at Channel 4 News between 2006 and 2012.
Twitter: @benjamincohen-
10 April 2006Police say homophophic attack must remind party-goers to be vigilant + PinkNews.co.uk ExclusiveThe Metropolitan Police have warned gay party-goers to be vigilant when leaving venues following the two gay men being subjected to a homophobic assault whilst waiting for a bus in Brixton during the early hours of Sunday morning.The incident that took place at or around 3 am on Sunday 9th April 2006 required both victims to receive medical attention from the London Ambulance Service. -
10 April 2006EastEnders star to quit show after lesbian storyline ends + EastEnders star Natalie Cassidy is to quit the hit soap opera in order to pursue a wider acting career.Casidy who has played Sonia Fowler for thirteen years first arrived on Albert Square as a cheeky, trumpet playing girl.The following years saw her give birth without knowing that she was pregnant, her mother Carol abandoning her, kidnap her adopted child, become engaged to car mechanic Jamie Mitchell and nursing him to death. -
10 April 2006San Francisco is most gay city but is also home to high HIV rates + New statistics released by the San Francisco Department of Public Heath suggest that the city has the highest percentage of gay men in the world and that a quarter of them are HIV positive."Despite an overall loss in the population in San Francisco in the last five years, we think there has been an absolute gain in gay men," William McFarland, head of HIV/AIDS statistics at San Francisco's Department of Public Health, said in an interview. "From all the data I have seen ... it's the gayest city in the world." -
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7 April 2006Arizona senator’s son admits to poking broomsticks up younger boys rectums + The son of Ken Bennett, president of the Arizona state senate admitted in court earlier this week to assaulting school boys of between the age of 11 and 15 with a broomstick and other items. However, the judge deliberating on the case decided to drop all but one of the 18 charges against him which may result in him avoiding jail.Clifton Bennett, 18, and co-defendant Kyle Wheeler, 19, were not charged with sexual assault but instead have pleaded guilty to aggravated assault. -
7 April 2006Six men convicted of homophobic attack + Six men have been convicted of the homophobic attack of two gay men in Santa Fe, New Mexico.James Maestas, 22, and Joshua Stockham, 24, were attacked on the evening of the 27th February 2005 in the car park of a local motel. Mr Maestas was left in a comatose state for eight days whilst his friend Mr Stockham suffered from minor injuries. Mr Maestas told the court that he had to learn how to walk again and how to cope with everyday activities such as dressing himself. -
7 April 2006Rabbi to tackle gay parenting on reality TV show + A rabbi best known in Britain for his book "Kosher Sex" and his friendship (now lapsed) with the bizarre pop star Michael Jackson is to present a new reality television show about troubled families called "Shalom in the Home." Among the first issues to be discussed will be gay parenting.Rabbi Shmuley Boteach became a prominent figure in the British media circuit in the late 1990s whilst chaplain for the Oxford University L'Chaim ("to life") Society. -
6 April 2006Gay killer has bail application thrown out of court 1 The gay "Limbs in the Loch Killer" William Beggs has had his application for bail pending a full hearing of his appeal against his conviction thrown out by a Scottish court.Beggs,42, known as the "Limbs in the Loch Killer," was jailed for life in 2001. He drugged, raped and murdered 18 year-old Barry Wallace before dumping his head in the sea and his limbs and torso into Loch Lomond. He escaped to Amsterdam where he eventually surrendered to police. -
5 April 2006Female “poisoned dwarf” spy awarded compensation after lesbian jibes 1 A special forces spy was awarded £12,000 in compensation yesterday after an employment tribunal found that she had suffered a catalogue of abuse whilst serving in the British Army's special forces.30 year old Corporal Leah Mates told the hearing that she contemplated suicide after she was groped, threatened and labelled as a lesbian and "poisoned dwarf" in reference to her slight stature during a ten year campaign of persecution by male colleagues. -
4 April 2006Fear of arrest results in Egyptian gays not having HIV tests 5 PinkNews.co.uk InvestigationThe lack of gay and bisexual men in Egypt requesting tests for HIV has been blamed on police raids based on medical records kept at hospitals.In 2001, a number of men were arrested by police following a raid of a Cairo gay meeting point and information recorded from gay websites have resulted in numerous raids in recent years. -
3 April 2006Gay Muslim claims Islamophobia denied him post as student leader 1 PinkNews.co.uk ExclusiveAn openly gay and Muslim candidate for president of the National Union of Students (NUS) has claimed that both Islamophobia and homophobia played a part in him losing the election by 28 votes.Pav Akhtar who is currently the NUS black students' officer and formerly the president of the Cambridge University students union, was widely expected to be elected president of NUS at the national conference held last week. -
30 March 2006Busta Rhymes accused of homophobic attack 4 The American rap star, Busta Rhymes allegedly lashed out at a young gay fan outside a gay night club in Miami earlier this week.The New York Post claims that the singer has been on edge since his bodyguard, Israel Ramirez, was shot dead last month in Brooklyn while guarding Rhymes' jewellery."The restaurant was packed with transvestites, gay men and drag queens, which obviously made Busta a little edgy," eyewitness Thomas Barker told the Post. -
27 March 2006Will Young has joined “anti-gay” Church- press claim 4 The gay Pop Idol winner, Will Young has joined a Christian group that allegedly "frowns on homosexuality and labels it an 'illness'."The Daily Mail today claims that the singer has joined a small group of disciples meeting in a formerly derelict church in South Kensington, West London. According to the newspaper, he became a regular worshipper after completing a controversial initiation programme criticised for brainwashing its devotees. -
26 March 2006Diverse crowd join in London to attend rally in support of free speech 2 Over a thousand people braved the pouring rain to listen to a diverse range of speakers enthusing over the rights of freedom of speech in Trafalgar Square on Saturday afternoon.The human rights campaigner, Peter Tatchell of the gay rights group, OutRage!, was reserved the key note speaker position to address a largely peaceful crowd. -
24 March 2006Cockles and Muscles (Crustaces et Coquillages) + Cockles and Muscles is a delightful, light-hearted tale of the intricacies of modern French family life.Set in the sea side resort of Côte d'azur where mechanic father, Marc (Gilbert Melki) and his half Dutch wife Beatrix (Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi) take their son Charly (Romain Torres) to enjoy an idyllic summer in the house that Marc spent his youth. -
23 March 2006Statement from the editor + Statement from the editor in relation to a complaint made by 4D Telecom Ltd under section 3 of PinkNews.co.uk's Editorial Policy.On 23 March 2006 we published an article headed "Telecoms company fined after Gay Times advert led callers to child porn", which reported that 4D Telecom had been fined in relation to telephone lines containing under-age gay sex fantasies. We also stated that 4D Telecom had advertised the sex lines in a gay magazine -
22 March 2006Conservative Jews divided over gay rights + Moves to lift a ban on gay rabbis and marriages has come has proved a sticking point for the leaders of the American Conservative Judaism community convening in an annual meeting in Mexico City.The Conservative Judaism movement who claim to be an attempt to reconcile traditional Judaism and modernity have been overtaken as the largest Jewish group in the USA by the more liberal, Reform movement. -
22 March 2006Sportswear brand faces ban due to anti-gay and neo-Nazi links 1 One of Britain's largest sportswear brands, Lonsdale may face problems in selling to customers in Europe after the continent's largest mail-order company carries through a threat to ban sales of the firm's line due to their popularity with the far right.Michel Badke, managing director of Quelle, the German based mail-order giant told the Independent: "Quelle wants to distance itself clearly from all tendencies associated with extremism." -
21 March 2006Human rights group condemns Islamists and the Metropolitan Police + PinkNews.co.uk ExclusiveThe fifth annual Peter Tatchell Human Rights Fund meeting was held in London last night despite the pulling out of the guest speaker, the liberal Islamic theologian, Sheikh Dr Muhammad Yusuf due to death threats.Instead the main speaker was the Iranian born secularist Maryam Namazie who claimed that supporters "should pay more to hear me speak than some Imam." -
21 March 2006International gay group still aiming for UN recognition + An international group representing lesbians and gays have said that they will seek to put pressure on the United Nations to grant full recognition of lesbian and gay human rights through their biannual conference to be held in Geneva next week.The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA) said the conference would be addressed by delegates from all continents, including countries where homosexuality is banned.
