TMZ.com has leaked a clip from the ‘Jersey Shore’ where muscle boy and temperamental hothead Ronnie Magro was seen spouting homophobic slurs including “fucking faggot” and “fucking queer” at the guy he ended up getting into a punch-up with on the boardwalk. Reclaimed terms and it being ‘Jersey Shore’ aside, I think it’s noteworthy that Ronnie seemed (to me) one of the more decent boys on the show, and he apparently was totally fine working with gay crew members. Actually, this is allegedly one the reasons why the clip was not released.
Is it OK for a straight guy to use homophobic language if he is “OK” with gay crew members? Is this really homophobic or more incidental? Would it make a difference if the guy he beat up was not so obviously straight?