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The word santorum /sænˈtorəm/ is a neologism coined by American advice columnist Dan Savage in response to controversy over statements on homosexuality by Republican U.S. Senator Rick Santorum from Pennsylvania. The meaning Savage gave to it, based on suggestions submitted by readers of his column Savage Love, is "the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex". A web page defining the term as such, created by Savage, became a top search result for santorum in 2003, unseating the Senator's official website on many Web search engines including Google, Yahoo! Search and Bing. In 2010, Dan Savage offered to remove his website if Rick Santorum would donate US$5 million to a gay rights group, Freedom to Marry, which advocates on behalf of same-sex marriage in the United States.

Rick Santorum has publicly addressed the phenomenon in multiple interviews. In a February 16, 2011 interview, Santorum stated to Roll Call, "It's one guy. You know who it is. The Internet allows for this type of vulgarity to circulate. It's unfortunate that we have someone who obviously has some issues. But he has an opportunity to speak." He stated to The Daily Caller in an April 28, 2011 interview, "I don't see it as a problem at all." He hoped the issue would "take care of itself over time", with increased media coverage of his political campaign as a candidate in the 2012 United States presidential election, adding, "And if it maintains, it will just show a rather disgusting side of politics, unfortunately." The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette queried the former Senator about the issue in a May 12, 2011 interview, and Santorum responded, "It's a free country and people can do and say what they want to say." He asserted in the interview that this methodology was a double standard seen as acceptable by proponents of Left-wing politics, but that activists from the Right politically would not be able to achieve the same impact without critical scrutiny.

The American Dialect Society selected santorum as the Most Outrageous Word of the Year for 2004. The 2006 edition of The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English cited santorum as an example of "deliberate coining". Google Current reported in 2006 that santorum was listed in Roger's Profanisaurus. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review columnist Dimitri Vassilaros wrote critically about the term's formation, and characterized it as "hate content" and "too vile to print in most newspapers". Philadelphia Daily News journalist Dan Gross described the usage of the term as, "Possibly the longest-lasting pop-culture reference to Santorum". Catey Sullivan of The Antioch Review likened the phenomenon surrounding the term to that of "subversive political activism" of advice columnist Ann Landers.

Background

In an April 7, 2003 interview with the Associated Press, Santorum stated, "If the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual sex within your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy, you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the right to anything. Does that undermine the fabric of our society? I would argue yes, it does." Santorum further stated that he believed consenting adults do not have a constitutional right to privacy with respect to sexual acts. He stated regarding the concept of marriage within the law, "In every society, the definition of marriage has not ever to my knowledge included homosexuality. That's not to pick on homosexuality. It's not, you know, man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It is one thing." A representative for Santorum asserted that his comments were relevant specifically to the then-pending case before the Supreme Court of the United States, Lawrence v. Texas. The Associated Press reported Santorum was offered an opportunity to explain his comments prior to the publishing of the interview — he refused to do so and replied, "I can't deny that I said it, and I can't deny that's how I feel." In a follow-up statement released after the Associated Press interview was published, Santorum said some of his remarks were "taken out of context", and defended his comments in the interview asserting "It is simply a reflection of the law." In an interview with FOX News, Santorum said he was not going to apologize for his remarks, "I do not need to give an apology based on what I said and what I'm saying now -- I think this is a legitimate public policy discussion. These are not, you know, ridiculous, you know, comments. These are very much a very important point."

Democratic politicians responding to Santorum's remarks included Former Governor of Vermont Howard Dean, who called on Santorum, "to resign from his post as Republican Conference chairman." Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle remarked that Santorum's comments were "out of step with our country's respect for tolerance". The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee demanded that Santorum resign as chairman of the Republican Senate Caucus. Brad Woodhouse of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee called the comments, "divisive, hurtful and reckles". Santorum faced criticism for his comments from Republican Senators including Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Lincoln Chafee, and Gordon H. Smith. Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona stated, "I think that he may have been inartful in the way that he described it."

Critics of the statement included the Log Cabin Republicans, and the Republican Unity Coalition whose members included then-Vice President of the United States Dick Cheney's daughter Mary Cheney and former President Gerald R. Ford. LGBT rights groups which condemned the comments by Santorum included the Pennsylvania Gender Rights Coalition, OutFront, the Center for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights, and the Human Rights Campaign. The conservative Christian group, Concerned Women for America agreed with Santorum's comments in a written statement. The group said Santorum was "exactly right" and attributed criticism of Santorum to the "gay thought police". Director of Concerned Women for America's Culture and Family Institute, Robert Knight, criticized those Republicans who spoke out against Santorum, "Maybe they ought to think about switching parties. It shows great disloyalty to their party to join the sworn enemies in calling for the head . They're doing their party a great disservice." Vice President for Communications at the conservative Family Research Council Genevieve Wood supported Santorum's remarks, and commented, "I think the Republican party would do well to follow Senator Santorum if they want to see pro-family voters show up on Election Day." Conservative publications released articles supporting Santorum's comments, including World Net Daily in an article by Joseph Farah, and National Review with a piece by Robert P. George.

Contest

Dan Savage addressed Santorum's comments in an op-ed published in The New York Times on April 25, 2003. He linked Santorum's comments to the broader agenda of the party, saying "Mr. Santorum, who holds the No. 3 position in the Senate leadership, was only repeating what many Republicans have already said." Savage next handled the matter in his sex-advice column, Savage Love, on May 8, saying: "Striking down an insulting, discriminatory, unconstitutional law will not, as Santorum fears, open the doors to incest, adultery, bigamy, and bestiality. Straight people blew those doors off their hinges long, long ago."

Letters on the Santorum controversy began to arrive, "assuming correctly that the incident was right up Savage's sex-politics alley," according to Liz Spikol of the Philadelphia Weekly. As Rick Santorum's anti-gay comments were forgotten about by the media, a writer under the pseudonym "Sex and Rick Santorum" urged Savage to organize a reader contest to determine a definition for the word "santorum." The reader reasoned that since Santorum had invited himself into the bedrooms of homosexuals, they should be "inclusive" and name a gay sex act for him. Savage agreed, after pointing out that there are no "gay" sex acts, saying: "There's no better way to memorialize the Santorum scandal than by attaching his name to a sex act that would make his big, white teeth fall out of his big, empty head."

Savage noted that the column had previously succeeded in creating a sexual slang word, "pegging," by getting the definition to begin appearing in dictionaries of sexual slang. "I threw it out there to my readers," Savage later said. Savage published several definitions suggested by readers in subsequent columns. The winning definition was submitted by "Wipe Up That Santorum, Anal Pokers" in the May 29 column. Votes were collected by e-mail, and the winning definition was announced June 12; Savage concluded by asking for questions about santorum, and urged his readers to get the word out. Savage said that the winner was a "perfect fit," as there was no prior name for it. Santorum, he explained, is "unwelcome. If you're doing right, it's not gonna happen, and if it happens, it's a bit of a killjoy, which is what it would be if the actual senator strolled into the room."

Spreading Santorum

Savage set up a website with dual addresses spreadingsantorum.com, and santorum.com, where the term santorum is defined as "the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex." The site, titled Spreading Santorum, gives the definition of the term "santorum," under which a brown, splattered stain appears on the otherwise-white page. After this splash page, the site features letters to Savage tracking the dissemination of the term. The site includes a video of a person asking Santorum about the term at a town meeting–style forum and a letter that Santorum sent to a man in California outlining his objections to the "obscenity" of the website. Savage considered he had met his goal of "rubbing it in nose." In an analysis of the website, the book Crazy Dot Hit by Akintomide Akinola posited that the website was a form of search engine optimization relating to the term.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2006 that the website was "the No. 1 hit on a Google search of the senator's name". In February 2011, New York Magazine noted that the website was a top result on multiple other Web search engines as well, reporting that it, "featured prominently in Google/Bing/Yahoo searches for 'Rick Santorum' or 'Santorum.'", and Search Engine Land reported in the same week that the website was the first result in web searches performed on Bing, as well as Google. CBS News reported the website remained the number one Google result in May 2011.

In 2010, Dan Savage offered to remove his website if Rick Santorum would agree to donate US$5 million to a gay rights group. The organization, Freedom to Marry, advocates on behalf of same-sex marriage in the United States. Savage told Mother Jones in 2010, "If Rick Santorum wants to make a $5 million donation to Freedom to Marry, I will take it down. Interest starts accruing now." Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, responded in a statement to Metro Weekly: "Support for Freedom to Marry's national campaign would be welcome — and a good way for Rick Santorum to start cleaning up the discriminatory mess he and his companions have made."

Recognition and usage

At its annual meeting in January 2005, the American Dialect Society selected santorum as the Most Outrageous Word of the Year for 2004. Lexicographer Jesse Sheidlower later wrote in Slate, "This year the strongest contender was santorum.... We dismissed one potential problem — that newspapers wouldn't print the term if it won — on the grounds that we shouldn't censor ourselves. And indeed... santorum did win, but many newspapers simply skipped this category in their coverage. So much for academic freedom." A limerick discussing the phenomenon was recognized in the Third Annual Geek Limerick Contest held by BBspot. Rachel Kranz and Tim Cusick's 2005 book Library in a Book: Gay Rights provides a glossary of terms relevant to the gay rights movement, and in the entry on "Rick Santorum" notes: "His remarks particularly angered gay columnist Dan Savage, who began a campaign to associate Santorum's name with an unpleasant byproduct of anal sex." Google Current reported in 2006 that santorum had inspired punk rock and blues songs, and was listed in Roger's Profanisaurus; it was defined in the March 2004 issue of the publication. The 2006 edition of The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English did not list santorum, but discussed it in its introduction as an example of "intentional coinings without widespread usage" that do not qualify for an entry, noting: "An example of deliberate coining is the word 'santorum', purported to mean 'a frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex'. In point of fact, the term is the child of a one-man campaign by syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage to place the term in wide usage. From its appearance in print and especially on the Internet, one would assume, incorrectly, that the term has gained wide usage." Neologism in the Lexical System of Modern English included it among examples of "neologisms" whilst noting, "The social sphere has given names to the new phenomena that have appeared recently in the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st centuries." In a 2006 article published in the journal Text and Performance Quarterly, Joshua Gunn described santorum as, "the curiously foul and flowerly, 'frothy' substance created by the intermingling of lubricant and fecal matter during anal play". Santorum has received utilization in fiction, including the 2008 book Men on the Edge: Dangerous Erotica edited by Christopher Pierce.

In his 2007 crossword book Gonzo Crosswords, author Ben Tausig explained his usage of the word, "Savage was persistent, and his efforts met with success — among other honors, the American Dialect Society named it their Most Outrageous Word of the Year. Since 2004, I'd wanted to use SANTORUM as soon as possible, and was happy to have the opportunity here. I think crosswords should embrace interesting neologisms, warts and all." The term is utilized in the 2007 book Squirms, Screams and Squirts: Going from Great Sex to Extraordinary Sex by educational sociologist Robert J. Rubel, in a discussion of safe sex practices, "Be particularly cautious where this santorum goes. As previously noted, you don't want to get any fecal matter in the vaginal area. Bad safety risk." Professor and Chair of the Department of Sexual Medicine Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco, California, physician Charles Moser, noted in a 2006 article for the journal Sexuality, Reproduction and Menopause in a discussion of general terms involved in alternative sexual behavior, "The mix of fecal matter and lubricant, a common result of ass play, is santorum." Dr. Moser placed the word among "associated slang terms" with "patients' sexual activities".

The santorum phenomenon, its history and development was the subject of a paper presented at the 2008 annual meeting of the National Communication Association. The paper, titled "Natality in the Private, Public, and Political Spheres: When Santorum Becomes santorum", dealt with the impact of new media on various spheres of influence. The paper's abstract noted, "The specific issue used as an example for this analysis is Dan Savage's internet media campaign to transform former Senator, Rick Santorum's name into a new sexualized word, to retaliate against and increase awareness about the senator's issue stances regarding sodomy, other sex acts, and GLTB rights." In his 2009 book And Then There's This: How Stories Live and Die in Viral Culture, author Bill Wasik identified the term as a form of sexual slang, noting, "his surname was turned into a sexual slang word, which a Google search for his last name today - long after he lost his reelection bid - still returns as the number-one result." Author Joselin Linder included the term in the 2009 book The Purity Test, as part of a self-assessment tool in the subsection titled, "The Gay Purity Test". In the 2010 book The Simpsons in the Classroom: Embiggening the Learning Experience with the Wisdom of Springfield, authors Karma Waltonen, Denise Du Vernay cite the santorum phenomenon in addition to "truthiness" as part of an exercise for students where they are encouraged to invent their own words and then experiment with them. Dan Savage advised his readers on how to remove santorum from bed sheets after sexual activity, "An ounce of prevention—or the careful placement of a towel—is worth a pound of Spray 'n Wash Stain Stick. If putting down a towel, or taking time to douche, is too much for you, fuck on the floor or get brown sheets."

Response by Rick Santorum

Rick Santorum discussed the santorum phenomenon in a February 2011 interview with the publication Roll Call. The former Senator explained to Roll Call, "It's one guy. You know who it is. The Internet allows for this type of vulgarity to circulate. It's unfortunate that we have someone who obviously has some issues. But he has an opportunity to speak." He pointed out to Roll Call what he viewed as a double standard regarding the response to the phenomenon, "It's just a sad commentary. You want to talk about incivility. I don't know of anybody on the left who came to my defense for the incivility with respect to those things."

On April 28, 2011, Rick Santorum said to The Daily Caller about the issue, "I don't see it as a problem at all." The Daily Caller reported that Santorum's political action committee had paid money for a Google advertisement to appear when individuals input a search term of "Rick Santorum". Former Senator Santorum commented, "That'll take care of itself over time and if this campaign takes off and we decide to do this my guess is we'll have lots of other things that will transplant things like that. And if it maintains, it will just show a rather disgusting side of politics, unfortunately. What will change, that is if we decide to move forward, I'm sure will be writing a lot of things and there'll be lots of links to other things that will far supersede some nasty people that are trying to be crude."

In a May 12, 2011 interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, journalist Brian O'Neill observed that the phenomenon is referred to as "Santorum's Google problem". He described it as a situation "in which web searches of his name turn up a foul term that doesn't pass this newspaper's breakfast test." Rick Santorum commented to O'Neill, "It's a free country and people can do and say what they want to say." He went on to assert that this type of strategy is something acceptable among proponents of Left-wing politics and not to be tolerated by supporters of Right-wing politics.

Political impact

United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 2006

The Economist noted in January 2006 that "gay activists use name to denote something indescribable in a family newspaper." In April 2006, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the "disgusting" definition was "spreading like kudzu on the internet." The Inquirer described the Savage coinage and other references to Santorum in The Sopranos and Veronica Mars as illustrating his name's evolution into "cultural shorthand ... for social conservatism." The regional gay newspaper Bay Windows said in August 2006 that Savage had "succeeded in turning into an oft-Googled slang term." According to the Philadelphia Weekly, writing in October 2006, the term "gained real traction" and "found its way into salacious dictionaries — and books published on actual paper," with Savage admitting that he "worked pretty hard" to get it out there.

The Human Rights Campaign included the full definition in a reprint of an item from Gay City News. Savage donated $2,100 to the campaign of Santorum's challenger in the 2006 election, Bob Casey. According to the Scranton Times-Tribune, Casey returned the money after hearing of Savage's promulgated definition of santorum, saying that Savage had gone "over the line" demarking political civility. The Washington Post reported that Savage informed the newspaper Casey's campaign had initially accepted the political donation, and subsequently returned it. Savage gave the money instead to an anti-Santorum political action committee. Dan Savage noted, "The Casey campaign was grateful for my support. The day my check arrived ... I was personally invited to come meet Casey and get my picture taken with the candidate." According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the Casey campaign's finance director Jake Perry informed Savage that the funds would be returned to him, and suggested other groups critical of Santorum that would be assisted by the financing. "That way Casey could benefit from my money without having to, you know, associate himself with the likes of me," explained Savage. Ray Murphy who headed the organization Philadelphians Against Santorum told the Philadelphia Daily News his group had accepted the check from Dan Savage, and stated, "We're proud to accept Dan Savage's contribution". In October 2006, Savage appeared at a fundraiser for the organization, and encouraged young people to vote in the election. In an interview explaining his motivation for campaigning against Santorum in the election, Savage commented, "Bob Casey is not entirely about Bob Casey, if the Democrats control the Senate in part because Casey is there, it's going to empower a lot of Democratic politicians who I agree with, more than I agree with Casey on issues like choice and gay marriage and other social values issues." Savage stated in an interview at a political fundraiser prior to the election, "from his perch in the Senate (Santorum has) waged a war against gays and lesbians, and we have returned the fire."

Casey defeated Santorum in the 2006 election for a U.S. Senate seat from the state of Pennsylvania. A California weekly suggested that the campaign's "ripples were felt strongly by the outgoing senator himself in the recent midterm elections", and Mark Morford of the San Francisco Chronicle declared that "Dan Savage helped kill Rick Santorum". Savage himself stated of its effects, "you can't really measure impact." In a celebratory column, Savage wrote: "While Santorum would have been defeated even without a filthy, lowercase definition of his last name floating around out there, having a name that can barely be mentioned in polite company anymore didn't help.... We helped to make Rick Santorum into a national laughingstock — with an invaluable assist from Rick Santorum, of course." Savage pointed to Kathryn Jean Lopez, conservative columnist and editor of the National Review Online, as an example of his success. In her election day column, Lopez described Santorum as "the politician most successfully victimized by nasty Internet political tactics" and predicted that "some angry people will get the chance to celebrate ... I don't mean people who disagree with him on a federal marriage amendment. I mean people who think it's pretty funny that when you Google the senator's name, you get a repulsive lower-case version of his last name." In commenting on the phenomenon in his 2007 book Value War, author Paul Ryan Brewer noted, "Santorum's strongly worded signal on same-sex marriage likewise put his political fortunes at risk, as the Pennsylvania senator learned the hard way that ordinary citizens can send signals of their own."

United States presidential election, 2012

Whilst Santorum was contemplating a campaign for the Republican nomination for President in 2012, the high Web search engine ranking of Savage's site in searches for his name was seen as a potential roadblock. CEO of ReputationDefender Michael Fertik who specializes in helping individuals with such issues commented, "It's devastating. This is one of the more creative and salient Google issues I've ever seen." New York Magazine noted in September 2010, "Santorum's ... campaign site only has 5,000 inbound links, compared to the 13,000 that SpreadingSantorum has." In February 2011, the political newspaper Roll Call wrote an article on his "Longtime Google Problem" and Maureen O'Connor of media blog Gawker commented, "The question is whether you can actually get over something like that. You know, it's one thing to try to bury a negative article about you, but it's something different to bury your name when you're getting Googled."

In February 2011, Politico reported Dan Savage had declared his intention to renew efforts regarding the santorum phenomenon, due to the former Senator stating to Roll Call that Savage is "someone who obviously has some issues". Savage commented, "I do have issues — I have lots of issues — but I take particular issue with politicians who compare loving, stable same-sex relationships to ‘man on dog' sex, as Santorum has done, or who would ban same-sex marriage and adoptions by same-sex couples, as Santorum has promised to do if he gets elected president." He informed his readers: "We will be relaunching the site in the next few weeks." Dan Savage appeared as a featured speaker during Pride Week at the University of Pittsburgh on March 30, 2011. In an interview with Pittsburgh City Paper at the event, Savage remarked on his hesitation to update the Spreading Santorum website. He asserted that Santorum's campaign was an attempt to obtain a more lucrative contract with FOX News. Savage commented, "I'm a little conflicted because he's trying to play the Sarah Palin victim card and saying 'Look how they attacked me. I'm just a poor defenseless US Senator who was trying to take this man's child from him, and make sure gay sex and straight masturbation remain illegal ... and they made fun of me.' So I'm a little hesitant to get that going again. And his 'Google problem' remains whether I write another blog post about him or not." In a May 2011 interview with The Huffington Post Savage responded to the statement that the phenomenon was "actually wreaking havoc with potential run for the presidency" by stating, "Well, thank you. That was the plan. And did you see, he now turning it into a feather in his cap. 'Oh, the gays are after me and have hurt my feelings.' He is definitely running for president though. Not that he'll win, or even that he thinks he'll win. Obama's going to wipe the floor with this Republican field. Santorum's campaign, just like the rest of them, is for four more years of Fox News commentator." The New Republic's Bradford Plumer commented Santorum was a "reasonable candidate" on paper, except for the phenomenon, and Jack Stuef of Wonkette suggested the candidate "could do something relevant" in the campaign to alleviate the issue. CBS News discussed the santorum phenomenon in its report on the former Senator's plan to formally begin his campaign for President of the United States in June 2011.

Media analysis

The print journal Gay and Lesbian Humanist noted the contest in its Summer 2003 issue, before a definition had been selected. In a 2004 article, The New York Times commented, "... recent Google bombs have sought to associate President Bush, Senator Clinton and Senator Rick Santorum, a Pennsylvania Republican, with various unprintable phrases." The word appeared in discussion in college newspapers of Harvard University, the University of Calgary, and the University of Michigan, and in a music review. The term's popularity as a political epithet has extended to bumper stickers and t-shirts. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review columnist Dimitri Vassilaros wrote critically about the term's formation in a March 2006 article, and characterized it as "hate content" and "too vile to print in most newspapers". Vassilaros wrote of Savage, "It was created by a very liberal advice columnist in the alternative media who does not hide his hatred for Mr. Santorum." Tucson Weekly movie reviewer Jim Nintzel wrote in a satirical piece in April 2006 that he introduced the word to comedian Rob Corddry of the parody news program The Daily Show, noting that "Despite his high-ranking position as a member of the media elite, Corddry wasn't aware of this important linguistic development." Philadelphia Daily News journalist Dan Gross observed in April 2006, "Possibly the longest-lasting pop-culture reference to Santorum is that of sex columnist Dan Savage (carried here in Philadelphia Weekly), who started what's become a popular campaign to use the senator's surname to describe a byproduct of anal sex." The Daily Show referenced the term in its July 12, 2006, December 11, 2006, and May 9, 2011 episodes. Google Current covered the Google bombing of the term on July 15, 2006. In a June 2008 piece for the The Antioch Review, contributor Catey Sullivan likened Dan Savage's activism regarding the santorum phenomenon to that of advice columnist Ann Landers: "Long before Savage successfully campaigned to turn anti-gay Senator Rick Santorum's last name into a hilariously insulting noun, Landers laid the groundwork for such subversive political activism."

Writing for The Huffington Post, Jason Linkins pointed out that the santorum phenomenon as a high result in web-searches was not limited to Google, but was evident in searches at Yahoo! Search and the Bing search engine, as well: "For what it's worth, this is not just a 'Google problem.' It's also a 'Yahoo problem' and a 'Bing The Decision Engine problem,' too. Perhaps Santorum's best option at this point is to encourage people to start using Wolfram Alpha." Linkins commented critically regarding the nature of the activism by Savage, "as far as malicious internet pranks go, Savage's was a pretty effective one. What's not discussed is that its overall cultural importance peaked years ago". Steve Peoples of Roll Call wrote, "Dan Savage sought to mock Santorum’s comments on homosexuality." In a February 2011 piece analyzing Santorum's political chances in a presidential election, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer commented, "Like Savage's methods or not, they were successful and arguably had an impact on Santorum's ultimate defeat. ... If Santorum actually thinks he has a shot at president, his opponents will surely dredge this bit of dirty silliness from his past and use it to make him appear like a joke candidate." In a February 2011 article, Stephanie Mencimer of Mother Jones magazine characterized the activism by Savage in coining the word as an act of "revenge". On February 21, 2011 Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report called attention to the term in response to Senator Santorum's public dismay that when his name is searched by Google, the above definition is still the first search result. Juli Weiner characterized the former Senator as "Google bomb victim Rick Santorum", in a March 2011 article for Vanity Fair. Tracy Clark-Flory wrote of Savage in March 2011, "Rest assured, he is still the same delightfully droll and impudent man who brought us the term 'santorum.'" Stephen Colbert referred to the "frothy mixture" on his April 25, 2011, show in a sketch about having a beer with various Republican candidates, and called on people to once again "Google it." On May 9, 2011, Jon Stewart of The Daily Show mentioned the term without defining it and then told the puzzled portion of his audience/viewers to google it. When guest Keira Knightley appeared for her interview, she admitted she had googled it backstage and now felt "like innocence has been taken away." Knightley commented, "It was the use of the word frothy that I think was really quite ..." Jon Stewart's mention of santorum on his May 9, 2011 program caused the word to be one of the most queried search terms on Google the following day. Brian Montopoli of CBS News noted in a May 2011 piece, "Santorum also has a Google problem. His position on gay rights prompted liberal gay rights activist and columnist Dan Savage to redefine 'santorum' as an explicit aspect of gay sex, and if you Google his last name the result is the first to show up." Michael Grunwald of TIME magazine commented, "you may have noticed that Santorum has a hilariously obscene Google problem, created by gay activists who objected to his anti-gay comments." Tim McNulty of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette commented in an article on May 31, 2011: "... it looks like that problem might be getting further help from the good people at Google -- as of this morning typing in the ex Senator's name brings up the latest news stories on him at the top of the screen, not something unfit for young political wonks."

See also

• Conversion (linguistics)
• LGBT community
• LGBT rights in the United States
• Savage Love Neologisms
• Semantic change
• Word formation

References

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68. Dunn, Jack R. (2005). Hard. p. 134. She wads up the t-shirt, uses it to wipe a trickle of santorum from her ass, and throws it under the cot.
69. James, Austen (2008). Hate Starve Curse. Broken Science Press. p. 30. ISBN 978148235028. Any residents not burned alive in the fires or drowned in the flood will be made to drink a mixture of bodily fluids typically deposited in on the streets during Mardi Gras until death. The mixture should consist of (but is not limited to) sweat, snot, urine, saliva, tears, vomit, sexual fluids, and feces and santorum. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: length (help)
70. Pierce, Christopher (2008). Men on the Edge: Dangerous Erotica. STARbooks Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1934187289. Then, one of them broke ranks and rammed his blood-lubed fist straight up my ass and twisted hard, pulled it out and licked the santorum clean.
71. Rubel, Robert J. (2007). Squirms, Screams and Squirts: Going from Great Sex to Extraordinary Sex. Nazca Plains Corp. pp. 64–65. ISBN 1887895647.
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75. Linder, Joselin (2009). The Purity Test. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 193, 200. ISBN 0312387857.
76. Waltonen, Karma (2010). The Simpsons in the Classroom: Embiggening the Learning Experience with the Wisdom of Springfield. McFarland. p. 178, 328. ISBN 9780786444908. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
77. Savage, Dan (November 9, 2010). "Savage Love by Dan Savage". Philadelphia Weekly. www.philadelphiaweekly.com. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
78. "The political year: Will lightning strike the Republicans?". The Economist. www.economist.com. January 5, 2006. Retrieved December 19, 2006.
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80. ^ "What's in a name? Simply 'Santorum' says plenty". The Philadelphia Inquirer. April 23, 2006. p. A01. {{cite news}}: |first= missing |last= (help); Missing pipe in: |first= (help)
81. "So they say". Bay Windows. baywindows.com. August 10, 2006. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved December 19, 2006.
82. ^ Humm, Andy (August 9, 2006). "Rick Santorum's Flip Flop on Bias". Gay City News. Reprinted by the Human Rights Campaign. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
83. "Election '06". The Patriot-News. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: The Patriot-News Co. July 30, 2006. p. A02.
84. Lucey, Catherine (October 11, 2006). "Sex-columnist Savage goes live on Santorum". Philadelphia Daily News. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After all, it was his no-holds-barred column that spawned the infamous sex term named after Sen. Rick Santorum. (No, really, we can't print it. Just look it up on Google.) In fact, Savage's raunchy reputation meant that Santorum's opponent, Bob Casey Jr., refused a $2,100 donation that the Seattle-based writer tried to give to his campaign earlier this year. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
85. ^ Krawczeniuk, Borys (August 1, 2006). "Casey: Donor "over the line"". Scranton Times-Tribune. www.thetimes-tribune.com.
86. ^ Argetsinger, Amy (July 28, 2006). "The Reliable Source". The Washington Post. The Washington Post Company. p. C3. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
87. ^ Vassilaros, Dimitri (September 8, 2006). "Who is the real Bob Casey?". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Tribune-Review Publishing Co.
88. Joseph, Gar (July 28, 2006). "Loose ends tied: Stedman & Chaka, Casey & sex". Philadelphia Daily News. p. 10. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
89. Lucey, Catherine (October 11, 2006). "Savage goes live against Santorum". Philadelphia Daily News. p. 06.
90. Gallagher, Maggie (Universal Press Syndicate) (October 18, 2006). "Real story on Santorum". LaGrange Daily News. Georgia. p. 06.
91. Sandalow, Marc (Washington Bureau Chief) (October 22, 2006). "Senator -- nemesis of left -- in trouble - Santorum in fight for political future in Pennsylvania". San Francisco Chronicle. p. A1.
92. Krawczeniuk, Borys (November 9, 2006). "Casey dominated like no one before". Scranton Times-Tribune. www.thetimes-tribune.com.
93. Sorensen, Saundra (December 28, 2006). "Html & the new journalism: How the blog flourished in 2006". Ventura County Reporter. www.vcreporter.com. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
94. Morford, Mark (January 17, 2007). "Thoughts to keep you warm when it's cold". San Francisco Chronicle. www.sfgate.com. p. E2. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
95. ^ Savage, Dan (November 16, 2006). "Make a Joyful Noise". The Stranger. www.thestranger.com. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
96. Savage, Dan (November 14, 2006). "Savage Love Web Extra". The Stranger. www.thestranger.com. Retrieved May 10, 2011.
97. Lopez, Kathryn Jean (November 7, 2006). "The Poll that Matters: Will Pennsylvania voters defy conventional wisdom and reelect Santorum?". The National Review. article.nationalreview.com. Retrieved March 12, 2007.
98. Rovzar, Chris (September 7, 2010). "Does Rick Santorum Really Have a Google Problem?". New York Magazine. nymag.com. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
99. Holmes, T.J. (February 19, 2011). "Rick Santorum's Google Problem". CNN Newsroom. Time Warner. Retrieved February 19, 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
100. ^ Barr, Andy (February 23, 2011). "Santorum's Google tormentor reloads". Politico. www.politico.com. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
101. Savage, Dan (February 24, 2011). "Still spreading". Savage Love. www.thestranger.com. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
102. McNulty, Tim (March 29, 2011). "Daily Santorum 3/29/11". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: earlyreturns.sites.post-gazette.com. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
103. ^ McNulty, Tim (March 31, 2011). "Savage: No new Santorum site". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: earlyreturns.sites.post-gazette.com. Retrieved May 31, 2011.
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113. Jones, Alexandra (September 30, 2005). "Softer Side of Savage". The Michigan Daily. University of Michigan. p. 8.
114. "Disc of the week: Antony and the Johnsons, I Am a Bird Now". Montreal Mirror. www.montrealmirror.com. February 10, 2005. Retrieved December 19, 2006. Boy George, Rufus Wainwright, Lou Reed and Devendra Banhart lend extra sparkle to this graceful glitter-opera, which climaxes with "Fistfull of Love," a glorious slip 'n' slide of a soul song that's well worth the Santorum stain.
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Further reading

• Sheidlower, Jesse (January 11, 2005). "Linguists Gone Wild! Why "wardrobe malfunction" wasn't the word of the year". Slate. Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive Co. LLC; www.slate.com; Section: Dispatches. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
• Mencimer, Stephanie (September 2010). "Rick Santorum's Anal Sex Problem". Mother Jones. motherjones.com. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
• Peoples, Steve (February 16, 2011). "Santorum Talks About Longtime Google Problem". Roll Call. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
• Moody, Chris (April 28, 2011). "Santorum says he has no plans to fix his 'Google problem'". The Daily Caller. Retrieved May 9, 2011.

External links

• "SpreadingSantorum.com".
• "Santorum on Rotten.com". Retrieved August 22, 2006.
• American Dialect Society list of Words of the Year for 2004, listing santorum as the Most Outrageous Word of 2004 (PDF file)

Template:Political neologisms

• American political terms
• Sexual slang
• American political neologisms
• Dan Savage