KinkFactor News
Curated from trusted LGBTQ+, kink, tech, and health sources
Epilogue GB Operator Review: Play Your Game Boy Games on a Laptop
Epilogue’s adorable GB Operator plug-in gizmo is a must-have for collectors of retro Nintendo Game Boy games.
Remember when this church said to execute gay people? ‘I won’t apologize for … the Word of God.’
A men’s night sermon said gay people should “blow yourself in the back of the head.”
Boldr Kelvin Review (2026): Heats Your Body, Heats the Wall
The Boldr Kelvin heater looks cool and promises energy savings and far-infrared heat. Too bad it also heats backward.
How to Layer Your Clothes to Stay Warm in Any Season (2026)
Whether you’re hiking, climbing, or backpacking, here’s how to use base layers, mid layers, and a shell to be comfortable no matter what nature throws at you.
Could AI Data Centers Be Moved to Outer Space?
Massive data centers for generative AI are bad for the Earth. How about launching them into orbit?
Meet Scotland’s Whisky-Sniffing Robot Dog
Inside Dewar’s cavernous whisky warehouses, man’s best mechanical friend—a Boston Dynamics robot dog with an ethanol sensor for a nose—is on the hunt for leaky barrels.
The Best Mushroom Gummies on the Market, Lab-Approved (2026)
These edibles made from functional fungi are not your childhood Flintstone vitamins.
Johnny Weir is 'grateful' to come out—as BFFs with Tara Lipinski
The Olympics is already a busy time for Johnny Weir, the gay figure skater who competed in the 2006 and 2010 Olympics and now serves as a commentator. It's a big cultural moment for Weir. Milano Cortina 2026 also overlaps with his run on Alan Cumming’s wildly popular reality competition, The Traitors. Weir answered the phone amid a busy day while in Milan for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which is coming to an end this Sunday.Weir was not out when he competed during the Olympics, and it wasn’t un...
Straight Nonsense: Beware of far-right influencer Clavicular and 'looksmaxxing'
In the column Straight Nonsense, columnist Moises Mendez II takes a queer eye to the insanity of straight culture.I chose to be an internet culture reporter because I've always loved being on the internet, critically thinking about and talking with influencers, and analyzing trends. Though with the good comes the ugly, and that comes in the form of right-wing freaks like Clavicular. He's been climbing the ranks of relevance for a while after he closed out Elena Velez’s show during New York Fa...
The Search Engine for OnlyFans Models Who Look Like Your Crush
Presearch’s “Doppelgänger” is trying to help people discover adult creators rather than use nonconsensual deepfakes.
The War Over Prediction Markets Is Just Getting Started
Prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket are booming, and so is a fight among regulators, lawmakers, and advocates over their legality.
Gmail Is Killing POP and Gmailify Access. Here's What It Means for You
If you have multiple email accounts, your Gmail setup may soon need some reorganizing.
Best Coffee Grinders For Espresso and Drip, Machine-Tested (2026)
We used particle size analysis and real-world testing to find the best conical burr, flat burr, and blade grinders for every budget and style of coffee drinker.
The Olympics and Politics Are More Intertwined Than Ever. Maybe That’s a Good Thing
The Olympics often provide a moment of unity and celebration during times of geopolitical uncertainty. But blind nationalism didn’t win at the 2026 Winter Games.
Leading US Research Lab Appears to Be Squeezing Out Foreign Scientists
House Democrats are demanding answers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and urging it to halt rumored changes they say could undermine its mission.
H&R Block Coupons and Deals: $50 Off Tax Prep in 2026
When you visit your local H&R Block store, you can save up to $50 when you use one of our (unique) codes.
'Euphoria' star Eric Dane dead at 53 following battle with ALS
Eric Dane, best known for playing Dr. Mark Sloan a.k.a. McSteamy on ABC's Grey's Anatomy, Marcus in 2010's Burlesque, and Cal Jacobs on HBO's Euphoria, has reportedly died after a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The 53-year-old actor is set to appear in the upcoming third and final season of Euphoria, in which he reprises his role as Cal Jacobs, the troubled father of Nate Jacobs (played by Jacob Elordi).After disclosing his ALS diagnosis with the public in 2025, Dane spent h...
Jeffrey Epstein’s Ties to CBP Agents Sparked a DOJ Probe
Documents say customs officers in the US Virgin Islands had friendly relationships with Epstein years after his 2008 conviction, showing how the infamous sex offender tried to cultivate allies.
A $10K Bounty Awaits Anyone Who Can Hack Ring Cameras to Stop Sharing Data With Amazon
The Fulu Foundation, a nonprofit that pays out bounties for removing user-hostile features, is hunting for a way to keep Ring cameras from sending data to Amazon—without breaking the hardware.
Daily newsletter 2/19
➡️ More than a decade after the Supreme Court declared marriage equality the law of the land, Tennessee Republicans are pushing a bill that would allow businesses and private citizens to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages.
An FBI ‘Asset’ Helped Run a Dark Web Site That Sold Fentanyl-Laced Drugs for Years
A staffer of the Incognito dark web market was secretly controlled by the FBI—and still allegedly approved the sale of fentanyl-tainted pills, including those from a dealer linked to a confirmed death.
2025 U.S. LGBTQ+ adult population matches 2024's record; bi identity still most common: Gallup
The proportion of U.S. adults identifying as LGBTQ+ remained steady at 9 percent from 2024 to 2025, according to a new Gallup poll, but that’s still more than double the 3.5 percent who did when Gallup first began measuring this population in 2012.
DOJ investigates whether schools taught about LGBTQ+ people without letting parents opt-out
The DOJ says its now illegal for schools to acknowledge the existence of queer people unless religious parents can keep their kids from hearing about it.
Drag, death, drugs, disco: Inside HBO's Murder in GlitterBall City doc
The brand-new HBO documentary Murder in GlitterBall City tells an unconventional story, even within the true-crime genre. Picture it: June 2010. A man named Jeffrey Mundt owns a property at 1435 South Fourth Street in Louisville, Kentucky. Mundt lives there with his boyfriend, Joseph Banis (Joey), and it's no secret that they're a gay couple.The official trailer for the two-part documentary starts with footage of Banis recording himself and reading a statement from a piece of paper. "This is ...
UFC fighter Sean Strickland insults gay & female athletes, Bad Bunny, the NFL, cartoon characters…
The punch-drunk queerphobe has a long history of saying offensive things to promote his upcoming fights.
We shared a rainbow with Jesse Jackson, who shook our hands when no one else would
I met Jesse Jackson, who died Tuesday at 84, in 1988 when I worked on Capitol Hill. From what I recall, Jackson held a rally or gave a speech on the steps of the Capitol while he was running for president. I was lucky enough to be near the front, and I shook his hand. I remember him being tall, with a very firm grip.
Tennessee bill lets businesses and people refuse to recognize same-sex marriages
These two out Olympians just got engaged in the cutest proposal video from the Winter Games
They started dating during the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, China.
U.S. retreat from WHO harms global health and the HIV response
Epidemics know no borders; the role of institutions like the World Health Organization is critical.   Mitchell Warren, the executive director of the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition (AVAC), describes the damage that the Trump administration is causing by withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO). This commentary was first published on the AVAC website.…
The post U.S. retreat from WHO harms global health and the HIV response appeared first on Erasing 76 C...
13 steamy pics of hunky Olympian Matt Graham that prove he's a bronzed god, too
Australian freestyle skier Matt Graham is no stranger to the Olympics. Milan-Cortina actually marks his fourth time competing in the Games. He previously participated in the 2014 Sochi Games, where he came in seventh in moguls; the 2018 PyeongChang Games, where he brought home silver; and the 2022 Games in Beijing, where he finished 19th. This time, he’s bringing Australia home the gold in dual moguls.He’s also a total smokeshow.Keep scrolling to see why we’ll always be Team Matt Graha...
Donald Trump Jr.’s Private DC Club Has Mysterious Ties to an Ex-Cop With a Controversial Past
The Executive Branch has a reported membership list that includes Trumpworld elites like David Sacks. A WIRED review of corporate filings reveals an under-the-radar player: a notorious former DC police officer.
Alvise Rigo strips down to a tight Speedo in sexy new video
Alvise Rigo is the name on everyone's lips!The handsome hunk is making quite a splash for his role on Ryan Murphy's The Beauty, but his sexy social media posts are gaining plenty of traction online.Rigo's latest post shows the star rocking a tight Speedo after a swim, and fans went wild in the comments. Check out the highlights below!
Federal appeals court sides with Pentagon against science, reinstating U.S. military’s HIV enlistment ban
In a ruling that reasserts broad judicial deference to the U.S. military and delivers a major setback to HIV and LGBTQ+ advocates, a federal appeals court on Wednesday reinstated the Pentagon’s long-standing ban on people living with HIV enlisting in the armed forces, undoing a lower-court decision that had briefly opened the door to qualified recruits with undetectable viral loads.Keep up with the latest in LGBTQ+ news and politics. Sign up for The Advocate's email newsletter.The U.S. Cou...
Chuck Schumer drafts bill to protect Pride flags at national park sites like Stonewall memorial
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has drafted a bill to authorize the display of Pride flags at national park sites, including Stonewall National Monument.Schumer announced plans to codify protections for the Rainbow Pride Flag during a press event at the monument on Sunday. Schumer is drafting the legislation alongside Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Rep. Dan Goldman, all of them Democrats from New York.The move comes after President Donald Trump prohibited the flag’s display on certain fe...
Colorado’s Jared Polis embraces Trump’s national governors’ White House dinner snub: a ‘badge of honor’
The winter meeting of the National Governors Association is usually a refuge from the louder dramas of Washington, D.C.: a few days of policy panels, side conversations about housing and health care, and the quiet choreography of federalism. This year, it opened instead with a reminder of how difficult it has become to keep even the rituals of governance free from the pull of spectacle in the second Trump administration.
The 10 Best Shows to Stream Right Now (February 2026)
Fallout, Neighbors, and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters are just a few of the TV shows we’re swooning over for February.
Gay couple from homophobic country is now trying to self-deport after mistreatment ICE detention
They say they followed all the rules, but no longer believe that the US has freedom.
‘Pew Pew’: The Chinese Companies Marketing Anti-Drone Weapons on TikTok
On TikTok, Chinese manufacturers are advertising signal-blocking weapons with the breezy cadence of consumer lifestyle advertising.
Inside the Rolling Layoffs at Jack Dorsey’s Block
Workers describe a deteriorating culture at Block, the company behind Square and Cash App, where layoffs continue and employees are expected to use AI tools daily.
Curler Bruce Mouat says coming out aided Olympic dream
Silver medal-winning Olympic curler Bruce Mouat has opened up about how coming out as gay helped him reach the heights of his sport.In a video for BBC Sport, Mouat, who won silver in 2022 and is on Team Great Britain this year in Milan-Cortina, explains that coming out was "a tough time" for him, but necessary for him to reach his full potential."The first ever person I told was actually a sports psychologist because I wasn't really performing very well. I wasn't really enjoying my curling,"...
Upgrade Your Computer Speakers With These Discounted Edifier M60s
These compact Edifier speakers may not be the fanciest, but they’ll blow your monitor’s built-in speakers out of the water.
Code Metal Raises $125 Million to Rewrite the Defense Industry’s Code With AI
The Boston startup uses AI to translate and verify legacy software for defense contractors, arguing modernization can’t come at the cost of new bugs.
The FCC under Trump is trying to censor talk-show comedians. It’s not gonna work.
Perplexity’s Retreat From Ads Signals a Bigger Strategic Shift
The AI search startup once predicted advertising would be a massive business. Now it's betting on a smaller, more valuable audience.
CBS insider says Anderson Cooper’s departure was a “f**k you” to anti-woke Bari Weiss
Officially, he left CBS to spend more time with his family. But apparently Weiss wanted him to take on a bigger role....
Project 2025 creator wants to ban gender-affirming care for trans adults
After successfully pushing unscientific bans against gender-affirming care for youth, the creator of Project 2025 wants to outlaw the life-saving treatment even for adults.
Gus Kenworthy's post-Olympic plans? A play called 'Sugar Daddy'
Gus Kenworthy is making his grand return to the Olympic stage on Friday in the Men's Freestyle Skiing Halfpipe competition. After the competition, he already has a new job lined up back in London after he finishes competing in Milan. On Wednesday, it was announced that Kenworthy is teaming up with Alan Cumming, Billy Porter, and RuPaul’s Drag Race UK season 7 star Sally TM as a producer on an off-West End show called Sugar Daddy, reports Attitude.
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I chose lesbianism—let others choose it too
While watching the documentary Barbara Forever at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, I learned that the legendary and seminal lesbian filmmaker Barbara Hammer had been married to a man and had even said she loved him.However, once she met some feminists and lesbians, and learned that a new, better way of life was possible, she dove in headfirst, fully embracing the lesbian identity and community.Half a century later, I wonder if lesbians online would let her embrace that label.A personal essay...
This LGBTQ+ leader wants the movement to be built on 3 pillars. Here’s what they are.
The LGBTQ+ movement has historically neglected communities outside of the LGBTQ+ experience who have different values, she said.
Don't blame Mardi Gras for Shia LaBeouf's alleged antigay fiasco
Cancel culture can be stupid. Speaking as someone who has been canceled myself, I have seen how quickly a stranger’s certainty can harden into a story that is impossible to dislodge, even when it is wrong. The internet loves an outline more than a person. Once it has the outline, it starts throwing rocks, then congratulates itself for being righteous.But the correction for that ugliness is not to swing all the way into its opposite, where we turn a man’s repugnant behavior into a vibe be...