Gossip magazines need sexual barriers otherwise they wouldn't have stories. Legendary gossip columnists like Louella Parsons and Hedda Hopper were really old vultures who preyed on other people. They'd have probably had a field day with Ellen DeGeneres coming out. And same sex kisses in movies. These days there's talk of a greater sexual tolerance, and there is - to an extent.
Sexuality is still a matter of categories.
Gay movies are labelled that, and kept from the mainstream. When guys kiss in movies like Dude, Where's My Car, it's fleeting, a bit of silliness. They're also send-ups of big screen romantic kisses. Sex, too, is still a major seller for reactionary tabloids, showing that sexual taboos are still pretty powerful. Sure, some adverts are sexist and punt a vulgar, phony sexuality.