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In a Times magazine piece about gay romance novels, we were presented with perhaps the best lede ever:

Troy let the towel on his waist drop. The morning light falling into the room put his abs and pecs and nipples into perfect relief. Brad gasped, as if it was the first time he had seen what was hidden beneath. Troy was a magnificent specimen of manhood. At 33, three years older than Brad, he had the firm, hard stomach of a high-school athlete. His muscles were naturally lean and ropy; he was strong, but he had none of the false bulk of a steroid queen.

Wow. Frankly, we think this sort of lede ought to be used throughout the publication, whether documenting so-called "fiction" or "actual news accounts." After the jump, Forget About Milk and Bread. Give Me Gossip! lends itself to a fine example of the of power small, stylistically gay changes.

"I'm so tired of celebrity coverage," sighed Chad as he breathlessly flipped through an issue of Star. Beneath the glow of the supermarket lights, his biceps lightly flexed. "But you can't get enough, can you, darling?" asked Phil, smiling at both Chad's gossip obsession and the way his cut-off shorts rode just a bit up his ass. "You're just letting those advertisers spoon-feed you," Phil added. Chad's eyes lit up. "Speaking of spoon-feeding..."

Similarly, the change makes U.S. Panel's Report Criticizes U.N. and Proposes Overhaul all the more newsworthy:

There he was, seated just across from him at the conference table. Perched underneath the flags of Finland and Italy, Gingrich was smirking at him playfully. "Kofi," he said from the corner of his mouth, "You've been bad. Very bad." Mr. Annan smiled nervously, trying to hide his glee until Newt's missives were just too, too much for him to handle. "Kofi, I think you're in need of an overhaul. Now get on over here."