CBS Needs to Improve on Inclusion of LGBT People
January 31, 2010 by Cindi Creager, GLAAD's Director of National News
On Friday GLAAD called on CBS to address an apparent bias in its Super Bowl advertising decisions after CBS declined to air a commercial with gay content during the Super Bowl because the “creative is not within the Network’s Broadcast Standards for Super bowl Sunday.”
“CBS has a problem when they do something like this at the same time as they allow an anti-gay group like Focus on the Family to place ads during the Super Bowl,” said GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios. “This network should come clean to the public about what’s going on because this seems to be a homophobic double standard.”
Earlier in the week, GLAAD released a Call to Action for community members and allies to speak out when CBS allowed the anti-gay group Focus on the Family to advertise during the Super Bowl after having unfairly denied that ability to the LGBT-inclusive United Church of Christ in previous years.
Adam Lambert Performing at the American Music Awards in 2009
This latest controversy is not the first time that CBS has been called out for failing to be LGBT inclusive. In November 2009, GLAAD released a statement calling out another double standard when CBS The Early Show blurred Adam Lambert’s same-sex kiss in a news segment showing his appearance at the American Music Awards.
“I would have hoped CBS would provide the same treatment for images of gay and lesbian people and not create an unfair double standard that treats our community differently,” said GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios at the time. “CBS regularly shows kisses throughout every daypart. The kiss was not blurred on ABC nor in news coverage on other networks. While we continue to applaud The Early Show for featuring Adam Lambert today, we have reached out to the show’s producers to express our concerns about their decision and offer ways they can make their coverage of gay and transgender people more fair.”
CBS The Early Show last year also came under fire from GLAAD and Media Matters for America after they hosted anti-gay commentator Ann Coulter and gave her a platform to promote her latest book.
CBS’ fictional programming is equally as controversial when it comes to LGBT inclusion. In GLAAD’s Network Responsibility Index, an annual report that maps the quantity, quality and diversity of images of LGBT people on television, CBS received a “failing” rating last year. CBS was the only broadcast network to post a significant decline, having received an Adequate rating the previous year.
CBS saw the greatest decline among the broadcast networks, dropping to last place among broadcast networks with 60 hours (5%) of LGBT-inclusive content, out of 1,148 total hours of primetime programming. As in the past, the bulk of CBS’ LGBT impressions (72%) came from its alternative and reality programming.
CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler acknowledged her network’s deficit in LGBT representation and pledged to work toward greater inclusion. However, CBS continues to disappoint with zero LGBT series regular characters and only one recurring LGBT character this season.
But CBS does know how to include LGBT people in news and entertainment programming in a fair and accurate way. The New Adventures of Old Christine featured the wedding between Christine and her best friend Barb in 2008 and raised important awareness about the legal and social problems that LGBT couples face. This storyline resulted in the show receiving the GLAAD Media Award last year for Outstanding Individual Episode – in a Series without a Regular LGBT Character. Also, CBS The Early Show featured an interview with transgender Methodist minister David Weekly and his wife in 2009, providing viewers an important window into the lives of transgender people of faith. The segment is nominated for a GLAAD Media Award.
But CBS’ recent decisions regarding advertisements for the Super Bowl clearly demonstrate that the network needs to have a candid conversation with the LGBT community about what is going on and do more to include stories and images of our lives. GLAAD will be requesting meetings with executives at CBS to address the apparent double standards and advocate for greater LGBT inclusion.
ABC Announces Ugly Betty’s Fourth Season Will Be Its Last
January 29, 2010 by Lauren Mattia, GLAAD's Entertainment/Advertising Media Fellow
It was recently announced that ABC’s groundbreaking hit series, Ugly Betty, has been cancelled after four seasons on the air. Throughout its run, openly gay creator and executive producer Silvio Horta ensured that Ugly Betty was often at the forefront of equal and accurate representations of the LGBT community. The show was one of the few series in history that featured a transgender character, Alexis Meade, for nearly two seasons, in addition to Wilhelmina’s gay personal assistant, Marc St. James.
Will Justin come out before Ugly Betty concludes its run?
There has been an overwhelming public outcry from Ugly Betty fans, many of whom are LGBT due to the show’s consistent inclusion of LGBT characters and storylines as well as its queer-friendly sensibilities that many in the LGBT community could relate to. The show often sends a message about self-acceptance, and of loving oneself even if the rest of the world may not. And while Alexis and Marc have made the show one of the gayest on television, Betty’s reputation as the outsider is often the most relatable to queer audiences everywhere.
In a statement by Ugly Betty’s openly gay executive producer, Silvio Horta, said that although they’ve decided to cancel the show, “we want to allow the show ample time to write a satisfying conclusion.”
This is no doubt a relief to those who wonder if Justin’s coming out be included in this conclusion? Although Horta has stated that Justin Suarez, Betty’s fashion-forward, tap dancing nephew, would grow up to be gay, his sexuality has remained largely unaddressed. If Justin was to come out this season, he would be following a growing trend of adolescent LGBT characters in television. We look forward to following his story, and those of the other characters, as the series concludes its run.
Related Posts:Exclusive cineGLAAD Video: Dustin Lance Black, Joe Solmonese, and Reed Cowan Discuss 8: The Mormon Proposition
January 29, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
This past Sunday at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, cineGLAAD hosted the panel discussion LGBT Civil Rights & The Power of Film – 8: The Mormon Proposition, which featured leaders in the fight for marriage equality debating the ways in which film and media can sway public opinion as we strive to change the hearts and minds of voters who oppose equality. Panelists also provided fascinating insight into the current efforts to overturn California’s anti-gay Proposition 8.
The powerful documentary 8: The Mormon Proposition investigates the decades long campaign the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has been waging against the rights of gays and lesbians to marry, and also examines the psychological toll that anti-gay bigotry takes on LGBT Mormon youth.
Kate Kendell, Executive Director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, moderated the thought-provoking discussion featuring several of the people behind 8: The Mormon Proposition: Reed Cowan (Director); Dustin Lance Black (Narrator); Bruce Bastian (Executive Producer); and featured cast Joe Solmonese (President – Human Rights Campaign) and Dennis Herrera (San Francisco City Attorney).
In the first video below, Black and Solmonese discuss the lessons we’ve learned since Prop 8’s passage in California. In the second video, Cowan, seated next to Kendell, discusses his film’s focus on the harms done to LGBT youth.
Related Posts:President Obama Captures National Media Attention with Call to Repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
January 29, 2010 by Seth Adam, GLAAD's National News Fellow
Mainstream media reported extensively this week about President Obama’s call to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell during his first State of the Union address:
“This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are.”
The possible repeal gained further attention on Thursday after Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell announced that the Defense Department will hear testimony on Tuesday from Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, that will “identify specific steps the military will take before the law is changed to lessen the impact on a force fighting two wars.”
MSNBC added to that report with speculation that the military might adopt an “interim policy” before full repeal of the law that could “ease the number of discharges and investigations that take place under the policy.”
GLAAD will continue to follow the media’s coverage of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Updates can be found on GLAADblog.org
Related Posts:Announcing Presenters for GLAAD’s New Media Training Institute at Creating Change
January 29, 2010 by Amanda Morgan, GLAAD's Digital Initiatives Fellow
GLAAD is pleased to announce that on Thursday, February 4th, together with the Gill Foundation and Gill Action, we will be presenting a New Media Training Institute (NMTI) at Creating Change, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s annual LGBT organizing conference in Dallas, TX.
This day-long institute will feature trainings by:
- Scott Goodstein, former External Online Director for Obama for America, who was responsible for developing the campaign’s social media platforms, now of Revolution Messaging;
- Jarrett Barrios, President of GLAAD;
- Rashad Robinson, Senior Director of Programs, GLAAD;
- Heather Cronk, Chief Operating Officer at the New Organizing Institute (NOI), which runs the only progressive advocacy and campaign training program focused on cutting-edge online organizing techniques;
- Julia Rosen, Trainer with the New Organizing Institute and Online Political Director at the Courage Campaign;
- Christopher Hoyt, PHR, Associate Director at AT&T Talent Attraction, where he leads the integration of social media and mobile marketing;
- Jed Alpert, founder and Chief Strategy Manager at Mobile Commons, which pioneers easy-to-use technology for scalable mobile marketing campaign management;
- Jen Nedeau, New Media Consultant and former Director of Digital Strategy for Air America;
- Gregory Rae, member of the national leadership of Living Liberally, an organization dedicated to creating social spaces centered around progressive politics.
NMTI will be held on Thursday, February 4, 2010, at the Sheraton Dallas. Find more information about NMTI on GLAAD.org. You can register for NMTI and Creating Change here.
Additionally, if you are attending, please be sure to RSVP to the NMTI on Facebook. Also note the New Media Training Institute Twitter hashtag #NMTI and the Creating Change hashtag #cc10. And follow our trainers on Twitter! Julia Rosen – @JuliaRosen; Heather Cronk – @HCronk; Christopher Hoyt – @TheRecruiterGuy; Jen Nedeau – @HumanFolly; Jed Alpert – @mobilecommons; Rashad Robinson – @rashadrobinson; New Organizing Institute – @neworganizing; GLAAD – @glaad.
GLAAD will have a table set up at Creating Change with staff members available to answer any questions you may have about GLAAD’s work and upcoming projects. So stop by, say hello and find out how you can get involved.
GLAAD thanks the Gill Foundation and Gill Action for making the New Media Training Institute possible. GLAAD would also like to give a special thanks to AT&T for your invaluable help with NMTI.
GLAAD would also like to thank the Task Force for all their hard work putting this conference together and we look forward to seeing everyone in Dallas!
Related Posts:Exclusive cineGLAAD Video: David Hyde Pierce at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, Part 2 of 2
January 29, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
Yesterday we brought you part one of cineGLAAD’s exclusive interview with out actor David Hyde Pierce at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival in which he discussed his role in the film The Perfect Host.
In part two below, Pierce discusses the positive change he has experienced in his personal life since coming out publicly in 2007. He also talks about his Grammy-nominated work on the audiobook for the classic children’s book The Phantom Tollbooth. Tune in to the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards this Sunday, January 31, on CBS at 8:00 PM to see if David Hyde Pierce goes home with yet another prestigious award for his mantel.
Related Posts:Dominican Cartoonist Links Marriage Equality with Fetishes / Dibujo Compara Derechos Matrimoniales con Fetiches
January 29, 2010 by Monica Trasandes, GLAAD's Director of Spanish Language Media
Dominican Cartoonist Links Marriage Equality with Fetishes
GLAAD received several reports about a defamatory cartoon published Jan. 19 in the Dominican newspaper El Diario Libre, drawn by Harold Priego, known as “Boquechivo,” which likens marriage equality with supporting bestiality, necrophilia and other fetishes. These vulgar and outrageous comparisons led LGBT activists and allies to create a Facebook page called “Protesta en contra del Boquechivo sobre el matrimonio entre homosexuales.” Among those who’ve written to GLAAD are respected Puerto Rican journalist Joselly Castrodad de Camblor who now lives in the Dominican Republic and feels the cartoon not only defames gay people but embarrasses journalists and the newspaper itself, one of Santo Domingo’s biggest dailies.
The cartoonist has reportedly responded to the criticism saying: “Why don’t I get these long comments after I touch on subjects like corruption or malfeasance or the ridiculous actions of some politicians … No, they don’t even pay attention to those, as if attacking corruption is a joke but denying marriage means being intolerant.” Priego clearly still does not understand how his work helps to foment prejudice and create a hostile climate for gay and transgender people that puts them in harm’s way.
If you would like to share your thoughts with Priego or his editors, his email address is Boquechivo@diariolibre.com Diario Libre’s Editor Adriano Miguel Tejada can be reached at atejada@diariolibre.com
Dibujo Compara Derechos Matrimoniales con Fetiches
GLAAD ha recibido varias quejas sobre un dibujo difamatorio publicado el 19 de enero en el periódico dominicano El Diario Libre, dibujado por Harold Priego, conocido como Boquechivo, el cual compara apoyar a derechos matrimoniales para personas del mismo sexo con apoyar la bestialidad, necrofilia y otros fetiches. Estas comparaciones vulgares y espantosas causaron que activistas LGBT y sus aliados crean una página de Facebook llamada “Protesta en contra del Boquechivo sobre el matrimonio entre homosexuales.” Entre los que le han escrito a GLAAD está la respetada periodista portorriqueña Joselly Castrodad de Camblor, quien ahora vive en la Republica Dominicana y quien piensa que el dibujo no solo difama a las personas gays pero también avergüenza al periódico y los periodistas quienes aí trabajan. Priego, por su parte ha supuestamente dicho sobre el tema: “Por qué razón no me hacen estos largos comentarios cuando trato los temas de corrupción, o de malversaciones de fondos, o de los disparates que hacen algunos políticos… No, de esos ni caso le hacen, como que atacar la corrupción es solo un chiste, y negarme al matrimonio entre gays es ser intolerante.” Queda claro que Priego todavía no entiende cómo es que su trabajo ayuda a fomentar el prejuicio, lo cual crea un clima de hostilidad que pone en riesgo las personas gays y transgéneras.
Si usted desea comunicarse con Priego, su correo electrónico es Boquechivo@diariolibre.com
El editor de Diario Libre, Adriano Miguel Tejada se encuentra en la dirección atejada@diariolibre.com
Related Posts:GLAAD, L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center Urge Recording Academy to Speak Out Against Artists and Lyrics that Promote Violence
January 29, 2010 by Seth Adam, GLAAD's National News Fellow
GLAAD and the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center have placed a full-page ad in today’s special Grammy-edition of Variety that calls on Recording Academy President Neil Portnow to use Sunday’s Grammy Awards telecast to speak out against lyrics and artists that promote bias-motivated violence.
To read GLAAD’s press release about the Variety ad, click here.
The ad is in the form of an open letter signed by 20 other progressive organizations, including People for the American Way, the National Black Justice Coalition, and the New York LGBT Community Center.
To see the full text of the letter, click here.
The open letter comes in response to anti-gay reggae singer Buju Banton’s nomination for a Grammy Award in the Best Reggae Album category. Throughout his career, Banton has performed music that glorifies the violent murder of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people, and as recently as three months ago Banton refused to stop performing such music.
To learn more about GLAAD’s work around Buju Banton’s Grammy nomination, click here.
In his most notorious song, “Boom, Bye Bye,” Banton sings that “batty men” (a slur equivalent to ‘fa**ot’) “have to die” and that he will “shoot batty men in the head” or “burn them up bad.”
“It’s outrageous that The Recording Academy has chosen to honor, with a Grammy nomination, someone who proudly and unabashedly performs music that glorifies the violent murder of gay and transgender people,” said GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios. “We need to send a strong message to let the Recording Academy and music industry know that promoting artists who advocate such acts feeds a climate of intolerance that can put members of our community at risk for violence.”
Join GLAAD and the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center in calling on Recording Academy President Neil Portnow to use Sunday’s Grammy Award celebration to denounce songs and artists that promote bias-motivated violence.
Related Posts:What to Watch: This Weekend (January 29-31)
January 29, 2010 by Lauren Mattia, GLAAD's Entertainment/Advertising Media Fellow
Zoe has an existential crisis this week on Caprica, Bill’s dreams of a political career may not come true on Big Love, and Rosie O’Donnell’s new documentary premieres on HBO!
Friday, January 29
9:00 pm Caprica, SyFy (1 hr) NEW
Zoe’s avatar has trouble with a new existence inside a robot’s body, while the Graystones and the Adamas try to deal with their recent loss. Lacy has dinner with Sister Clarice, and Will hangs out with his uncle.
Spartacus is enslaved this week on Spartacus: Blood and Sand.
10:00 pm Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Starz (1 hr) NEW
An enslaved Spartacus is sent to gladiator school, where he butts heads with Crixus and gets whipped into shape (literally) by Doctore. Meanwhile, Spartacus’ owner Batiatus makes him an interesting offer.
10:00 pm Shameless, Sundance (1 hr) NEW
Jamie’s old cellmate pays him a visit, and Karen does her best to keep him out of trouble.
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Saturday, January 30
11:00 pm The Wanda Sykes Show, Fox (1 hr) NEW
Move over Leno! The queen of funny is taking over with her own late night talk show! Don’t miss Wanda comment on everything from news, politics, sports, and pop culture mixed with field pieces, comedy segments, and panel discussions.
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Rosie's new documentary about LGBT families premieres Sunday on HBO
Sunday, January 31
7:00 pm A Family is a Family is a Family: A Rosie O’Donnell Celebration, HBO (1 hr) NEW
What is a family? This documentary is a portrait of diverse, stereotype-challenging families, from same-sex parents to adoptive families.
9:00 pm Big Love, HBO (1 hr) NEW
An audit of Home Plus threatens Bill’s career in politics, while J.J. offers Alby a solution. Lois, Frank, and Jodean experience something unexpected while searching for exotic birds, and Bill thinks Ben needs a change.
Gay Character Has No Future on AMC’s Mad Men
January 28, 2010 by Lauren Mattia, GLAAD's Entertainment/Advertising Media Fellow
According to a TV Guide article, Mad Men’s Salvatore Romano will be the only character not returning for the show’s fourth season.
Near the end of the last year’s third season, closeted Art Director Salvatore Romano, played by openly gay actor Bryan Batt, was fired when he wouldn’t have sex with a potential male client. TV Guide confirmed that the Romano character will not return to the show this season.
Bryan Batt will likely not have a job on Mad Men next season.
With a new season scheduled to start production in March, Batt expressed concern that he would no longer be in the cast, commenting “I was supposed to be notified by December 31, and nothing.” This week in an interview with TV Guide, Mad Men’s creator, Matthew Weiner affirmed Batt’s concern when he said losing Batt “was a tough moment for the show, but that’s where we are. I know how people felt about Bryan. I obviously love working with him, and he has been an indelible character since the pilot. But I felt it was an expression of the times that he couldn’t work there anymore. It’s the ultimate case of sexual harassment.”
While the Mad Men character’s story is fictional, his firing mirrors a reality for thousands of Americans today who, in 29 states, can still be fired for being gay. Because of Mad Men‘s overall outstanding quality and the inclusion of Romano in the story lines, the show was recently nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series. We believe that by completely eliminating Romano’s character, Mad Men is missing an opportunity to explore a wealth of untapped stories.
GLAAD urges people who feel strongly about Weiner’s decision to eliminate this character to voice their concerns. Post on Mad Men’s Twitter, post a comment on the show’s Facebook fan page, call AMC Viewer Relations at (646) 273-7105, or send a letter to AMC at:
11 Penn Plaza, 15th floor
New York, NY 10001
Exclusive cineGLAAD Video: David Hyde Pierce at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, Part 1 of 2
January 28, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
Among the bevy of stars that have flocked to Park City, Utah this week for the 2010 Sundance Film Festival is Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor David Hyde Pierce, who is here promoting his new film, The Perfect Host.
Pierce came out publicly in 2007 in an interview with the Associated Press about his success on the Broadway stage. When he won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for Curtains, Pierce thanked his partner, saying: “my partner, Brian, because it’s 24 years of listening to your damn notes — that’s why I’m up here tonight.” The pair married in California, just before the passage of Prop 8.
In The Perfect Host, Pierce veers far from his most well-known character, Dr. Niles Crane on the beloved NBC classic show Frasier. In this dark comedy, Pierce plays Warwick Wilson, a man who unintentionally invites a criminal to dinner. Yet as the film goes on, Wilson is revealed to not be who he first appears to be. Broadway and recording legend Helen Reddy co-stars as Warwick’s nosy neighbor.
In the video below, Pierce talks to GLAAD’s Director of Entertainment Media, Taj Paxton, about his new film, which will be playing at the Library Center Theatre at 11:30 pm on Friday, January 29 and 11:30 am on Saturday, January 30. To find out more, please visit the film’s page at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival website.
Related Posts:“The Tyra Show” Features Transgender Children and Their Families
January 28, 2010 by Anna Wipfler, GLAAD's Transgender Advocacy Fellow
On Wednesday afternoon, The CW Network aired an episode of The Tyra Show focusing on transgender children and their families, titled “We’re 7 & 8 Years Old and Know We Are Transgender.” Four young transgender people and three of their families appeared on the show to discuss their identities and their families’ experiences in raising them as their true selves. 
While the show, overall, did a laudable job of presenting the rarely-discussed topic of transgender children and their families to a mainstream audience using correct terminology and asking respectful questions, there was still some room for improvement.
Tyra first spoke with the family of Josie, an eight-year-old transgender girl, whose mother shared how she first learned about the word transgender and realized that the female identity Josie had always expressed was something she and her husband needed to embrace. As Josie talked with Tyra, she shared her favorite activities and various aspects of her personality.
However, at points the conversation shifted problematically to focus on Josie’s body and anatomy, with questions about her self-described “birth defect” and her level of comfort in bathing suits and getting dressed in the morning – though it does appear that the show’s producers may have edited out some of the most problematic questions that GLAAD witnessed at the live taping.
Unfortunately, with every transgender guest on the remainder of the show, Tyra’s focus in one way or another returned to issues of anatomy, surgery, menstruation, or body hair rather than highlighting the more important stories from their life experiences. Mainstream America’s tendency to reduce transgender people to their anatomy and operative status is never acceptable, but in the context of young children, such conversations become even more inappropriate.
Additionally, the end of the show featured “a heated debate” over the acceptability of parents’ decisions to allow their children to live as a gender different from their sex at birth. Dr. Marci Bowers, a transgender surgeon specializing in sex reassignment surgery, and Kim Pearson, Executive Director of TransYouth Family Allies rebutted arguments made by a professor who said that all children should be discouraged from transitioning and made to feel comfortable living as their birth sex. This segment brought an unnecessary source of friction to an issue that did not need to be framed as a debate.
Again, GLAAD thanks The Tyra Show and its producers for bringing the topic of transgender children to daytime TV in a mostly fair and respectful manner. We hope that this constructive criticism will serve to inform future episodes on transgender-related topics.
Related Posts:Cocktails with cineGLAAD & The Four-Faced Liar Toast Park City Festival-goers
January 28, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
On Monday Night, GLAAD stepped into the snow for a “reel” good time and held its first “Cocktails with cineGLAAD” filmmaker appreciation event at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. This intimate cocktail reception supported LGBT filmmakers and allies at the festival and served as a networking opportunity for industry professionals from across the country.
Partnering with GLAAD in this event were Associated Film partners OneZero Productions and 6140 Productions, whose 2010 Slamdance film, The Four-Faced Liar, screened twice earlier in the week to sold-out crowds and standing ovations.
“The Four-Faced Liar” chronicles a story of love and lies for four twenty-somethings, looking to find themselves in New York City. Audience members found themselves following a Bohemian, adventurous pair of best friends who meet a seemingly perfect couple at a local Irish pub in the West Village. Through their chance meeting, the four bond and, over time, their relationships with one another morph into love, betrayal and heartbreak for all.
Bridgit (Marja-Lewis Ryan; Actor/Writer/Producer) offered a compelling performance and was said to have captured the complexities of a young lesbian girl wanting something she never thought she could have. In her commanding, honest illustration of the struggles one faces when dealing with a long-term, committed relationship and coming to terms with her own sexuality, Molly (Emily Peck) shone brightly throughout the story. Trip (Todd Kubrak), Greg (Daniel Carlisle) & Cory (Liz Osborne) delivered rousing performances as well, offering wonderful, intelligent support and quirky hilarity. The palpable progression of these youthful characters, who each in their own way, come to deal with shifting paradigms and paramours, tangibly resonated with audience members, many of whom echoed empathetic sentiments of an all-too-familiar urban queer experience, newly captured in a story that truly shines.
For more information about “The Four-Faced Liar” film, cast & crew, please visit http://www.thefourfacedliarmovie.com.
(This blog entry was written by GLAAD’s Membership Event Coordinator, Elliott Elsner)
Related Posts:Exclusive cineGLAAD Video: Yony Leyser, Director of William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
January 28, 2010 by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
While at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, GLAAD was proud to include Yony Leyser, the director of the Slamdance Film Festival documentary William S. Burroughs: A Man Within, on our panel discussion Out Loud: The Role of a Publicist & Creating Buzz For Your LGBT Festival Film.
William S. Burroughs: A Man Within is the 25-year-old filmmaker’s passion project on which he has worked for the past four years. The fascinating film features never-before-seen footage of Burroughs, a trailblazing author who wrote of his experiences in queer culture in the 1950’s, most notably in his novel Naked Lunch. Additionally, the film features interviews with out directors Gus Van Sant and John Waters, as well as Patti Smith, Iggy Pop and many more notable figures.
In the video below, GLAAD’s Director of Entertainment Media, Taj Paxton interviews Leyser about his experiences as a young openly gay filmmaker promoting his first festival film. To view the trailer and learn more, please visit the official website of William S. Burroughs: A Man Within.
Golden Globe Winner Mo’Nique Tells Black Gay Men, “God Loves You”
January 28, 2010 by Kellee Terrell, COAD Media Strategist @ GLAAD
On Jan 25th episode of BET’s variety show, The Mo’Nique Show, host and Mo’Nique along with her guest, soul singer Miki Howard discussed numerous topics including sexuality, acceptance and the black church.
Howard said to Mo’Nique:
“One good thing I want to talk about is the gay aspect to our church. We don’t talk about it in our community. I grew up in James Cleveland’s church in LA and it was gay back then, really gay. And we weren’t didn’t know that people thought was bad, that outsiders thought that was bad. So that’s one thing we talk in the church and explore, and how I came to be me.”
Mo’Nique responded by saying: 
I applaud you for addressing this …because people don’t want to talk about it and for not judging because most times we run from it. And for all of our gay brothas watching, we love you this is the no judgment zone. You are always welcome and you are always loved. If you’re in the church and you’re gay, God is not judging you. Be who you wanna be.”
In the beginning of the show, Mo’Nique, whose film Precious is nominated for a GLAAD Media Award this year, also made a comment about African-American lesbians.
She said:
“Sistahs, if you are laying next to your man right now give him a kiss. Or next to your woman.. no judgments here, as long as you got somebody.”
Watch the episode below (The segment begins at around the 27 minute mark of the show)
Rod McCullom, head blogger for Rod 2.0: Beta, praised this episode and expressed why this type of dialogue is necessary:
It’s about time someone mentioned on national television that the black church and black gospel music are “really gay” and they should not be ashamed. There are so many talented black gay men in the church and black gospel music. Unfortunately many are told otherwise and most believe they should remain (semi) closeted.
Given many of the struggles of acceptance that the black LGBT community faces in certain African-American churches, these types of conversations are much welcomed and needed. While GLAAD encourages people to sound off when the media gets it’s wrong, it is also important to praise those who get it right.
If you were touched by Mo’Nique and Miki Howard’s comments, please let The Mo’ Nique Show know by writing a letter to the following address:
The Mo’Nique Show
P.O Box 7868
Atlanta, GA
30357
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