Amidst the recent People’s Choice Awards and the Golden Globe Awards, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation [1] (GLAAD) released its set of “24th Annual GLAAD Media Awards Nominees.” And – surprise, surprise – many of the nominees play into the traditional media’s pro-gay agenda.
CNN, a “GLAAD corporate partner [2],” earned eight [3] nominations. Two nominations appeared in the Outstanding Television Segment category with CNN Newsroom’s "Civil Rights Icon Supports Gay Marriage" and openly gay Anderson Cooper’s "Controversial Pastor Preaches Against Gays." CNN en Español received the other six nominations.
CNN and GLAAD have had a special relationship [2] for some time. In the past two years, GLAAD nominated CNN reporting five times for the Media Awards, and recognized CNN’s openly gay Don Lemon as an Outstanding Citizen. GLAAD also appeared in 41 CNN network stories, and in 43 CNN.com pieces in the past two years.
GLAAD, an organization that pushes the media [4], “to bring culture-changing stories of LGBT people into millions of homes and workplaces every day,” featured nominees [3] for a variety of other awards ranging in television, movies, journalism, and music.
Television show nominees with plots revolving around gay characters included “Glee,” a gay propaganda show [5], “Happy Endings,” “Modern Family,” and “The New Normal,” a show which previously ridiculed Christians [6]. GLAAD listed the wide-release Outstanding Film nominees as, “Cloud Atlas,” ParaNorman,” The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” and “Your Sister’s Sister.” Best Dramatic Series included shows from “Degrassi” and “Grey’s Anatomy” to “Smash” and “True Blood.” As for openly gay music artists, GLAAD nominated Adam Lambert and Rufus Wainwright among others.
GLAAD President Herndon Gaddick said [7] the nominees hold an entertainment value “but also reflect a new American landscape where a growing majority accept and value their LGBT family, colleagues and friends.” According to Gaddick, “viewers not only accept gay and transgender plot lines, they expect them.”
Needless to say, GLAAD chose from several obvious options. The nominations uncovered one gem though: TLC’s “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” as an Outstanding Reality Program.
Quality TV? That’s “Honey Boo Boo.”