Tyra Recieves Award at GLAAD Ceremony

The 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards at New York’s Marriott Marquis was held this past Saturday, and the evening sparkled with stars such as Vanessa Williams, T.R. Knight and Suze Orman.

During the ceremony, one of our FAVORITE allies of all times, Tyra Banks was presented with the Excellence in Media Award. Tyra stated:

“I feel very flattered to be honored by GLAAD because I don’t do what I do with the gay and lesbian, transgendered and bisexual community for accolades, I do it because I look for equal rights for everyone. So to be honored that just makes you go; woah okay then they’re very happy and proud of what I’m doing. So it makes me feel like I’m on the right track.”

The GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) Media Awards recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives.  Thank you Tyra Banks!  WE LOVE YOU!

Click here for more info and pics from the event!

Tyra Banks to be Honored at GLAAD Awards

Tyra Banks and Suze Orman to be Honored at 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards Presented by IBM in New York

Clay Aiken, Tim Gunn, T.R. Knight, S. Epatha Merkerson, Keith Olbermann, and Vanessa Williams among special guests at March 28 ceremony Presented by Prudential

New York, NY, March 12, 2009 – The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) announced today that Clay Aiken will present the Excellence in Media Award to Tyra Banks at the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards Presented by IBM and New York presenting partner Prudential. T.R. Knight will present the Vito Russo Award to Suze Orman. Special Recognition awards will be presented to Phil Donahue and The Laramie Project, 10 Years Later – The Lasting Legacy of Matthew Shepard, a two-hour documentary broadcast on Sirius XM Radio.

The GLAAD Media Awards recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their lives and will be held in New York on March 28, 2009 at the Marriott Marquis. Additional GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies will take place in Los Angeles on April 18 at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live, and in San Francisco on May 9 at the Hilton San Francisco.

Comedian Kate Clinton will host the New York event. Other guests and presenters scheduled to attend the New York event include: Jonathan Adler and Simon Doonan (Top Design), Clay Aiken (American Idol), former NBA player John Amaechi, Jensen Atwood and Patrik-Ian Polk (Noah’s Arc: Jumping the Broom), Michelle Clunie (Queer as Folk), Tim Gunn (Project Runway), Van Hansis and Jake Silberman (As the World Turns), Cherry Jones (24), T.R. Knight (Grey’s Anatomy), Jay Manuel (America’s Next Top Model), S. Epatha Merkerson (Law & Order), Jasika Nicole (Fringe), Chris Noth (Sex & the City), Keith Olbermann (MSNBC), Ana Ortiz, Michael Urie and Vanessa Williams (Ugly Betty), Jenny Shimizu (Make Me a Supermodel), Hannah Storm (ESPN), Jane Velez-Mitchell (CNN) and GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano. Junior Vasquez will be the guest DJ at the after-party. More names to be announced.

Awards will be presented onstage in the following categories: Outstanding Film – Limited Release, Outstanding Documentary, Outstanding TV Journalism Segment, Outstanding Digital Journalism Article, and Outstanding Spanish-Language Magazine Overall Coverage.

Actor and singer Clay Aiken will present the Excellence in Media Award to Tyra Banks. The Excellence in Media Award is presented to media professionals who, through their work, have increased the visibility and understanding of the LGBT community. As a long-time ally of the LGBT community, Banks has shown a strong commitment to educating the public about the lives of gay and transgender people. She has consistently featured LGBT people on The Tyra Banks Show and continues to increase the visibility of the community through the diversity of her co-hosts and contestants on America’s Next Top Model, including her inclusion of Isis King, the show’s first transgender contestant, on the most recently completed cycle. Past recipients include Billy Crystal, Julianne Moore, Diane Sawyer, Glenn Close, Patti LaBelle, Vanessa Redgrave, and Phil Donahue.

Suze Orman will receive the Vito Russo Award which is presented to an openly LGBT media professional who has made a significant difference in promoting equal rights for our community. The six-time New York Times bestselling author and two-time Emmy Award winner has raised the profile of LGBT Americans by using her position in the public eye to convey that financial planning is a concern for all Americans, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. Previous Vito Russo Award honorees include Rosie O’Donnell, Alan Cumming, Nathan Lane, Cherry Jones, Elton John, Liz Smith, k.d. lang, David LaChapelle, Brian Graden, and Tom Ford.

A Special Recognition award will be presented to Phil Donahue, who received the Special Honoree Award at the first GLAAD Media Awards in 1990 for his groundbreaking work to spotlight LGBT people and issues in a fair and accurate way on Donahue. Twenty years later, he continues to be a vocal supporter of the LGBT community.

The Laramie Project, 10 Years Later – The Lasting Legacy of Matthew Shepard will also receive a Special Recognition award. The two hour documentary on Sirius XM Radio narrated by acclaimed actress Stockard Channing and featuring an introduction by GLAAD Media Award-winning journalist Barbara Walters shared the stories of individuals touched by the critically acclaimed play The Laramie Project and its discussion of hate crimes.

In January, GLAAD announced 125 nominees in 26 English-language categories, and 60 Spanish-language nominees in 15 categories. A complete list of this year’s 185 nominees is available at www.glaad.org/mediaawards. This year, more than 5,000 people will attend the GLAAD Media Awards in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco raising more than $3.5 million for the organization’s work.

More than 100 corporate sponsors are showing their support, including National Presenting Partner IBM and Local Presenting Partners ABSOLUT® VODKA and Prudential. GLAAD is also grateful to the event’s Platinum Underwriters Comcast, TimeWarner and University of Phoenix. Allstate Insurance Company, American Airlines, Barefoot Wine, Disney/ABC Television Group, HMS Media, Herb Ritts Foundation, New York City Marriott & Renaissance Hotels, Renaissance New York Hotel, MillerCoors, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Southwest Airlines, The Terry Watanabe Charitable Trust and Wyndham Hotel Group support the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards as Underwriter Partners.

General tickets for the New York event are $400 and VIP tickets begin at $500. For a full list of corporate sponsors or information on how to become a corporate sponsor, purchase tickets or a tribute journal ad, please visit www.glaad.org/mediaawards or contact Stamp Event Management at (877) 519-7904 or glaad@stampeventco.com.

About GLAAD
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is dedicated to promoting and ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of people and events in the media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. For more information, please visit www.glaad.org.

Tyra’s Guest HATE Being Gay…But Not Being on TV

Adam Griffiths wrote a great article posted on kentnewsnet about the recent episode of the “Tyra Banks Show” where she hosted several gay men who simply “hate” being gay. It starts by saying:

What’s a gay boy to do when he just can’t stand the fact that no matter how hard he tries to desire and be with women, all he wants at the end of the day is another boy just like him? He goes on the Tyra Banks show.

and ends with….

Being gay is not an isolated part of my life just as much as being straight isn’t a confinable aspect of anyone else’s. If you’re gay and dissatisfied with the culture, it’s pointless to try and escape it. If you stay in the closet and try to inundate your life with everything that’s anti-gay, you’re killing yourself slowly.

I’m not saying resign yourself and don’t try to change the world around you. Being the person you want to be is not any easier or harder despite who you are.

Disenfranchisement happens to everyone, and it’s not doing anyone any good to dumb down such complex social issues on the “Tyra Show.” In Ghandi’s words, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

I have been avoiding giving the show any publicity as I feel it perpetuates negativity towards the LGBT community…especially since that negativity comes from those within the LGBT community.  So thank you Adam Griffiths for bringing light to the matter!  Please visit KentNewsNet.com to read the entire post.  It is well worth the read!

You can also view a portion of the show below:

GA & Kurt Wild Appear on Tyra Banks

Back in November of 2008, GayAgenda.com interviewed Kurt Wild who recently appeared on the Tyra Banks Show.  At the very beginning of the segment entitled “Gay for Pay” they showed a screen shot of of that interview.

Since the show aired much later than it was taped, and the interview GA did with Kurt happened after the show was tapped, I thought it would interesting to let you, our readers compare and contrast.

Click here to read the interview!

Check it out…GayAgenda appears at about 1:17

Andy Dick Tells Tyra – “I’m a Tri-Sexual”

On a current episode of Tyra Bank’s talk show, Andy Dick appeared with Dr. Drew and talked about his substance abuse and his sexuality.  He tells the hostess and the viewers that he is “tri-sexual” because he has tried everything sexual, “except with animals”.

Take a look!

Next Page »