First out US primetime news anchor takes to the air

Saturday saw TV journalist Thomas Roberts taking to the air on NBC’s Nightly News, making him the first openly gay anchor of an evening news program on a major television network in the US.

The Huffington Post described the event as “a huge milestone” not only for the 42-year-old journalist’s career but also for gay rights.

Roberts, who has also twice hosted Miss Universe, told The Advocate that his ground breaking spot on the news show was “huge honour.”

America’s Human Rights Campaign (HRC) congratulatedhim on his achievement and celebrated “the moment as a symbol of the ever-increasing visibility of LGBT individuals in media.”

Roberts first revealed he was gay in 2006 while speaking at the annual convention of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) in Miami, Florida.

He has been in a relationship with Patrick D. Abner since 2000, whom he married in September 2012.