GLAAD MEDIA AWARDS NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

The US’s Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has announced the nominees and honourees for its 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. The announcement was made on Sunday at a press conference held at in Park City, Utah, the site of the Sundance Film Festival.

Among the nominees: Matthew Vaughn’s fantasy film Stardust; Julie Taymor’s musical film Across the Universe; Eytan Fox’s third GLAAD Media Award-nominated film The Bubble; new hit television shows Dirty Sexy Money and Greek; hit sitcom My Name is Earl; and the episodes “Boy Crazy” from Cold Case and “Do Tell” from Boston Legal.

The L Word, reality hit Work Out, 60 Minutes, Entertainment Weekly and three episodes of The Oprah Winfrey Show were also nominated.

“This year’s extraordinary nominees exemplify the important strides we have made as a community toward creating a truly inclusive society,” said GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano.

“GLAAD’s persistent, effective efforts to educate media professionals continue to yield a growing body of stories about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people that are more compelling, more honest, and more real than ever before.”

The GLAAD Media Awards are split across four events on different dates: New York on March 17; South Florida on April 12; Los Angeles on April 26 and San Francisco on May 10.

GLAAD also announced that it will recognise Special Honourees including television executive Brian Graden at the New York ceremony, singer Janet Jackson, singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright and the late photographer Herb Ritts in Los Angeles, creator of The L Word Ilene Chaiken and activist/author David Mixner in San Francisco, and actor Wilson Cruz in South Florida.

“This year’s honourees have used the power of their words, their music, and their art to advocate on behalf of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” Giuliano said. “They are changing hearts and minds, and opening people’s eyes to the common, human experiences we share…”

The GLAAD Media Awards recognize and honour the media for fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their lives.