GLAAD Media Awards Set to Kick Off Collective Heels

As described by the sponsoring organization, we can expect the event that starts this weekend to be "fair, accurate, and inclusive ... and impossibly glam."

Presented annually since 1990 and given out to "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," the 21st GLAAD Media Awards are set to kick off. And one single evening event simply won't do when three nights of fabulousness can be had. The awards ceremonies have taken place as a multi-locational event since 1996, and the 2010 awards begin tonight in New York with additional events in Los Angeles on April 17 and San Francisco on June 5.

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation was founded in 1985, arising from a need to push back against unfair and inaccurate reporting during the early stages of the AIDS crisis. GLAAD's outreach efforts quickly hopped the continent from The Big Apple to Tinseltown where they began working with the entertainment industry, educating producers of media content on how important it is to provide accurate and fair on-screen portrayals of members of the gay community and of the issues and challenges its members must confront and embrace. As the media listened, responded, and evolved, GLAAD responded in kind with annual recognition, through their Media Awards, of jobs well done and of stories beautifully told.

The GLAAD Media Awards recognize standouts among film and television offerings that depict the lives on members of the gay community with compassion, honesty, and often, heaps of humor (for this, look no further than the thigh-slappingly funny RuPaul's Drag Race which airs on Logo and is nominated for Outstanding Reality Program for 2010).

In addition to honoring television shows, feature films, and journalists, the GLAAD Media Awards give special recognition to individuals whose work pushes boundaries and achieves gains and breakthroughs in the intersection of the mass media with the gay community. Examples of these individual awards include:

The Excellence in Media Award is presented in NYC to media and entertainment figures whose work has heightened the visibility and understanding of members of the LGBT community. Past winners of this award include Diane Sawyer, Billy Crystal and Patti LaBelle.The Vanguard Award is presented in LA to recognize notable achievement in the promotion of equal rights, and has in the past been bestowed upon Eric McCormack, Charlize Theron, and Janet Jackson.With similar criteria to the Excellence in Media Award, the Golden Gate Award, presented in SF, honors individuals whose work has helped to foster improved visibility and understanding. Stockard Channing, Megan Mullally and Jennifer Beals have received the honor in years past.

 

Among the New York event's special honorees are the cast of the Broadway production Hair and Cynthia Nixon. Nominees for awards to be handed out tonight include films A Single Man, Precious, Taking Woodstock, and TV shows Glee, Mad Men, Modern Family, Little Ashes, RuPaul's Drag Race, One Life to Live, and The Joy Behar Show.

The complete list of nominees and special honorees are available for review on GLAAD's website. Stay tuned to Tonic for upcoming feature coverage of this event.

 

Photo by stevendamron via Flickr