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Barbara Walters Honoured At GLAAD Media Awards

Veteran US TV journalist Barbara Walters was honoured at the 19th GLAAD Media Awards in New York last night.

The annual awards, which recognise members of the media who report or highlight LGBT issues, were hosted by British talk show host Graham Norton, with guest presenters including actors Alan Cumming and Kevin Bacon and American Idol judge Randy Jackson.

Walters was the joint winner of the Outstanding TV Journalism - Newsmagazine prize for her reporting on transgender children. She said it was the most important she had ever received.

"You can forget all the Emmys," Walters said in accepting the award. "This means more to me."

Her report, My Secret Self: A Story of Transgender Children, which aired on ABC's 20/20, examined the lives and struggles of young children who experienced conflicted gender identity, feeling their true sex was the opposite of their physical one.

The US 60 Minutes programme shared the award for its Don't Ask, Don't Tell, about the US military policy on gay and lesbian members.

Other awards were given to The New York Times, magazine GQ, CNN.com and the TV show Boston Legal for their coverage of gay and lesbian issues.

An honorary Excellence in Media Award went to Judy Shepard, the mother of gay college student Matthew Shepard. Judy became an activist for gay and lesbian rights after her son's brutal murder in 1998.

MTV executive Brian Graden won the Vito Russo Award activism award, and BET J, an spin off from Black Entertainment Television presented by Loretta Devine and Dreamgirls actress Anika Noni Rose won a Special Recognition award.

As well as the New York ceremony last night, further ceremonies will be held in Florida, San Francisco and Los Angeles to present awards to the other winners which include Outstanding Film - Wide Release for Stardust, Outstanding Individual Episode in a series (without a regular LGBT character), for 'Do Tell' in ABC's Boston Legal and the Outstanding Music Artist will go to Rufus Wainwright, for his album Release the Stars.

In a new exlusive agreement with the US channel Bravo the 19th Annual GLAAD Media Awards will be broadcast in the States later this year.

Author: Joanne Oatts

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