According to E! Online , Kelly Ripa is being honored with the Excellence in Media Award during the 26th Annual GLAAD Media Awards ceremony in New York at the Waldorf Astoria on May 9. One of her best friends is presenting the award to her. So, it will be a double honor when Anderson Cooper presents the award to Kelly. Cooper received GLAAD’s Vito Russo Award in 2013 .
GLAAD is the nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organization. The award is given to professionals who have made a significant difference in promoting equality, and Kelly Ripa has done just that.
Variety reported that GLAAD noticed that through Kelly’s daily morning discussions with co-host Michael Strahan on Live! With Kelly and Michael and interviews with LGBT guests and friends, she has voiced support of marriage equality, sent messages of hope to LGBT youth, and spoken about the importance of LGBT representation in the entertainment business. Kelly has become an advocate for the LGBT community by talking about her many gay friends and sharing her experiences about them on her talk show with millions of viewers.
Ripa has been quite involved with GLAAD’s Spirit Day campaign to raise awareness about so many LGBT youth who are being bullied. Kelly uses every opportunity to speak out about equality. In 2010, when co-hosting the Point Foundation’s Point Honors event with friend Andy Cohen, Ripa sent a message of support to LGBT youth. She also advised parents to be supportive of their children.
Kelly and her husband Mark Consuelos are executive producers of Logo’s Secret Guide to Fabulous with gay co-hosts Rob Younkers, John Gidding, and Theodore Leaf. Kelly does not discriminate against gay people. She and her family are surrounded by them all the time.
Broadway World listed some of Kelly’s contributions to GLAAD , as noted by GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis.
“For over a decade, Kelly Ripa has greeted millions of viewers with messages of acceptance and inclusion. By sharing inclusive stories with her audience and loudly voicing support for her LGBT friends and fans, Kelly is helping to drive acceptance forward.”
Kelly joins a long list or previous Excellence in Media Award winners that include Russell Simmons, Tyra Banks, Judy Shepard, Julianne Moore, Glenn Close, Barbara Walters, Bob and Harvey Weinstein, Diane Sawyer, and Vanessa Redgrave.
Congratulations are in order for Kelly Ripa.
Awesomeness @KellyRipa #kellyripa being honored at #MediaAwards 2015 #GLAAD Excellence Award ?????
— Mz. Chitown ? (@Karma4ThatAzz) April 28, 2015
[Images via Getty Images]
