GLAAD Responds To Signorile

GLAAD writes us this morning directing us to a response to Michelangelo Signorile's Advocate column criticizing their fundraising methods and other tactics, which I excerpted here yesterday. GLAAD executive director Jarrett Barrios, from a lengthy reaction also posted on the Advocate's site:

It seems like Signorile, and many who criticize GLAAD’s work, do so because we don’t always see eye to eye. Because we don’t respond to the things they want us to respond to in exactly the way they want us to respond — or, sometimes, because we do respond to certain things and they think we shouldn't (and it's worth noting that these voices of criticism can and often do end up disagreeing with each other about what they think GLAAD ought to be doing). That's to be expected in a community of diverse voices and perspectives, and such feedback, from Signorile and many others, is valuable as we shape and continually evaluate our work. [snip] Signorile and others also fail to understand that the role of the GLAAD Media Awards is to help fund this work in addition to recognizing news coverage and entertainment media that are doing an exceptional job at bringing LGBT stories into the living rooms of America — while also setting a fairness benchmark for the media industry. GLAAD is an organization that survives because people know and understand the enormous task we undertake. We appreciate that support and will continue to boldly face our challenges.

Read the entire essay, Barrios responds to several specific incidents which have garnered GLAAD recent criticism.