By: Cliff Kincaid
Accuracy in Media

The attempt by the homosexual group GLAAD to undermine the show “Duck Dynasty,” as a result of the main character’s stand in favor of traditional values, is focusing attention on the nature of this Hollywood-funded group and the financial support it receives from the major media.

GLAAD claimed credit for the A&E network putting one of the stars of “Duck Dynasty,” Phil Robertson, on suspension following publication by GQ magazine of his remarks critical of the homosexual lifestyle. Robertson said homosexuality was sinful, unnatural, and a violation of Biblical standards.

The A&E Network has actually funded GLAAD in the past, according to a list of the organization’s corporate sponsors.

In addition to A&E, corporate sponsors of GLAAD events have included NBC Universal, Comcast, TimeWarner, The Walt Disney Company (including the ABC television group and ESPN), CNN, CBS, Bloomberg, TBS, HBO, and Warner Bros. Entertainment.

In response to Robertson being put on “hiatus” by the network, other members of Robertson’s family say they won’t return to the show until Phil Robertson is reinstated. They said, “We have had a successful working relationship with A&E but, as a family, we cannot imagine the show going forward without our patriarch at the helm. We are in discussions with A&E to see what that means for the future of Duck Dynasty. Again, thank you for your continued support of our family.”

Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth, said GLAAD represents the “Gay Thought Police” and that the organization “has a long history of attempting to shut down speech critical of homosexuality—and demonizing as ‘haters, bigots and homophobes’ those (usually Christians) who speak out against homosexualism or affirm the truth that homosexuals can change and leave the lifestyle.”

Janet Porter of the pro-family group Faith2Action has argued that the homosexual movement aims at nothing less than the criminalization of Christianity, and has issued a statement declaring “We Cry Fowl—Reinstate Phil!”

GLAAD describes itself this way: “Leading the conversation. Shaping the media narrative. Changing the culture. That’s GLAAD at work.”

In addition to pressuring the media into adopting a particular “narrative” on homosexuality—that it is a normal and healthy lifestyle—the group lobbies for passage of pro-homosexual legislation, such as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which has passed the Senate. The group had also demanded that the Boy Scouts of America drop its ban on open homosexuals. The group complied with that demand, leading to the formation of a youth alternative devoted to traditional values, Trail Life USA.

GLAAD issues a “Network Responsibility Index” that in 2013 found the FOX network, an affiliate of News Corporation, to be “the most inclusive broadcast network with 42% of primetime programming hours having included LGBT images…”

It regularly gives awards to people in the media who toe the homosexual line, including:

  • CNN’s Anderson Cooper
  • NBC for its drama series Smash
  • CBS for its reality program The Amazing Race

Other programs and hosts receiving awards in 2013 included:

  • Outstanding TV Journalism—Newsmagazine: “Being Transgender in America” Melissa Harris-Perry (MSNBC)
  • Outstanding TV Journalism Segment: “Obama Endorses Marriage Equality” Good Morning America (ABC)
  • Outstanding Newspaper Article: “Game Changer” by Andy Mannix (City Pages [Minneapolis, Minn.])
  • Outstanding Newspaper Columnist: Frank Bruni (The New York Times)
  • Outstanding Newspaper Overall Coverage: The Boston Globe
  • Outstanding Magazine Article: “School of Hate” by Sabrina Rubin Erdely (Rolling Stone)

Another powerful homosexual media group is the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA), which held its national convention in Boston in August. The group’s corporate and media sponsors include the Fox News Channel, The Boston Globe, The McClatchy Company, The New York Times, WBZ-TV, the Gannett Foundation, Bloomberg, CBS News, Comcast, NBC Universal and Google.

Peter LaBarbara says the media have compromised their objectivity by funding one side of the debate and that, in regard to the Duck Dynasty controversy, “Christians and moral-minded Americans must rally behind Phil Robertson, condemn the homo-fascist ‘Gay Thought Police’ led by GLAAD who regularly pressure the media into silencing moral speech, and demand that an energetic and civil debate on homosexuality be allowed to flourish in this land we call free.”

Cliff Kincaid is the Director of the AIM Center for Investigative Journalism and can be contacted at [email protected]. View the complete archives from Cliff Kincaid.