LOS ANGELES, March 6 - Speaking at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation's (GLAAD) annual media awards in Beverly Hills, American journalist Don Lemon used his platform to voice concern about a perceived uptick in authoritarianism and to press for expanded protections for LGBTQ people.
On the red carpet before the ceremony, Lemon cautioned that consolidation within the media industry could pose threats to newsroom diversity and to free expression. "Its going to be really important for independent journalists and independent media to stand up for representation," he said to Reuters.
The remarks came against the backdrop of a proposed transaction in the industry: Paramount Global's plan for a $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, which owns CNN, the cable news outlet where Lemon was fired in 2023 from his anchor position. Paramount has stated that editorial independence at the network will be preserved if the deal goes forward.
The GLAAD awards ceremony on Thursday represented Lemons first substantial public appearance since his January arrest while covering protests concerning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minneapolis. At the event he publicly expressed gratitude to GLAAD CEO Sarah Kate Ellis and the National Association of Black Journalists for their support following that arrest.
In his remarks onstage Lemon underscored a principle he framed as central to journalism: "Journalism is about the truth, and the truth has no right or no left," he said.
The evening, hosted by actor Jonathan Bennett and featuring an onstage appearance by Liza Minnelli, celebrated LGBTQ storytelling across entertainment platforms. HBO Max and Crave series "Heated Rivalry" was honored as outstanding new TV series. Creator Jacob Tierney acknowledged earlier series such as "Queer as Folk" and "The L Word" for having opened doors for contemporary shows.
"Heated Rivalry" is a drama that focuses on a high-stakes hockey rivalry and a clandestine romance between two players, roles played by Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie.
Comedians Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers were presented with the Stephen F. Kolzak Award in recognition of their work elevating LGBTQ visibility through their long-running pop-culture podcast "Las Culturistas," which has featured a range of celebrity guests including Lady Gaga and Laura Dern.
GLAAD said it will stream the awards ceremony on Hulu beginning March 21.
Separately within the program, an investment-oriented segment asked whether Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) is a buy. The piece noted that ProPicks AI evaluates WBD alongside thousands of other companies each month using more than 100 financial metrics. It described the system as using AI to identify stock ideas by assessing fundamentals, momentum, and valuation, and cited past ProPicks AI winners including Super Micro Computer (+185%) and AppLovin (+157%). The copy noted that the AI is neutral in bias - it selects stocks based on current data.