Date: Sat, 2 Mar 1996 09:30:24 +0100
From: glaad@glaad.org (GLAAD)
Subject: LOCAL ACTIVISTS MAKE A DIFFERENCE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
contact:             Tamra King
                          (213) 658-6775
                          tamkrak@glaad.org

LOCAL ACTIVISTS MAKE A DIFFERENCE

SUCCESSFUL PHONE CAMPAIGN LEAD BY NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS LEADS TO APOLOGY
FOR HOMOPHOBIC REACTION ON NEWS PROGRAM

LOS ANGELES, CA -- March 1, 1996 -- Local community members from the Los
Angeles suburb of Valencia, California,conducted a successful phone
campaign against a television station, KTLA, for showing footage of Gay Day
at Disneyland which then became the target of jokes among the news crew.
The segment was on the recent ABC/Disney merger and held lesbians and gay
men in a condescending manner, according to Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against
Defamaton (GLAAD) Entertainment Media Director, Tamra King.

According to Tom Diccoccio of Valencia, he and and a few neighbors and
friends decided to get together and voice their disappointment.  The
campaign lead to KTLA personality Mark Rubin calling each person
individually with a promise to apology on the March 4th (Monday) morning
news program.

"This is armchair activism at its best.  These are ordinary people who
picked up the phone and made a difference," says King, "This only shows the
importance of speaking up."

GLAAD is a national organization that promotes fair, accurate and inclusive
representation of individuals and events as a means of challenging
discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity.

GLAAD encourages its members to thank Mark Rubin for making the apology by
writing:

Mark Rubin

and send a copy to

Greg Nathanson
General Manager
KTLA (213)
5800 West Sunset Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90028
(213) 460-5500
fax (213) 460-5404 (AM News)

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Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)
glaad@glaad.org
http://www.glaad.org

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, GLAAD, is a national
organization that promotes fair, accurate and inclusive representation of
individuals and events in the media as a means of combatting homophobia and
all forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation or identity.
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