Gay Group Wants NBC to Reinstate AIDS Show

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) has asked NBC to reinstate an AIDS-themed episode of “Lifestories” which the network recently pulled from its schedule. GLAAD claims that the network is buckling to the “increasingly successful efforts of an intolerant hate group that seeks to drive positive gay and lesbian characters off the air.”

Richard Jennings, executive director of GLAAD, pointed to the recent threatened boycott of Burger King by Christian watchdog groups headed by the Rev. Donald Wildmon in part over the fast-food chain’s advertising on programs that featured likable gay characters. The boycott was called off after Burger King representatives met with representatives of CleaR-TV, a coalition that says it is made up of about 1,600 Christian leaders. Burger King subsequently purchased newspaper ads as an “open letter to the American people” espousing support for “traditional American values on television, especially the importance of the family.”

NBC has said that pressure from advertisers or watchdog groups had nothing to do with replacing the AIDS episode with a show about bone marrow transplants. The latter program simply was more appropriate for the 8 p.m. time slot, a network spokeswoman said. The AIDS program may air when “Lifestories” becomes a series of monthly specials beginning next month, she said.