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GLAAD Media Award Nominations Announced: R20 Included

The 24th Annual GLAAD Media Award Nominations were announced this morning. The list includes several pleasant surprises, such as the The L.A. Complex nominated for "Outstanding Drama Series." The series and its delicious storyline about a closeted gangsta rapper attracted a cult fanbase ... but not nearly enough viewers to avoid cancellation last month.

Rod 2.0 has been nominated for "Outstanding Bog" for the third consecutive year. The other nominees: Autostraddle, Blac(k)ademic, The New Civil Rights Movement and Towleroad. The nominees are terrific. So delighted to be included among them.

The full list of nominees HERE.

Last year we had the honor of being nominated in two categories—"Outstanding Magazine Article" and "Outstanding Blog." The article was "Making It Work: Black Same Sex Couples Raising Kids in the South" in the October 2011 EBONY.

More good news for EBONY this year. Marc Lamont Hill and EBONY.com were nominated for "Outstanding Digital Journalism Article" in "Why Aren't We Fighting for CeCe McDonald?" Other nominees in that category include CNBC.com, Advocate.com, Huffington Post and Buzzfeed's Chris Geidner.

The GLAAD Media Awards are intended to recognize and honor "culture-changing LGBT images and stories." The awards will be celebrated in three ceremonies: New York City on March 16, Los Angeles on April 20 and San Francisco on May 11.

Bravo and congratulations to all of the talented nominees. The full list of nominees HERE.

VIDEO: Kaldrick's Amazing Coming Out Letter on "The L.A. Complex"

Last night's season finale of The L.A. Complex was amazing on so many levels. The writing was intense and emotional. Most of the character arcs were resolved in satisfactory fashion. And then there was the fabulousness otherwise known as Kaldrick King.

Did anyone expect that last scene?

Warning: Spoilers inside. The real brilliance begins at 16:00 AFTER THE JUMP ...

VIDEO: "The L.A. Complex's" Ben Watson on Depression, Self-Esteem

GIF/SCREENCAPS: SonOfBaldwin/LAIsComplex

Did anyone see this? Benjamin Charles Watson of The L.A. Complex recently uploaded an amazing video where he shares his ongoing struggle with depression and low self-esteem.

"A lot of people suffer from depression but they just don't talk about it," says the actor who portrays the openly gay "Tariq". "I understand what it's like to not even want to get out of bed. But recently a lot of good things and good people have [come into] my life. Only because I just don't care anymore about [celebrity]."

Awwww. I just want to give him a huge hug. He's so honest and moving. Watson also credits fan reaction to his character on The L.A. Complex.

Speaking of disappointment: There has been plenty of emotion over the return of Tariq and his scene with Kaldrick. But what about the kiss with bland whatshisname? #Yawn.

Watson's moving video is AFTER THE JUMP ...

HOT: Andra Fuller Discusses His Role on "The L.A. Complex"

GIF/SCREENCAPS: SON OF BALDWIN/ALAYE MEN

The L.A. Complex has become must-see Monday night television ever since the Canadian series made its stateside debut. One obvious reason: The ample servings of beefcake and the scorching same-sex love scenes featuring actor Andra Fuller.

The Toronto-based series has also attracted a cult following among Black gay and bisexual men because of its delicious narrative and characters. Black Enterprise chats up Andra Fuller who portrays the "volatile gangsta rapper Kaldrick King... who also happens to be gay [and] closeted. ... Fuller had no trepidations about taking the part, but those around him were leery about his decision."

"When I accepted this role and what it entailed, my family and friends were like, 'Why do you want to play a gay dude?' They also wanted to know why every time a Black man is shown on TV as gay; he has to be on the down low. But they didn’t look at the ramification: I’m playing a very successful down low rapper on a network television show. That’s never happened before."

Fuller's impeccable performance is buoyed by sharp writing [and] navigates it all — from suicide attempts to intense love scenes — with incredible ease. "As an actor, you don’t run away from a role because it doesn’t coexist with your personal lifestyle," he explains. "If I take a role as a mass murderer, I don’t think I would ever have the gall to kill someone in my real life. But I’m not going to run away from it because I don’t believe in murder."

Very refreshing to hear a Black actor embrace a multi-dimensional gay character with such intensity ... and will not shy away from the sexual component. .

Television depictions of the LGBT community remain overwhelmingly white, according to a recent report by GLAAD. CW remains the top broadcast network for LGBT impressions and has the most diversity—thanks to programming such as The L.A. Complex and America's Next Top Model.

"The gay and lesbian community has been super-supportive and appreciative of what I’ve been putting into Kaldrick," Fuller told Black Enterprise. "It’s definitely an honor to be chosen to play this character in this storyline. I try my damndest every day I step on set to do it justice."

The L.A. Complex will air tonight and Mondays at 8P through October 1. Very much looking forward to tonight's episode after last week's scorcher with the legal fierceness. Kaldrick has met his match. Yasss.

Watch a video clip from last week's hotness AFTER THE JUMP ...

GLAAD: CW Leads with Most LGBT Inclusive and Diverse Programming

Television depictions of the LGBT community are overwhelmingly white and male, according to the sixth annual Network Responsibility Index released by GLAAD. Some sixty-nine percent of LGBT impressions on broadcast networks are made by gay men. Two-thirds of those "broadcast hours showcas[e] white people," notes the report.

CW remains the top broadcast network for LGBT impressions and the most diversity—thanks to programming such as America's Next Top Model and The L.A. Complex , with its intriguing gay storyline around a closeted rapper. "29% of its primetime programming hours [is] LGBT-inclusive. The CW also registered the most racial diversity with 62% of impressions made by LGBT people/characters of color."

For the fourth year in a row CBS remained in last place with 8% LGBT-inclusive hours of primetime programming, dropping 2 percentage points from last year. The leading cable network is Showtime with some 46% of its programming LGBT inclusive. Others include ABC Family (34%), TNT (34%) and HBO (33%).

One final note and disturbing note:

"Transgender representation continues to be low on nearly every television network. Transgender inclusive hours recorded on broadcast television went from 0.002% last year to 0.01% this year, the number also remained extremely low for the cable networks tracked at 0.005%. Transgender storylines are often exploitative and overtly negative"

The report surveyed primetime programming on the five broadcast networks and original primetime programming on 10 major cable networks. The full report HERE.

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Sexy "Down Low" Hip-Hop Storyline on TV
GLAAD Report: HBO Leads Showing Gay Characters

WATCH: Sexy "Down Low" Hip-Hop Storyline on Canadian TV Show

The L.A. Complex is a new Canadian television mini-series that follows a number of residents of a Los Angeles apartment complex that are trying to break into the entertainment industry. Two of the main characters are Black men. And very surprisingly both were introduced as gay/"down low" in the second episode.

Watch Tariq and Kaldrick's steamy hook-up AFTER THE JUMP ...

Hip-hop producer Tariq (Benjamin Charles Watson) is seen kissing his gangsta rapper client King (Andra Fuller). The scene has caused a huge buzz in Canada, where it may be the first time a "DL" relationship and kiss was seen on television. Watson talks about the scene and the role with Canada's Huffington Post.

What was it like filming that scene?

It was nerve-wracking because Andra and I knew it was coming, and it was one of the last scenes of the day. Plus there are so many people around us! We had two choices -- we could run away and hide or jump right in and fulfill the needs of these characters. So we jumped right in!  

Offhand, I can't even think of an openly gay man in the rap or hip-hop worlds, so in that sense your characters are pretty groundbreaking...

It's controversial and it's amazing at the same time. There have already been a lot of comments on the 'net, and a lot of people are already turned off by it because it's not done in the hip-hop world by two black guys. It's just not done. I feel a lot of pressure -- good pressure and bad pressure. It's a story that has to be told and has to be told right. I can't think about the negative part, I just have to fulfill the story of Tariq.

Watson says the DL storyline will continue throughout the series. "We're not the type of show that's going to be like, 'Cool, we're going to tell the hip-hop world that it's time to come out!' and all of that stuff. It's going to be true to life, so it has to be a relationship on the DL."

The L.A. Complex is a six-episode miniseries that airs Tuesdays 9PM ET on MuchMusic. It soon will be seen in America on The CW.

Watch Tariq and Kaldrick's steamy hook-up AFTER THE JUMP ...