Educating Americans Through the Media

In order to raise awareness and support for LGBT issues, our members and supporters helped us educate fair-minded Americans through national and local media appearances. We ran several high-profile national ads, including a marriage equality ad narrated by Morgan Freeman. President Chad Griffin was among several key HRC leaders who advanced the cause for equality via the airwaves and print and online media. Noted by the Washington Post as a “lobbying powerhouse”, our grassroots force of more than 1.5 million members and supporters spread the word by sharing these stories across social media platforms.

• HRC launched a national television ad campaign following the historic victories for marriage equality at the ballot box. The ad is titled "Dawn of a New Day" and voiced by Academy Award Winner Morgan Freeman.
• The Washington Post featured a piece written by Sharon Groves, HRC’s Director of Religion and Faith, about how incorporating faith into equality campaigns made a key difference in the 2012 elections.
• MSNBC invited HRC President Chad Griffin to speak about the sweeping victories for LGBT Americans on election night and what’s next in the fight for full equality.
• HRC President Chad Griffin appeared on MSNBC to discuss key findings from HRC’s groundbreaking survey of more than 10,000 LGBT self-identified youth.
• Following Brad Pitt’s generous $100,000 contribution to HRC’s National Marriage Fund in late October, nearly every major media outlet reported on the donation and the marriage ballot measures in Maine, Maryland, Washington and Minnesota.