TV & Showbiz

TV Wedding Contest to Allow Gay Couples as Contestants

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Last Updated on March 15, 2018

This year’s annual “Modern Wedding Contest” on NBC’s Today show will allow gays and lesbians the chance to win a free dream wedding, according to a release issued from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).

In the past, gays and lesbians were excluded from participating since the wedding had to take place live in the state of New York, where Today is headquartered. The state of New York does not issue marriage licenses to same sex couples.

However, what the state does do is to accept and honor same-sex wedding licenses issued in states where same-sex marriage is legal. (Those states are Iowa, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and the District of Columbia.)

Couples are being given an extra week to apply, and winners will be voted on by Today show viewers. The actual wedding takes place in the fall.

What do you think? Is this going too far in tolerance, or is it about time that same-sex couples were recognized? If a gay couple wins the contest, would you watch the ceremony? And do you think it would be a positive for the gay and lesbian community?

Finally, the really big question: do you think the American public would actually vote for a same-sex couple?

the authorPatrick
Patrick is a Christian with more than 30 years experience in professional writing, producing and marketing. His professional background also includes social media, reporting for broadcast television and the web, directing, videography and photography. He enjoys getting to know people over coffee and spending time with his dog.

2 Comments

  • I don't think the society is in any great danger of becoming too tolerant.

    I might watch a gay wedding, but I wouldn't watch a traditional one; I've been to enough of them to be familiar with the plot. Never been to a gay one, so there's a slight chance of it maintaining my interest longer than a "straight" wedding would.

  • By NBC’s own rules they had to allow same-sex marriage contestants on the show. I think that they never thought about the fact that New York State recognizes same-sex marriages. When NBC said that the constants had to be able to marry legally in New York, they opened the door to same-sex marriage. If they didn’t allow gays and lesbians to be married on the show, they would be open to law suits because New York has a sexual orientation non-discrimination law (but not a gender identity non-discrimination law). Maybe next year you might see the contest held in Los Vegas.

    I do think it is about time that same-sex marriages were recognized. In Connecticut, the newspapers posts wedding announcements, but there are not many of them because it “Outs” the couple. I know a minister in Greenwich who performs about five marriages a month of couples from New York. It has become a big business in the towns along the New York border here in Connecticut, and in Massachusetts and Vermont.

    Would I watch it? No, because I don’t watch the Today show after the first hour. However, I do think it would be a very positive for the LGBT community. Just the fact that NBC is allowing same-sex couples to apply has spread all over the blogsphere like wildfire.

    Will a same-sex couple make to the actual voting phase, I doubt it very much. If they did, I do not think the American public would vote for a same-sex couple. However, the LGBT community would, and I think that they might have a very good chance of winning. Because the straight vote would be split between the other contestants while the LGBT vote would all be for the same-sex couple.

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